Glass, wood, metal and clay were the super powers of 24 young teenagers from Ukraine who participated in the artistic project “Roots and dreams”, the second stage of the project ” “, carried out by the Cultural Association of -in the moon and in the attic. Within it, they made four artistic installations in the form of monuments that convey the message of hope in a world at peace. The “Roots and Dreams” project wanted to be an oasis of creativity and empowerment of teenagers by contributing to the feeling of sharing a positive idea and belonging to it.
The 4 monuments built around the concept of “Roots and dreams” proposed by the artist Ana Petrovici-Popescu are exhibited until February 2023 in the courtyards or inside the four partner museums – at the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant, on Kiseleff road, the monument “The Soul of the Mystical Nature”, made by young Ukrainians together with artists Ana Petrovici-Popescu, Adrian Piorescu and Florin Zhu, carries an encouraging message for all of us: never stop dreaming!
From the amorphous pieces of clay, an anchor fish surrounded by a snake, a butterfly fused with a star, a ballerina-guitar, a monkey, a can with love and a dragon that can travel through time were created.
The second monument, “The House of Hearts”, made of wood and iron, was built and placed in the inner courtyard of the Suțu Palace, under the guidance of the sculptor Ovidiu Toader. In the “House of Hearts”, life continues to exist despite the turn it has taken. It represents a tree of desires, desires that take time to fulfill and hearts to embrace them.
The third monument is at the main entrance of the National Museum of Old Maps and Books. Together with the artist Raluca Băjenaru, the Ukrainian teenagers imagined a world bringing light to people’s souls in the form of planets that represent the future of contemporary man and future generations.
The National Museum of Romanian Literature hosts the monument with transparent pages and visible dreams, “The Diary of the Future “Dear Ukraine”, made under the careful guidance of the artist Ioana Stelea.
On Wednesday, December 21, from 4:00 p.m., the team of the entire project that opened the doors of the four museums to reach the hearts of young Ukrainians is gathering for a first tour of the four monuments, a tour that will also be organized for the general public, starting from January 2022.
More than 300 Ukrainian teenagers have participated so far in the non-formal education and recreation programs of the “Open Museums Open Hearts” project from June to October. Among the activities organized within the four museums, we mention four screenings at the Peasant Museum Cinema of two Ukrainian films – “Stop Zemlia”, directed by Kateryna Gornostai, and the documentary “Ivan’s Land”, made by Andrii Lysetsky, both winners of numerous international awards, as well as 17 workshops of urban introspection, games and socio-educational animation, shadow and puppet theater workshops, modeling clay workshop, glass painting workshop, storytelling workshop and map making workshops, carried out by 9 educators cultural and Romanian artists, but also of Ukrainian origin.
Also, on the occasion of the Independence Day of Ukraine, together with the Romanian Angel Appeal Foundation, a party was organized at the National Museum of Old Maps and Books, attended by 43 Ukrainian children and young people. For four hours, they had the opportunity to socialize and feel good listening to music to their taste, dancing and participating in socio-educational animation activities. In the months of October – November, young Ukrainians received the challenge of being the creators of new worlds, and next year they will have the opportunity to translate their ideas in three exhibitions that will be made together with young Romanians.