Ukrainian-born designer, artist, and architect Victoria Yakusha pays tribute to Ukraine with a new limited edition collection as a form of artistic resistance. Stepping on Ukrainian soil is a limited-edition collection of objects made from natural and sustainable materials that have defined the designer’s previous work. Presented at Design Miami/Basel 2022, the works also won recognition as the Best Curio Show of the year.
The designer’s creative philosophy is based around a so-called ‘live design’ approach: her creations are centered on the land and ethnic roots. The same philosophy is reflected in her latest limited edition collection, Stepping on Ukrainian soil, through which the designer highlights her attachment to her native land. The collection’s pieces aim to explore the unique connection of Ukrainian citizens with the Ukrainian land, its “power, history, and spirit”, the designer emphasized.
As part of the Stepping on Ukrainian soil object collection, Victoria Yakusha has created a two-meter long hand-woven tapestry and a series of animal-like benches and stools. The former is titled Zemlia (meaning ‘soil’): the wool-woven, layered texture of the tapestry represents Ukraine’s black soil, the chernozem, while its long, umbilical cord-like threads symbolize the ancient connection between the people of Ukraine and their land. Victoria Yakusha has long been incorporating various Ukrainian artisanal crafts into her work: this was no different in the case of Zemlia, which she created making use of the ancient Ukrainian technique of lizhnykarstvo, combined with her own creative approach.
The other pieces in the collection are dubbed Volyky (meaning ‘freedom’) and Duzhyi (meaning ‘strong’). The former consists of black and white, textured benches in abstract shapes reminiscent of animals, made from one of Victoria Yakusha’s signature materials, ztista (meaning “made of dough”), a mix of clay, hay, recycled paper, and other natural materials. Also made from this characteristic material are the black and white stools named Duzhyi, which are characterized by their distinct curved shapes and embody the idea of a “desired firm ground.”
The limited collection is represented by FAINA Gallery, Antwerp.
Photos: Tijs Vervecken
Source: Press Release
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