Art Under Fire: How a Ukrainian Pottery Studio Offers Shelter From War
In the southern Ukrainian city of Bashtanka, a small pottery studio hidden beneath a cultural center has become an unlikely sanctuary from war.
The Gaze informs about it, referring to The Wall Street Journal.
Several times a week, sculptor Oleksandr Ryabov descends into a basement bomb shelter to teach pottery to a rotating group of students – bankers, engineers, retirees, displaced residents, and children. They come not only to shape clay, but to momentarily escape the relentless reality of air-raid sirens, power outages, drones, and shelling.
“In the shelter, you can hear bombs and aircraft outside,” Ryabov said. “For people, this becomes a coping mechanism. It helps them mentally step away from the attacks.”
Ryabov, 61, has been part of Ukraine’s art scene since the early 1990s. He began working with clay as a child, molding bread dough in his mother’s kitchen. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, he worked from home, but about a year and a half ago he took a position as a pottery master at Bashtanka’s House of Culture, continuing his classes despite the war.
For safety reasons, all lessons are held in the building’s basement, which doubles as a bomb shelter during air alerts. With support from a wartime grant, a small adjoining room was equipped with pottery wheels, worktables, a kiln, and basic supplies. While the shelter itself can accommodate up to 150 people, the studio space is limited to about 15 students at a time.
Many participants are internally displaced. Viktor Butenko, a 62-year-old retired river fleet captain, fled Kherson after spending nine months under Russian occupation. He settled in Bashtanka in late 2022 and joined the class soon afterward.
For others, the attraction lies in the calming nature of the material itself. Tetiana Kostruzka, a former tax office employee, began attending classes last year.
The work is often disrupted by fragile power supply. Persistent outages frequently prevent the kiln from operating, leaving pieces unfinished. One recent Monday class was canceled entirely after a missile strike on neighboring Odesa disrupted electricity across the region.
Local officials say the pottery program reflects Bashtanka’s broader resilience. For instance, in early 2022, residents famously took up hunting rifles and Molotov cocktails to repel advancing Russian troops.
As The Gaze previously reported, a unique collection of Vasylkiv ceramic roosters, symbolizing resilience and supporting hearing restoration for Ukrainian soldiers, was showcased in Paris during the opening of the Ukrainian Cultural Season.
Read more on The Gaze: Where to Buy Authentic Ukrainian Souvenirs: From Handcrafted Treasures to Designer Pieces