On Saturday, 8 March 2025, the employees of the GDIP conducted a walking tour of Outstanding Ukrainian poet and painter Taras Shevchenko dedicated to the 211th anniversary since the founder of Ukrainian literature, the genius Kobzar, was born.
Together with their families, Ambassador of Australia Paul Lehmann, Ambassador of Indonesia Arief Muhammad Basalamah, employees of the embassies of Denmark, Holy See, Mexico, Sweden, and representatives of international organisations such as the UNHCR and Mercy Corps, attended the event.
Taras Shevchenko was more than a poet. He was the true voice of Ukraine. Born into serfdom, he rose from being a servant to becoming a prominent artist who changed Ukrainian culture. His inheritance had a huge impact on shaping Ukrainian culture and identity. Taras Shevchenko’s poetry is about freedom, justice and the indomitable spirit of the people, and his poetry collection Kobzar has become a true spiritual foundation for Ukrainians. In addition to literature, Taras Shevchenko also left a significant mark in fine arts. His life and work embody the Ukrainian people’s desire for independence and self-determination, and his poetry remains relevant across the centuries.
As part of the tour, the foreign guests visited the Taras Shevchenko National Museum and learnt about the life and work of the genius son of the Ukrainian people. The museum preserves a significant part of Kobzar’s creative heritage: it displays more than 700 originals of his paintings and graphic works, collects almost all lifetime editions of his literary works, the artist’s art supplies, rare autographs, memorabilia, archival materials, etc. The museum’s collection includes 73,000 different items.
Each participant received a present: a reproduction of Taras Shenchenko’s most famous poem ‘My Testament’, translated into their native languages, including English, Danish, Spanish, and Swedish.
The diplomats also took a walk in Taras Shevchenko Park and visited the Yurt of Invincibility, where they viewed an exhibition of reproductions of Kobzar’s paintings created during his exile in Kazakhstan. The visitors also tasted tea prepared following Kazakh traditions.
The tourists also visited the famous monument to Taras Shevchenko and looked at photographs of monuments to the Ukrainian genius erected in many cities around the world, including Canberra and Copenhagen.
The guests were amazed to learn more about the life of the world-famous Ukrainian poet. Most of all, employees of foreign missions were impressed by the opportunity to see Taras Shevchenko’s personal belongings — artefacts that preserve the spirit of genius and transport people back in time.
In addition, the museum’s collections received the publication of the ‘Testament’ in different languages, presented in September 2024 as part of the Shevchenko Unites image project on the occasion of the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.
