The All-Ukrainian Student Drawing Competition "Ukrainian-Jewish Encounter: Our stories are incomplete without each other" presented in Lviv
On 11 September 2026, the Lviv Regional Children's Library hosted the presentation of the All-Ukrainian Student Drawing Competition "Ukrainian-Jewish Encounter: Our stories are incomplete without each other" as part of the 33rd Lviv International BookForum.
The event targeted middle- and high-school teachers and students. The organizers shared the project's goals and guidelines for participation and presented the winning artworks from all previous years of the competition.
Veronika Koshiv, a graphic artist and librarian at the Lviv Regional Children's Library, delivered the opening remarks. She emphasized that Ukrainians and Jews have lived side by side for centuries, mutually enriching each other's cultures.
Vladyslav Hrynevych, Jr., UJE's regional manager in Ukraine, shared details about the competition, which is open to students in grades 8–11. Artwork can be created throughout the school year, and submissions are accepted until 1 December. Winners receive cash prizes, while all participants are awarded book sets published with UJE's support. Every year, an official award ceremony is held at the Sholom Aleichem Museum in Kyiv, where the participants' artworks remain on display for a month. Detailed regulations can be found here.
Hrynevych also spoke about UJE's initiatives and presented the album-catalog titled All-Ukrainian Children's Drawing Competition 2021/2022. Attendees were particularly moved by the story behind the drawing "Hide Me," inspired by a tale from the artist's grandfather, who was hidden in a cellar by a Ukrainian woman during World War II.
Please click on the image to view the presentation of the winners' drawings.
Hrynevych also pointed out that school curricula mostly focus on the tragic chapters of the shared history of Ukrainians and Jews, whereas the competition invites participants to explore what unites the two nations as well.
Daryna Nadashkevych, an artist, art historian, and art therapist who has served on the competition's jury for six years, led an interactive discussion with the audience showcasing winning entries from previous years. Together with the students, she explored various techniques such as gouache, watercolor, graphics, collage, and diptychs, as well as symbols that connect Ukrainian and Jewish cultures: the menorah, red poppy, pomegranate, vyshyvanka (traditional embroidered shirt), and vytynanka (traditional papercutting).
She explained that formal art education is not required to participate. Entries are evaluated by an international professional jury that views only the artwork itself, with rankings determined by average scores. Nadashkevych advised the students to ask their grandparents about their childhood and, instead of writing it down, try to draw their family story, noting that preserving family memories is also a way of preserving shared history.
Varvara Medonchak, a two-time competitor and past winner, attended the presentation. She shared insights into her artwork, explaining the core concepts and detailed imagery in her drawings. Specifically, she highlighted features such as a frame styled after traditional Jewish vytynanka, synagogues, a scene inspired by Sholom Aleichem's Tevye the Dairyman, and portraits of prominent Israeli figures born in Ukraine.
A full recording of the event is available here. As a reminder, submissions for the contest are accepted until 1 December 2026. We warmly invite students in grades 8–11 to participate!
Scenes during and immediately following the presentation of the All-Ukrainian Student Drawing Competition "Ukrainian-Jewish Encounter: Our stories are incomplete without each other" at the Lviv Regional Children's Library. 11 September 2026.
Vladyslav Hrynevych, Jr., Regional Manager, UJE Ukraine
