World's largest collection of Holodomor-related artworks is handed over to Ukraine
The National Holodomor Museum has acquired a collection of artworks and books about the Holodomor, a man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine which lasted from 1932 to 1933 and claimed the lives of millions of Ukrainians. The collection was donated by the heirs of Morgan Williams, an American philanthropist and former president of the US-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC).
Source: Lesia Hasydzhak, director of the museum, on Radio Kultura (Culture)
Quote: "Each exhibit in our museum is the result of searches, conversations and recordings of testimonies. These are not typological items, and behind each of them is not just a story, but a tragedy. The Holodomor needs to be understood, and then reflected on in one form of art or another. That is why this transfer is important for us as an institution."
Details: The complete collection is set to be handed over to the museum in mid-November. A transfer certificate will be drawn up beforehand and a donation agreement will be signed.
There are 600 items in the Morgan Williams collection. Among them are 360 paintings, engravings and linocuts, including one of Viktor Zaretskyi's last works, Molot ("Hammer"), a collection of 91 linocuts by amateur local historian and artist Mykola Bondarenko, and 118 works by graphic artist Volodymyr Kutkin.
The collection also includes Holodomor-related badges, envelopes and stamps, as well as books, pamphlets and information leaflets from international and Ukrainian exhibitions about the Holodomor from Williams’ archives.
Who was Morgan William?
Morgan Williams, an American businessman and philanthropist, started his art collection on the theme of the Ukrainian Holodomor in 1997 while working in Ukraine as a representative of the US government. Williams, who was not of Ukrainian descent, specialised in the agricultural sector.
"In the entire history of Ukraine, no one other than Morgan Williams has started collecting art that is a reflection on the knowledge of the history of the genocide of Ukrainians," Lesia Hasydzhak explained.
Williams came up with the idea of approaching artists and painters and buying their works. That is how he met artists Nina Marchenko, Vira Kuleba-Barynova and Ivan Novobranets. He also worked with Holodomor researcher James Mace. By 2000, the collection had largely been formed. Williams subsequently gave his collection the title Paintings That Never Were.
Morgan Williams passed away on 10 June 2024 at his home in California at the age of 84.
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