Petrykivka

Petrykivka painting is done freehand without any preliminary drawing, using brushes traditionally made from cat hair and, for some strokes, the finger, building flowers, berries, birds and leaves into dense symmetrical compositions. It began as house painting, walls and stoves redone every year, and moved onto paper, wood and porcelain. UNESCO inscribed it on the Representative List in 2013. The village has a museum, workshops and a school that teaches the technique.

What you actually see

• The freehand technique - painting built without underdrawing, in cat-hair brushes.
• The workshops - masters working and selling in the village.
• The museum - historic and contemporary Petrykivka work.
• The painted houses - decoration on walls and gates around the village.

When to go

April to October is the comfortable season. Workshops keep weekday hours and are best arranged ahead. Craft fairs bring masters together in summer.

Honest expectations

A great deal of printed imitation is sold across Ukraine as Petrykivka; buying from a named master in the village is the way to be sure. Workshops are small and may be closed. The village has few facilities.

Nearby

Dnipro is southeast, and the Dnipro river runs south.