Due to its national art Ukraine has become known in China

Tetyana Protcheva, a master from Kyiv, spent half a year in Shanghai, China, at the EXPO-2010 exhibition. There, among other masters, she was presenting Ukraine and introducing Ukrainian culture and traditions to foreigners. For this, the master was continuously conducting master-classes in embroidery for Chinese people and the exhibition guests.

In particular, under lady Tetyana’s coordination an embroidered map of the world was created and it was submitted to the EXPO museum in Shanghai after the exhibition ended. Beside Ukrainian deputies who visited the exhibition now and then, participants from 192 countries and all the volunteers among the exhibition visitors joined the process of the map embroidering.

“This map is a uniting symbol of the EXPO” – Tatyana Protcheva says. “In this way Ukraine has became known in the world. Even if Ukraine happens not to have any opportunities to take part in similar EXPO exhibitions in future, it will look as if our country is a constant participant of this exhibition. Not all exhibits were accepted for the museum so it was especially pleasant to me that they liked the map there”.

Besides, in accordance with the master, due to this activity with the map embroidery, people came to know a lot about Ukraine. I saw it shown on TV screens in the underground and on the local TV. When I fell ill and came to a hospital I used to hear the following from people: “Oh, I’ve seen you; you were embroidering. Are you from Ukraine?!” And when I was buying fruit at the local market people used to smile to me and say that they saw me, too” – Tetyana Protcheva tells us gladly.

In accordance with the author, “Ukraine was practically the only country at the exhibition, in the hall of which masters of national arts were working. All the other countries represented themselves via contemporary technologies.” EXPO exhibition was visited by six Ukrainian masters working in different traditional national arts, in particular, straw weaving, pottery, folk decorative painting and pysanka-making art. All of them shared their skills with foreign representatives.

EXPO exhibition lasted from May, 1st till October 31st of 2010. 246 countries and international organizations took part in it.

Text by Kateryna Kachur
Photographs from the Tetyana Protcheva’s exhibition