Porch Light
Petrykivka Garden and Cities of the War
Through two visits to Philadelphia, online co-learning sessions, and a collaborative painting engagement, an exciting conversation unfolded about the impact and importance of art and art-making to support spaces of storytelling, belonging, and healing. Artist Mat Tomezsko and the Color Me Back program created compositions that brought together the materials and original designs produced entirely by the Ukrainian artists throughout multiple sessions over the year. The two artworks are Petrykivka Garden, a celebration of creativity and cultural exchange, and Cities of the War, a more somber piece with names of cities affected by the ongoing conflict handwritten by the visiting Ukrainians. The pieces were displayed in an exhibition at Drexel University’s Pearlstein Gallery in March 2025.
Read more about the project in Creativity blooms through cultural exchange with Ukraine by Emily Crane.
FUNDERS: City of Philadelphia, City of Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, Health Federation of Philadelphia, Sheller Family Foundation
PARTNERS: Mural Arts Institute, City of Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, Health Federation of Philadelphia, European Institute of Public Health Policy in Ukraine.
The study tour and visit to Philadelphia were made possible by the support of the Health Federation of Philadelphia and in collaboration with the USAID Public Health System Recovery and Resilience Activity (PHS R&R) led by Pact.
