Ukrainian Art Weeks in Rome
From 30 June to 7 July 2026, the Esperienza Europa – David Sassoli space in Rome (Piazza Venezia, 6), with the support of the European Parliament Office in Italy, hosted “Tra radici e futuro” (“Between Roots and Future”), a large-scale exhibition held as part of the Ukrainian Art Weeks project. Among its participants was Haliia Mykhalchenko, a master of traditional Petrykivka decorative painting.
Haliia Mykhalchenko is a master of traditional Petrykivka painting who presents this art form to an international audience in Italy. Her active creative life and her participation in art exhibitions began with the outbreak of the full-scale war in Ukraine. In those difficult times, art became for her not only a means of self-expression but also a powerful tool of cultural diplomacy. Through her work she seeks to introduce European audiences to the richness, depth and authenticity of Ukrainian traditions. Each of her pieces is a living link with her homeland, its history and its unbreakable spirit. Today she proudly carries the mission of an ambassador of Ukrainian culture abroad, revealing the beauty of Ukraine’s heritage to the world, in the belief that art can unite hearts, give hope and bring light closer in the darkest of times.
Her exhibition concept is built on reviving and preserving the sacred code of Petrykivka painting as a symbol of the indestructible spirit of the Ukrainian people.
The vivid ornaments, birds and flowers on her canvases symbolise the triumph of life, the beauty of her native land and faith in the victory of light over darkness. The exhibition became an artistic manifesto of love for Ukraine, in which traditional art speaks to the world in the language of peace, harmony and resilience.
