A Displaced Belarusian Artist is Helping Ukrainians Integrate in Sweden

When Russia launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb.24, 2022, millions of Ukrainians fled to EU countries in search of shelter.

Sweden, a country that has long been a political ally of Ukraine and, historically, was among those who accepted a substantial number of Ukrainian refugees. In March 2022, when the exodus was at its peak, the number of applications for asylum in the country exceeded 26,000.

Since then, the influx has dwindled to a few hundred a month. Some of those who originally arrived, have left for other countries. While some of those remaining have found an unlikely refuge in the host country.

Craftsmanship

“When a woman engages in manual work, she might not realize how the repetitive movements benefit her heart rate and nervous system. For her, it is a creative outlet. However, for Ukrainian women who have found refuge in Sweden due to Russian aggression, craftsmanship is not only a therapy but also a form of creativity and active assistance to their occupied country,” says Ludmila Christeseva, a Belarusian-born artist based in Stockholm who reached out to Ukrainian refugees in the early days of the full-scale invasion.

Christeseva has been displaced herself. Having left her Belarusian hometown, Mogilev, two decades ago in search of a better future and art education in Sweden. She has been unable to return home since the last major protests in 2020. Not even when her mother passed away – all due to the fear of being arrested for her anti-Lukashenko stance.

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“The plight of Ukrainian women spoke to me. My country has been ruled by the same man for over 20 years. And I know from my own experience how difficult it is for aliens to integrate into new societies. Especially in times of war,” she says.

Christeseva decided to launch a special weaving project, showcasing “camouflage creativity” in order to both engage Ukrainian refugees, of which only a small proportion have found employment, and inform the Swedish society, which was last at war in 1709 when it lost the Poltava battle the effect of war on people.

Textile installations were stretched between trees in parks and squares in Stockholm’s city center aimed to show passers-by what the wartime environment looks and feels like.

The project took off quickly, paving the way for a larger-scale endeavor dubbed Yellow and Blue: All of Sweden Weaves. The idea was to emphasize the historical ties between Sweden and Ukraine. Sweden’s national flag features the yellow cross on a blue background and the appearance of yellow-blue banners among the Cossacks of the Zaporizhian Host date back to roughly the same period, the 16th century.

A giant Swedish flag measuring 3x6 meters (10x20 feet) was woven by Ukrainian women, including Iryna Shalimova, Irina Novikova, Alla Nikityuk, Tatiana Maleeva, and Tanya Yahno, to name a few, together with Swedish families in various cities across the country. Each would receive a patch on which they would write wishes to Ukrainians.

The project soon caught the attention of the organizers of the Oslo Freedom Forum. In 2023, a group of Ukrainian refugee women and children was invited to introduce the art of weaving for peace and freedom to the international art community. The invitation was extended by Russian opposition figure Garry Kasparov, the chairman of the Human Rights Foundation.

The “Solidarity” weaving project created at the event was later showcased to spectators and participants in New York’s “We, the Artists” exhibition thanks to Christeseva’s collaboration with Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and arts curator Lisa Russell.

Despite being an art project at its core, its ultimate goal stretches well beyond the integration of Ukrainian refugees or trauma relief. Its focus is on bringing different nationalities together – even if symbolically.

“All Europeans recognize the colors yellow and blue as symbolic of the European Union flag. If the project “Yellow and Blue: All of Europe Weaves” ever comes to fruition, we hope that Ukrainian craftswomen will contribute their part to the woven canvas upon their return home,” says Christeseva, adding, “hopefully, one day, the white and red colors of the free Belarus will be added to it.”

For the time being, she’s finding new ways of engaging Ukrainian refugees, many of whom were deeply disturbed by the recent scandal where Iraq-born entertainer Elaf Ali “joked” on national TV about Ukrainian women being prostitutes.

Apple pie baking turned out to be one of those ways. Tanya Yahno, one of the refugees who arrived in Sweden in the early days of the full-scale invasion, joined the initiative. An avid baker, she had the chance to bake from her own recipe and share stories about her home and family.

“The act of baking an apple pie became a way to unpack personal stories of pain and trauma, transforming into a powerful act of unity and resilience. As we shared our favorite recipes, memories of peaceful times resurfaced, bringing a sense of comfort and connection,” Christeseva recounts, begging the question: “How does an apple pie taste when the apples aren’t from my own apple garden?”

To her, the answer is evident: not like at home.