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Representations of the Mother and Holy Child are often given Ukrainian attributes embroidered shirts and traditional apparel. In fact it is not unusual to see the traditional Christmas story interpreted from a Ukrainian cultural perspective. The Nativity scene can be displaced into a Ukrainian landscape, for example, into a Carpathian Mountain village (Mykhailo Moroz, Come All Ye Faithful), or the interior of a Ukrainian village home (Zoya Lisowska’s Madonna and the Painted Oven). In similar fashion William Kurelek displaces the Nativity scene into a prairie landscape (Three Wise men from the West).
Individual characters in the Christmas drama may assume Ukrainian identities. The Three Wise Kings are portrayed as a medieval prince (or knight) of Kyivan Rus’, a hetman or Cossack nobleman of the Cossack state, and a Sich Rifleman of early 20th c. Ukraine. These images affirm the significance of three historical periods associated with an independent and a culturally vibrant Ukrainian state.
Similar in vein are Christmas postcards depicting partisans (1942-54) of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) sadly marking Christmas away from home. For these Ukrainian patriots waging an armed struggle against both Nazi and Soviet totalitarian regimes, the Star of Bethlehem embody all the hopes and aspirations of the Ukrainian people for freedom, justice and independence.
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The reality of not being able to celebrate Christmas openly in Soviet Ukraine is further underscored by cards such as Edward Kozak’s Nativity in the Catacombs. Together with the partisan cards they speak to the sacrifices and clandestine efforts taken to maintain one’s national identity, a deeply ingrained and painful reality of the Ukrainian narrative.
Ukrainian Christmas cards also act as “keepers of the tradition”. They contain iconic images of ancient Ukrainian Christmas customs or their visual symbols: carolers with a star, the didukh or sheaf of wheat, the kolach bread, twelve meatless dishes, and so on.
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Whether whimsical in nature (Natalka Husar), stylized (Jacques Hnizdovsky), humorous (Nick Nickilchuk) or serenely impressionistic (Mykhailo Moroz), the cards tell quintessentially Ukrainian stories.
The artists depicting these stories are all of Ukrainian descent. Their depictions create a particularly Ukrainian universe with a strong sense of national identity and a sense of community and its aspirations.
Source: Oseredok News Vol. 2, No.3 December 2010.
The Ukrainian Cultural and Educational Centre (a.k.a. Oseredok) is one of North America’s largest and most unique Ukrainian cultural and heritage resource centres maintaining an Archives, Art Gallery, Library, Museum, an Education Extension Services Program and a Gift Boutique. The Centre’s mandate of preservation and cultural programming is backed by significant financial commitment from its membership as well as the public and private sectors. The Centre is located in Downtown Winnipeg, one block north of the Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature at the juncture of Main Street and the Disraeli Freeway.
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Ukrainian Christmas Eve Holy Supper
This video was created for a class on "Ritual and Myth in Human Experience"; the video summarizes a more detailed research paper.Click Here to View Video
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