Tattoo artist Andriy and his three children left the occupied Kherson not right away. For some months, he refused to leave his house and his new studio, in which he invested a lot of effort and money. However, once he understood that he will not be able to feed his family in the occupied city, he had to make a difficult decision. The way out was long and difficult, however Andriy and his family finally made it to Ireland. He was provided with a household in a village which was small, even by Ukrainian standards. Five people were living in one room; however, it was not the small living space which was bothering, but the fact that people around them were strangers.

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Once, Andriy found a piece of plywood in a pile of rubbish and started to make an easel for himself outdoors. While he was making it, Irish neighbors started asking what he was doing. Andriy answered that he was an artist from Ukraine. Andriy describes what happened next, quite emotionally: “An hour later the neighbors came and brought two boxes of oil and acrylic paint and watercolors and also a canvas. They found it somewhere, somebody had an artist they knew. So, I gathered many materials I could not even dream of! They even brought me wooden frames, with printed pictures inside, which I later changed for my own.

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To express his gratitude to Irish people, Andriy decided to draw their houses and present them with the paintings. The locals appreciated this idea so much, they also asked Andriy to draw their church. During a holiday, he presented the painting of the church to the community, which has accepted and supported him so much. It would seem that the situation is ideal, however Andriy is not planning to stay here for long:

“There is a limited number of houses in this village. As soon as I am out “models” for painting, it will be time to look for another place”.

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