An exhibition of paintings by Ukrainian children has opened in Tokyo. Organizers hope to attract attention to the suffering of children, as February 24 marks three years since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The organizers include Japanese volunteers in Poland working to support fleeing Ukranians. About 30 paintings created by four sisters aged 11 to 17 are on display. The girls lived for a while in Poland as evacuees.
The paintings depict the current situation faced by children in Ukraine. One shows a girl with a backpack, apparently evacuating, looking up at a flying missile.
Another expresses the sadness of losing school life. It compares a brightly colored school with its windows lit up with one in dark colors, burning after an air strike.
One of the organizers, Sakamoto Ryotaro, spoke at the exhibition’s opening ceremony. He said that three years on, the situation has not improved in Ukraine, and an increasing number of children are suffering for having lost parents, missed education opportunities and other reasons.
He said he hopes many people will see the paintings and sympathize with Ukraine.
A sixth-grade boy at the exhibition said the pictures elicited emotions in him usually felt only by those with direct experience of such things. He added that we must not remain indifferent, for the sake of the children who made the paintings.
The exhibition will run through February 24 at PASONA SQUARE in Tokyo’s Minamiaoyama district.
