Friends

Friends, do you know who is the author of the monument at Babi Yar? There are three of them - the famous sculptor Mikhail Lysenko, Victor Sukhenko and Alexander Vitryk.

76 years ago was born one of them - Victor Sukhenko. During his lifetime, he created many interesting works, was awarded the State Prize of USSR Taras Shevchenko, Honored Artist of Ukraine, professor of Ukrainian Academy of Arts. Viktor was born on the 21st of April, 1941 in the village Rybtsi, Poltava region, studied at the Kiev Art School. Later – graduated from the sculpture department of the Kiev Art Institute, studied at the famous Ukrainian sculptor Mikhail Lysenko. At this department, Viktor Sukhenko later became a teacher.

Among the outstanding works of Victor Vasilievich there are following sites:

- Heroes forcing the Southern Buh (Mykolaiv region, 1975)

- Taras Shevchenko in Kazakhstan (1982)

- and still is the greatest monument to those who died at Babi Yar (1976).

The decision to build a monument appeared before the end of the Second World War. Work started in 1945. But the project was postponed in the closet. War-torn Kyiv had other problems. The issue of the monument stopped until the 60's.

After the cancellation of the results of several competitions, in 1968 was announced the winning project, made by M. Lysenko, V. Sukhenko O. Vitryk. Work on it lasted almost seven years.

It was felt that the government did not want this monument to be built. International Jewish organizations saw it just as a memorial to Jews - victims of Nazism. The Soviet elite insisted that at Babi Yar Soviet were shot soviet people. In the artistic council of the Ministry of culture sculptors instructed, that shot Jewish people did not protect their homeland, and obediently went to the shooting. Therefore, among the pieces of the memorial to be soldiers, athletes, communists and guerrillas. And Jews should not be shown.

Sculptors at their own risk and hostility added into a composition shape old Jew, who was leaned over by the crying girl. The Communist Party Central Committee told, added figures should be removed immediately! But then the situation changed dramatically - in the American press appeared publications, that the Soviet leadership artificially impedes work on the monument at Babi Yar, a US Jewish organization have even begun collecting donations to create a golden monument to Jews shot there. October 4, 1972 approved the project completely.

Since began the terrible times, because now a monument was needed as soon as possible. By that time Mikhail Lysenko died, at work on the monument he was replaced by his son - 27-year-old Bogdan Lysenko. Sculptors had to work day and night.

There was a fall and in the workshops, there was a terrible cold. Victor Sukhenko got cold, legs and arms refusedto work. He remained lifelong disability. By the way, Victor Sukhenko is immortalized in the monument at Babi Yar - he served as a model for the nude male figure.

Life of the sculptor ended tragically - Victor Sukhenko committed suicide on the 20th of October, 1998.