DepartmentEurope

Соняхи зі сходу (Sunflowers from the East)

NamePainting on artillery shell casing

Artist Vladyslav Pikun

CultureUkrainian

Date2024

Place madeLviv, Ukraine, Europe

Medium80 mm artillery shell casing, acrylic paint

Dimensions13 3/4 × 3 3/4 × 3 3/4 in. (34.9251 × 9.525 × 9.525 cm)

Credit LineMuseum of International Folk Art, Gift of Khrystyna Valko, IFAF Collection, FA.2025.11.1

Object numberFA.2025.11.1

Collections

New Acquisitions: The Gift of Folk Art

DescriptionVladyslav Pikun, age 20 - “Sunflowers from the East reminds us of our homeland, prevents us from breaking down, and helps us move forward,” shares Pikun.

Khrystyna Valko is a teacher, artist, and art therapist committed to helping civilians process their war trauma. Several of her students have special needs and many have lost their homes, parents, or other family members when their towns in Eastern Ukraine were destroyed by Russian bombardment. Some of the painted objects shown here came from ammunition that was part of a US aid package for Ukraine. “They’re coming back home after a long journey, imbued with newfound meaning,” Valko shares.