The sunflower is a symbol of courage and love for the homeland. Since 2020, the government has approved it as the official symbol of the Day of Remembrance of the Defenders of Ukraine, which is celebrated on August 29, the date of the Ilovaisk tragedy.
With the outbreak of a full-scale war, these golden flowers have acquired additional meanings.
"Put the seeds in your pockets so that when you are killed, sunflowers will sprout here," a resident of the captured Genichesk told the occupier. She said it calmly and confidently, not afraid of the weapon.
And they sprouted. On the site of heavy battles, in the craters of artillery shells, sunflower fields still abound on Ukrainian land. These are the flowers of will and steadfastness, hope and struggle.
Ukrainian artists have been depicting them for generations, and it is no wonder that interest in such works is only growing. Admire the August sunflowers from the Painting and Graphics section on Violity.
"Sunflowers" by Ivan Yudenko
Ivan Yudenko was born in 1940 in the village of Pirohovychi, Kyiv region. He graduated from the Kyiv Art Institute. In 1992, he was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Ukraine.
"Sunflowers" by Yosyp Bokshai
Yosyp Bokshai (1930-2002, Uzhhorod) was a hereditary artist, a representative of a whole dynasty of Transcarpathian artists. He painted mostly still lifes, landscapes, and genre paintings of Transcarpathian life. He also worked in the technique of sgraffito: many local buildings are decorated with his paintings.
"Sunflowers" and "Summer" by Oleksii Bidnoshei
Oleksii Bidnoshei (b. 1957) from Kyiv is the son of the famous Ukrainian artist Danylo Bidnoshei. He studied at the Hrekov Odesa Art School and the Fedorov Lviv Polygraphic Academy. He is a master of landscape, still life and portraiture.
"Sunflowers" by Yurii Zhurka
Yurii Zhurka (b. 1965) is a contemporary artist from Krolevets, Sumy region. He is a recognized master of rural landscape whose works are very popular among Violity users.
"Sunflowers" by Kateryna Horbatiuk
Another very popular artist on Violity is the contemporary Ukrainian artist Kateryna Horbatiuk.
"Corn and Sunflowers" by Serhiy Berezin
It's hard to believe, but Serhiy Berezin is a self-taught artist. He was born in 1959 in the city of Stryi. He graduated from Lviv Polytechnic and has a degree in inorganic chemistry, which helps him create his own designer paints.
"Sunflowers" by Oleksandr Chemodanov
Oleksandr Chemodanov was born in Mykolaiv in 1972. He graduated from the Samokysh Crimean Art School and the Kharkiv Art and Industrial Institute. Since 2004 he has been teaching at the Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts.
"Sunflowers" by Yuriy Vatkin
Yuriy Vatkin was born in 1975 in Dnipro. He received his art education in Kharkiv and joined the National Union of Artists of Ukraine in 2008. Over the next decade, he held 7 solo exhibitions in Ukraine and abroad.
The full-scale invasion caught the artist in the village of Cherkaski Tyshky. He created several paintings while under occupation. The armed forces liberated the village in early May 2022.
