The West Hartford Art League will be auctioning art work honoring Ukraine and donating proceeds to assist the Ukrainian National Home with shipping donations.
Work By Nicole Anker. Courtesy of West Hartford Art League
By Ronni Newton
The West Hartford community has been eagerly supporting efforts to provide humanitarian aid to the Ukrainian people who are now in the third week of a war with Russia, and an art sale launching March 18 will help raise funds to ship donations collected by the Ukrainian National Home.
Roxanne Stachelek, executive director of the West Hartford Art League, said donations have been requested from artists, and the proceeds from an online sale of the work will be given directly to the Ukrainian National Home in Hartford.
“We have 30 or 40 pieces so far, and we are going to launch the sale on Friday,” she said. Initially the fundraiser was going to begin in April, but donations started coming in and she didn’t want to lose momentum.
Work By Sandra Chase. Courtesy of West Hartford Art League
Artists were asked to donate original works, no larger than 11-inches-by-14-inches, depicting either the sunflower – which is Ukraine’s national flower – or in the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag.
The Ukrainian National Home has collected clothing, non-perishable food items, diapers, medical supplies, and more that will be shipped, via Poland, directly to provide assistance to the Ukrainian people.
Myron Kolinsky, organizational director for the Ukrainian National Home, said a 53-foot tractor trailer headed to New Jersey last week, carrying the first load of donated clothing, food, medical supplies, and other items on its journey to Poland and Ukraine.
“We had an overwhelming response last week,” Kolinsky said following a vigil held in West Hartford on March 13, and while they cannot accommodate any more donations of supplies, they are in need of monetary support for the shipping costs.
Another tractor trailer is set to depart on March 24, and there are seven pods in the parking lot of the Ukrainian National Home with sorted goods, as well as more donations in the lower level of the home as well that still need to be sorted.
The cost to ship each container is at least $20,000, Stachelek said.
The online art auction will begin on Friday, March 18, and beginning that day works can be viewed and purchased made through this link.
Anyone who would like a receipt for their purchase/donation can send an email to [email protected]. The West Hartford Art League, founded in 1934, is a 501(c)(3) organization.
Artists can still donate works for the auction through March 25, Stachelek said.
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