It took Roman Bonchuk, a young artist from Ivano-Frankivsk, a whole year to complete his monumental painting Megahistory of Ukraine. The titanic canvas, measuring 30 x 5 meters, has every right to be entered in the Book of Records. According to Bonchuk, he used over 150 kilograms of paint for his canvas, which features more than 1,000 prominent figures from Ukrainian history.
The BIG phenomenon is becoming a social necessity. As a rule, this phenomenon is evident in Ukraine’s capital city, but it has now appeared in Ivano-Frankivsk. Bonchuk, who is 27 years old, dared to create something fabulous. His vision of Ukrainian history motivated the former student of the Lviv Polytechnic and Harvard University (History of Culture and Art Department) to embark on this project.
The work features three dominant figures: in the center is the Oranta - the Blessed Virgin with her hands canonically raised, with the palms facing outwards; the Archangel Michael, the field commander in the army of God against His enemies; and the Archangel-Baptist of all Christians on the left. On the right you can see Saint Nicholas the Miracle Worker, one of the most respected of all Christian saints. These figures are surrounded by portraits of outstanding personalities who contributed to the history of our country in different period: princes of Kyivan Rus’, military leaders, reformers, thinkers, artists, poets, writers, and others. In Bonchuk’s monumental work Christian symbols together with modern and ancient history are interwoven with symbols of Ukraine’s architectural heritage and the world wars. The canvas was first unveiled in Lviv and will go on display shortly in Kyiv, Donetsk, and Odesa.
