By Nicky Carter – Reporter
ARTWORK created by a teenage refugee who has made her home in Barnard Castle has been included in a unique exhibition at the Hippodrome, in Darlington.
The three-month exhibition Identity, opened in the Gillian Dickinson Gallery, at the Hippodrome in Darlington on Friday, October 28, and includes photographs, murals and mixed media images.
The exhibition raises awareness of the perceived loss of personhood and a sense of identity. It has been put together by Darlington-based Ukrainian artist Veronika Kovel, in partnership with the Morrison Trust, which works closely with Darlington Assistance for Refugees and The Well Methodist Church in helping Ukrainian refugees integrate into their new communities.
Among the work on display are two pencil drawings by 13-year-old aspiring artist Anna Zagovska, who with her mother Olga and younger brother Michael, fled their home in Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv, earlier this year.
Anna, who is learning English and a pupil at Teesdale School, was delighted to be asked to submit drawings for the exhibition through Darlington Assistance for Refugees.
Translator Oxana Johnson said: “Anna’s pictures are her way of expressing her emotions as she finds it difficult to put into words what she is feeling. At home Anna had a cat and she drew it on the journey from Ukraine as she was missing it.”
The second picture is a self-portrait in which Anna has drawn herself wearing the traditional dress of Ukraine, surrounded by sunflowers under a bright, blue sky.
For more information about the exhibition visit www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk.
