Artist tells story after painting Anadolu Agency's iconic photo of Ukraine war victim

By Mucahit Oktay

NEW YORK (AA) - US-based artist Zhenya Gershman, who painted a photo taken by Anadolu Agency photojournalist Wolfgang Schwan that serves as a "symbol" of the war in Ukraine, said the process of selling the painting for $100,000 and sending the proceeds to Ukraine was both surprising and pleasing.

The oil painting by Gershman, "First Face of War: Intimate Portrait of Ukrainian Teacher, 2022," was sold for $100,000 on Thursday, with the sale's proceeds to be donated to the Ukrainian Red Cross Society, said a statement from Heritage Auctions, a worldwide collectibles auctioneer.

The statement said Gershman painted the now-iconic photo of Olena Kurilo, with a bandaged and bloodied face and head, that Schwan took on Feb. 25, the second day of the war.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency in an exclusive interview, the Los Angeles based artist said: "That was the only way to express my feelings and I went to Google, our friends nowadays in 21st century, and I put three words. I put 'Ukraine, war, victim' and Wolfgang's photograph of Olena came up."

"Olena's eyes were speaking. I called them the talking eyes. They literally spoke to me and they said: 'Zhenya, please paint me.' I would not hesitate, I picked up my tool, my brush and I painted it through the night. I did not stop, it was in one go," she said.

Opening her first exhibition at the age of 14 in Russia's St. Petersburg, Gershman got her master's degree in painting in California.

She said she was disappointed at first when the first bidding for her painting was at $1.

"I felt 'Oh my God, what have I done.' What I thought, maybe art does not matter in this world anymore and now I'm going to be embarrassed in front of the whole world.

"But, it quickly started to rise and it was a joy to see how many people were supporting and bidding. Never did I expect that that $1 would garner five more zeros next to it and sell for the grand total of $100,000," she said.

Gershman said her artist and activist friend Adrian Roup told her that her painting could be sold at an auction with the proceeds to be sent to Ukraine, and that his cousin Julian Roup, who works in advertising, arranged the Heritage Auction.

Gershman emphasized that Nancy Valentina, the auction house's director who ensured that premiums were not deducted from the sale and that all the proceeds reached the Ukrainian Red Cross Society, deserves as much thanks as photojournalist Schwan, and Adrian and Julian Roup.

Born in Moscow and immigrating to the US with her family, Gershman said she grew up in a family that believes artists should live in a free country in order to express themselves.

She said her grandfather, Mihail Matusovsky, was born in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine and was a famous poet.

"I feel, though I'm not in Russia, (I'm) still personally responsible and I must fight against this injustice," said Gershman.

"I applaud every country that is not afraid to stand up to the bully and to provide help. I applaud Turkey (Turkiye) for doing that, and any country and individual that does that."

- Photo

In the city of Chuhuiv in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine, Anadolu Agency photojournalist Wolfgang Schwan took shots of civilians injured by Russian missile strikes on Feb. 25.

Among his photos, a picture of teacher Olena Kurilo -- her head wrapped in a bandage, her face caked with blood after the airstrike -- has become one of the most striking images of the conflict.

Many international newspapers, including Britain's The Guardian, The Times of London, The Sun, The Independent, and the German daily Bild, used the photo on their front pages.

The Times used the photo with the headline "A dark day for Europe," while The Guardian used it with the headline "Putin invades."

The photo was also used by many international news channels, such as CNN and the BBC.