By Rik Moors – On December 19, the Treehouse at NDSM in Amsterdam Noord came alive with Christmas carols, crafts, arts, and a heaping table of Ukrainian traditional Christmas dishes.
More than sixty artists, Botel residents, friends and family, and other guests joined for this final event of the first season of the Together project of Road of Hope.
The evening was a celebration of Ukrainian Christmas traditions, offering a mix of art, music, and hands-on activities.
The final exhibition of the Painting 21+ group, led by Olena, featured Tail of Kite of Transformation, a collaborative piece created with Botel residents under the guidance of Rienke Enghardt. “Art helps us to know ourselves, to open new parts, and to overcome fears,” as one guest reflected.
Participants also took part in workshops, including Ukrainian Christmas crafts led by pani Olha and a carolling (Kolyadky) session with the very talented Angelina Posoven, who was able to teach a group of Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian singers (and non-singers) in under an hour how to harmonically belt out a traditional Ukrainian carol.
Dinner brought everyone together around a table filled with traditional dishes prepared by Yuliia, with help from Raisa, and served by Alina Stolyarenko and Nastya. Pani Olha introduced the meal, explaining the meaning and significance behind each dish and its role in Ukrainian Christmas rituals. She also showed examples of three Ukrainian Christmas symbols – the Christmas star, the Christmas spider and the didukh – explaining their meaning and role in the Christmas celebrations
As the evening progressed, DJs iii and rocket2mars from Yi.collective took over the stage with energetic Ukrainian electronic music.
The event was made possible by the collective efforts of many, specially a wonderful team of volunteers and supporters, as Olexandr and Dmytro, who helped set up the exhibition, and the support of Treehouse. Behind the scenes, Vlad from Yi.collective ensured everything ran smoothly, from sound engineering to multimedia support.
The project’s success lies in its ability to connect people and create moments of shared understanding – or just the chance to have a great time together. And this evening was no exception.
As one participant summed up the evening: “From all “Final events” this year – this one the most cool, alive, artsy, warm and funny event!”.
