Since Russia’s tragic invasion of Ukraine on February 24, singer/songwriter Joan Baez has been moved by the “unequivocal and astounding bravery” of the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
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To honor the stoic 44-year-old, Baez created a painting “meant to convey the sadness of war, the resilience of the Ukrainian people, and the desire for peace.”
“If I were to meet Zelenskyy today, in the heat of the ghastly battle he has inherited, though I’m deeply saddened by the organized violence, I would have no advice, no judgment, only a humble salute to his monumental courage,” Baez said in a statement.
The painting, which uses the colors of the Ukrainian flag, blue and yellow, as a background, shows the President amongst a field of sunflowers as white storks fly overhead. The Sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine and storks are considered the national bird of the country, showing a symbol of family, loyalty, and patriotism.
According to the release, the portrait is being released in a limited-edition series of 250 prints signed and numbered by the artist. Priced at $500 plus shipping and handling, the archival pigment print is 23”x16 3/8” on paper generously donated by the Legion Paper Company. Full details can be found HERE.
All sales of the painting benefit the International Medical Corps, whose teams inside Ukraine and in the surrounding region are providing desperately needed medical and mental health services as well as working to aid refugees.
Baez is dedicating the Zelenskyy portrait to the “Ukrainians who have engaged in nonviolent resistance—standing in the path of Russian tanks, confronting invading troops with the truth about this unjust war and engaging in countless acts of compassion and respect for human life.”
“There are the reports that bring us heart and a way to work through our grief,” Baez says. “This painting honors their courage as well.”
Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images
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