“Love Ukraine!”—under this slogan, which has long served as a spiritual guide for generations, the voices, colors, and imagery of contemporary Ukrainian creativity came together in the capital.
On March 21, 2026, in Kyiv, at the premises of Mariupol State University, the closing event of the open festival-competition for reciters, poets, artists, and photographers “Love Ukraine!” took place.
The participants and the competition jury were greeted by Oleksandr Shevchenko, Deputy Head of the Donetsk Regional State Administration, who emphasized that Volodymyr Sosyura’s words, “Love Ukraine like the sun, love…” have today become a manifesto for every Ukrainian, sounding not like a call from a textbook, but like a vital necessity. In times of trial, poetry is our weapon and our refuge. Sosyura wrote from the heart, and that is what made him immortal.
This year, the competition has become a true creative platform for unity: artists from various corners of Ukraine and abroad have joined it—from Donetsk to Lviv, from Kharkiv to Ivano-Frankivsk, as well as representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora in Warsaw.
Strong interregional collaboration and the high quality of the creative works were defining features of this year’s competition. Following a rigorous selection process, 340 works advanced to the second round, each telling a unique story of love for the Motherland, its language, imagery, and spirit.
The figure of Volodymyr Sosyura—a poet whose work still resonates in the hearts of Ukrainians today—gave the competition a special resonance. Honoring his memory became the ideological core of the event, which brought together poetry, visual arts, and photography within a single cultural space.
The works were evaluated by a distinguished jury comprising leading art historians, cultural figures, and representatives of creative communities from various regions of Ukraine. Their professionalism and impartiality ensured a high standard of selection and the determination of the winners.
The festival became a space for a vibrant dialogue of the arts: here, poetry that touched the deepest strings of the soul was recited, artistic images came to life, and photo collages opened up new dimensions of perceiving reality. Participants, guests, and the jury had the opportunity not only to evaluate the creative works but also to experience them as part of a grand national narrative.
Today, “Love Ukraine!” serves as a reminder of the power of words and art, capable of supporting, inspiring, and affirming Ukrainian identity in the world.
And as Sosyura once wrote, love Ukraine sincerely, like the sun, like the wind, like the sky. For it is in this love that our strength, our memory, and our future lie.
This year’s contest winners are:
“Poets” Category
Grand Prix
Svitlana Telitsyna, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk
First Age Category
First-Place Winner
Sofia Hladka, Luhansk Oblast, Sieversk-Donetsk District, Sieversk-Donetsk
Second-place winner
Yeseniya Kovalyova, Chernihiv Oblast, Chernihiv Raion, Oster Territorial Community, Oster
Sofia Maksymenko, Chernihiv Oblast, Oster
Third-place winner
Olena Holuzynets, Kyiv (IDP from Toretsk and Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast)
Yelyzaveta Tsulimova, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Kryvyi Rih Raion, Kryvyi Rih City Territorial Community, Kryvyi Rih
First-degree diploma recipient
Daryna Sachenko, Chernihiv Oblast, Oster
Second-place winner
Neonila Kvaschuk, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk Raion, Lyman
Third-place winner
Bozena Kuleshova, Luhansk Oblast, Alchevsk
Age Group II
First-place winner
Svitlana Fomenko, Donetsk Oblast, Volnovakha District, Khlibodarivska Rural Territorial Community, Village of Vilne
Second-Degree Laureate
Ihor Lubenets, Donetsk Oblast, City of Kramatorsk
Liudmyla Shalimova, City of Kyiv (IDP from Donetsk Oblast, Cities of Toretsk and Pokrovsk)
Third-place winner
Lidiia Romenska, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Rural Territorial Community, village of Stepne
Alina Kurinna, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk Raion, Kostiantynivska Territorial Community, city of Kostiantynivka
First-place diploma recipient
Nadiya Chub, Volyn Oblast, Kovel Raion, Shatsk
Yulia Serdyuchenko, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk
Grigory Andreychenko, Donetsk Oblast, Volnovakha Raion, Vilne
Second-degree diploma recipient
Mariana Kurytsia, Donetsk Oblast, Bakhmut City Territorial Community, Bakhmut
Iryna Plyusnina, Kyiv
Nadiya Ryabko, Donetsk Oblast, Volnovakha Raion, Staromlynivska Territorial Community, Kermenchyk
Third-place winner
Maria Hlynianska, Donetsk Oblast
“Readers” Category
Grand Prix
Dmytro Hrytsenko, Donetsk Oblast, Mariupol
Age Category I
First-Degree Laureate
Kseniia Konyushok, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Territorial Community, Vilne Village
Second-Degree Laureate
Antonina Osadchuk, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Perehynska Territorial Community, village of Sloboda Nebylivska
Yegor Shilin, Donetsk Oblast, city of Kramatorsk
Third-place winner
Vladyslava Dmytruk, Poland, city of Warsaw
First-place diploma recipient
Angelina Andreichuk, Donetsk Oblast, village of Mangush
Eva Haievska, Donetsk Oblast, city of Chasiv Yar
Anastasia Drozd, Donetsk Oblast, city of Toretsk
Second-degree diploma recipient
Denis Kovalevsky, Poland, Warsaw
Third-degree diploma recipient
Vyacheslav Serebrennikov, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Kryvyi Rih
Age Group II
First-Place Winner
Inga Frolova, Donetsk Oblast, Bakhmut
Second-Place Winner
Grigory Andreychenko, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Territorial Community, village of Vilne
Svetlana Demicheva, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Territorial Community, village of Vilne
Third-place winner
Viktoria Krainya, Donetsk Oblast, village of Oleksandrivka
First-place diploma recipient
Olena Brodnyuk, Donetsk Oblast, Mykilska Territorial Community
Second-place Diploma Recipient
Vira Ovcharenko, Donetsk Oblast, Toretska Territorial Community, village of Shcherbinivka
Third-place Diploma Recipient
Kateryna Herasymenko, Donetsk Oblast, Andriivska Territorial Community, village of Andriivka
Groups
First-degree laureate
Exemplary Drama Theater “Koleso,” Donetsk Oblast, city of Kramatorsk
Third-degree laureate
Group of students from the Nikolskaya Base School, Donetsk Oblast, Mykolaivska Territorial Community
“Photographers” Category
Age Group I
First-place winner
Anastasia Shepilova, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk Raion, Kramatorsk Territorial Community, Kramatorsk
Second-place winner
Olena Shtyk, Volyn Oblast, Kovel Raion, Zabrodivska Rural Territorial Community, Zabrody
Third-place winner
Vladislav Botskin, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk Raion, Oleksandrivska Territorial Community, Petrivka Druha
First-degree diploma recipient
Yelyzaveta Romanenko, Poltava Oblast, Lubenskyi Raion, Pyriatyn City Community, Pyriatyn
Second-place diploma recipient
Daria Melenchuk, Donetsk Oblast, Bakhmut Raion, Zvanivska Territorial Community, village of Zvanivka,
Third-place diploma recipient
Dmytro Glazyrin, Donetsk Oblast, Bakhmut Raion, village of Zvanivka, Zvanivska Territorial Community
Age Group II
First-degree laureate
Denys Kolesnichenko, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk
Second-degree laureate
Lyubov Kulyk, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Territorial Community, Zlatoustivka
Third-degree laureate
Hanna Chornobai, Kyiv Oblast, Brovary
First-degree diploma recipient
Natalia Vovchok, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk District, Andriivska Territorial Community, village of Andriivka
Second-place diploma
Margarita Moroz, Donetsk Oblast, Kramatorsk District, Andriivska Territorial Community, village of Serhiivka
Third-place diploma
Mykhailo Milyan, Lviv - Kostyantynivka
“Artists” Category
Age group I
First-place winner
Sofia Maksymenko, Chernihiv Oblast, city of Oster
Second-place winner
Yelyzaveta Berezhna, Donetsk Oblast, city of Kramatorsk
Angelina Zhuchkova, Chernihiv Oblast, city of Oster
Third-place winner
Matvii Valtsov, Poltava Oblast, city of Kobelyaky
First-degree diploma recipient
Myroslav Bolibok, Luhansk Oblast, city of Sievierodonetsk
Mariana Vorotnikova, Donetsk Oblast, city of Kurakhove
Second-degree diploma recipient
Veronika Yevstafieva, Donetsk Oblast, city of Kramatorsk
Sofia Tsehelnyk, Luhansk Oblast, city of Sieverskodonetsk
Third-place winner
Viktoria Yushchenko, Chernihiv Oblast, city of Oster
Eva Myalenko, Chernihiv Oblast, city of Oster
Polina Taraban, Donetsk Oblast, city of Kostiantynivka
Age Group II
First-place winner
Angelina Davydko, Poltava Oblast, Zinkiv
Second-degree laureate
Karina Knysh, Donetsk Oblast, Petrivska village
Decorative and Applied Arts
First-degree laureate
Nadiya Bohunenko, Donetsk Oblast, Chasiv Yar
Sviatoslav Tsymakh, Donetsk Oblast, Chasiv Yar
Second-place winner
Angelina Solyanyk, Donetsk Oblast, city of Lyman
Third-place winner
Sofia Zaichenko, Donetsk Oblast, city of Lyman
First-place diploma recipient
Milana Nazarova, Donetsk Oblast, city of Lyman
Yulia Zayets, Donetsk Oblast, Khlibodarivska Territorial Community, village of Vilne
Second-place diploma recipient
Sofia Hladka, Luhansk Oblast, city of Sievierodonetsk
Third-place diploma recipient
Veronika Didenko, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, city of Kolomyia