Picturesque Guide to Ukraine
“Revealing the heart of every region of Ukraine through art.”
The Luhansk region lies in eastern Ukraine — a land of wide steppes, green forests, river valleys, chalk hills and seemingly endless horizons. Its beauty does not always reveal itself at first glance. It lives in the soft light above the fields, in spring thunder, in the scent of acacia blossom, in the silence of country roads and in a special feeling of space and freedom.
The Luhansk region has many different faces. Its southern part is known for industrial cities, mines and factories, while northern Luhansk reveals an entirely different landscape — fertile fields, river floodplains, meadows, pine and deciduous forests, ravines and picturesque Ukrainian villages. It was among this greenery, near Starobilsk and the Aidar River, that the artist spent her childhood.
Throughout geological history, the territories of present-day eastern Ukraine were repeatedly covered by ancient seas. Their memory remains in sedimentary rocks, chalk outcrops and hills that can still be seen across the Luhansk region. There is something profoundly poetic in the thought that where vast waters once stretched and ancient marine organisms lived millions of years ago, steppes, forests, rivers and roads later appeared — roads travelled by generations of Ukrainian families.
“Мальовничий гід Україною” / Picturesque Guide to Ukraine is an original artistic project by Ukrainian artist Marina Stognieva. It brings together painting, personal memories, cultural stories, natural features and the artist’s own reflections on the different regions of Ukraine.
This project is not simply a collection of images of famous places and landscapes. Each painting conveys the atmosphere, light, mood and inner essence of a chosen location. Through art, the artist seeks to present Ukraine as a living, diverse and emotionally close country, even to people who have never visited it.
The project is also being developed as a future book in which painting will become a way to travel across Ukraine, discover its stories and experience the character of every region through the artist’s eyes.
A Personal Story
The Luhansk region holds a special place in Marina Stognieva’s art because it is her homeland. The artist was born in the village of Pidhorivka near Starobilsk. Her childhood years were spent here, and the surrounding nature, rural life, traditions, human stories and sense of open space became part of her inner world.
Her ancestors lived on this land for centuries. They walked the same roads, worked the soil, raised their children and passed the memory of their homeland from one generation to the next. This is where the future artist ran as a little girl, not yet knowing that one day she would try to preserve everything she had seen through painting.
One of her earliest and most vivid memories is of a market fair near the Aidar River in the Starobilsk area. People displayed their goods, talked and met acquaintances, while the entire space filled with movement, colour and the distinctive spirit of Ukrainian rural life.
This is why the future book begins with the Luhansk region. It marks the beginning not only of a geographical journey, but also of a deeply personal one — a return to the land where the artist’s life began and where her character, identity and inner sense of freedom were formed.
“On this land, I feel at home. My ancestors lived here for centuries, and it was here that my identity, my love of nature and my inner sense of freedom were formed.”
Marina Stognieva, Ukrainian artist
Future Publication
The project is already taking the form of a real book. In the future publication, original paintings will be combined with stories, cultural information, personal memories and the artist’s reflections on the places that inspired her work.
Starobilsk, 2019
Ukrainian artist Marina Stognieva outside her former school in Starobilsk, bringing an artistic gift for the educational institution.
Such returns connect the past with the present: childhood memories, first dreams, the roads of her hometown and the experience of an established artist returning to the place where her path began, now carrying her own art.
Emotional Portrait
Not an encyclopaedic description, but a collection of personal images that shape the artist’s memories of her homeland.
Colour
Lush spring greenery, golden steppes and red poppies.
Scent
Flowering acacia, damp earth and grasses after a May rain.
Sound
Spring thunder, rain falling on the roof and birdsong in the forest.
Symbol
The Aidar River, an endless horizon and a road through familiar fields.
Place of Strength
Starobilsk, the village of Pidhorivka and the land walked by generations of the artist’s family.
Feeling
Home, inner freedom, ancestral memory and a profound connection with the land.
Painting Collection
This chapter of the project includes paintings devoted to the nature, cities, traditions, childhood memories and everyday life of the Luhansk region. Together, they create a multifaceted portrait of the land — from the Aidar River, village courtyards and a family apiary to urban spaces and Ukrainian spiritual traditions.
Each artwork can be opened separately, allowing you to read its story, explore its details and learn about purchasing the original painting or ordering a collectible fine art print.
Future Publication
Original paintings devoted to the nature, cities, villages, family stories and traditions of the region.
The artist’s personal memories of her childhood in Pidhorivka, Starobilsk and the Aidar River.
The artist’s reflections on the nature, cultural character and inner image of the Luhansk region.
Stories behind the artworks and explanations of the symbols, subjects and places depicted in the paintings.
The Artist’s Perspective
For me, the Luhansk region is not simply a place on the map of Ukraine. It is the land where generations of my family lived, worked, fell in love, raised children and passed down the memory of their homeland. When I think of these places, I feel as though I am walking along the same roads travelled by my ancestors for centuries.
One of my earliest vivid memories is of a market fair near the Aidar River in the Starobilsk area. I remember people displaying their goods, the movement, the voices, the colours and the distinctive atmosphere. Perhaps it was then that I first began to observe life attentively and preserve what I saw in my memory.
My Luhansk region sounds like May thunderstorms, spring rain and birdsong. It smells of acacia blossom, damp earth and grasses. I remember the Dukhmyanyi Forest, where I could walk all day, get lost several times and then find my way again. Among the steppes, forests, meadows and open horizons, my identity and inner sense of freedom were formed.
The Luhansk region has two very different faces. One is made of endless fields, greenery, forests, poppies and rivers. The other is formed by industrial cities, mines, factories and metallurgical chimneys. I grew up surrounded by greenery and flowering nature. As a child, I did not see mines or industrial chimneys — I saw fields, meadows and the roads of my native Starobilsk area.
To return the Luhansk region to the world’s cultural memory through art means revealing the heart of this place. I believe that paintings can sometimes say more than words. A person can touch an image with their eyes and feel the depth of the land, its beauty, its memory and a part of the Ukrainian soul.
Interesting Facts
The Luhansk region was established as an administrative region on 3 June 1938, although the history of this land stretches back many centuries. Many of its towns and villages existed long before the region was formally created. Starobilsk, the artist Marina Stognieva’s homeland, was founded in 1686 as a Cossack settlement.
The Luhansk region is the homeland of many well-known Ukrainians. Among them are the poet Volodymyr Sosiura, the writer, philosopher and human rights defender Mykola Rudenko, and the contemporary Ukrainian writer, poet and musician Serhiy Zhadan. Their creative and public work has become an important part of Ukrainian culture.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, these lands were actively settled by Ukrainian Cossacks and people from Slobozhanshchyna, the Poltava region and other parts of Ukraine. In the nineteenth century, industrial development brought miners, engineers, craftspeople and workers from different regions and countries. In this way, the diverse character of the Luhansk region gradually took shape.
Throughout its geological history, the territory of the present-day Luhansk region was repeatedly covered by ancient seas. This is why chalk hills, sedimentary rocks and other natural formations that preserve the memory of the Earth’s distant past can still be seen here today.
The Aidar is one of the most picturesque rivers in eastern Ukraine. Its banks, valleys, forests and flowering meadows preserve the distinctive atmosphere of the Luhansk region and became a source of inspiration for the paintings in this project.
For many people, the Luhansk region is associated mainly with industrial cities. Yet a large part of the region is formed by steppes, green forests, rivers, chalk hills, flowering meadows and historic Ukrainian villages.
Explore Ukraine
The Luhansk region is only the first chapter of a major original art project. Dozens of Ukrainian regions lie ahead, each with its own history, paintings, atmosphere and character.
Support the Development of the Project
“Picturesque Guide to Ukraine” is being created as a long-term international art project that introduces the world to the culture, nature and history of Ukraine through original painting.
The artist is open to collaboration with museums, cultural foundations, galleries, educational institutions, charitable organisations and private collectors who share the idea of promoting Ukrainian culture around the world.
Contacts
For enquiries about supporting the project, collaboration, artistic initiatives, purchasing original paintings or ordering collectible fine art prints, please contact Marina Stognieva directly.
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“I believe that art can not only preserve memory, but also help people discover and understand one another. This is why, through every painting, I seek to reveal the heart of the Ukrainian land to the world.”
Marina Stognieva • Ukrainian Artist
