As shocking as it is to see the beautiful buildings and stained glass windows in Ukraine being pummelled to the ground, it is the people of Ukraine who need our help right now. That is why Ukrainian stained glass artist and art historian Oksana Kondratyeva is organising the purchase and distribution of first aid kits to the stricken communities in Lviv and Kyiv.

Oksana is a long standing member and contributor to the Society and she wrote a beautifully illustrated article for the 2016 Journal of Stained Glass. We are selling the 20 page PDF for £5 to raise funds for the first aid kits that Oksana will personally arrange distribution of where they are most needed. You can support her by downloading New light on Ukrainian Stained Glass in the Article Reprints area of the Shop. You now have the option to add an additional donation to the DEC as you check out of the Shop.

Many of us remember the fascinating talk Oksana gave at the Art Workers Guild a few years ago. She will be giving it again, under very different circumstances, via Zoom for the Worshipful Company of Glaziers on Tuesday 19 April. All money raised will go directly to the Disasters Emergency Committee’s Ukraine Appeal. Book your ticket here.

‘The talk will be different from the one I gave in 2016,’ Oksana explains. ‘There were a lot of new findings. And now it is hard to estimate the scale of damage to cultural heritage in less than one month. How many stained glass windows will survive? The fate of stained glass iconostasis is unknown – there have been numerous heavy shellings and it is impossible to get information.’

The stained glass community stands united with the people of Ukraine in these appalling times.