On May 17, Ambassador of Ukraine Olga Dibrova met with the director of Finland’s best-known art museum Ateneum Dr. Marja Sakari.

The parties discussed the cultural relations between Ukraine and Finland, prospects for developing cooperation with Ukrainian museum institutions and the implementation of joint cultural events.

A dialogue was also launched with Ateneum regarding its participation in the project of cultural diplomacy of the First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska on the introduction of Ukrainian-language audio guides in the world's most famous museums.

At the end of the meeting, the Ambassador together with the museum director visited the exhibition of outstanding Ukrainian painter Ilya Repin, which recently opened in Ateneum.

Olga Dibrova drew attention to I.Repin's close ties with Ukraine, his fascination with Ukrainian Cossacks and the works of famous Ukrainians as Taras Shevchenko, Dmytro Yavornytsky, Mykola Gogol, and stressed the importance of Ukrainian themes in the artist's paintings, among which are such masterpieces as " Zaporozhian Cossacks Writing a Mocking Letter to the Turkish Sultan ", "Evening Gathering", "Haydamak", "A Ukrainian", "The Hopak", "An Archdeacon", "Portrait of Taras Shevchenko" and others.

"Ukrainians are proud that our Homeland has given the world such talent. The traditions of Ukraine, the everyday life and customs of our people, our nature gave Ilya Repin his first life-impressions and were forever imprinted in his art. Ukrainian themes run through all the works of the master, starting with the semi-children's watercolor of 1859 "A Banduryst" and ending with the last painting of the artist "The Hopak" (1930), - said Ambassador Dibrova.