Sculptor, teacher, deputy: Vasily Svida and his artistic masterpieces

The Transcarpathian school of sculpture owes a lot to the Ukrainian master Vasily Svida. The author of beautiful works made of wood and terracotta was born in 1913 in Patskanevo (Transcarpathian region). Childhood was difficult: his father died early, it was difficult for a large family to feed themselves. In the 30s, Svida lived and studied woodworking in Yasiny, then worked in the workshops of Mukachevo and Uzhgorod. During the war, he settled in Prague, where he honed his skills, and only after returning home did he begin to actively exhibit his own works in public spaces. Unlike many other artists, Svida connected his life with politics, was repeatedly elected to the Verkhovna Rada and the Uzhgorod City Council, and taught the next generation of sculptors.

The master made genre compositions, touching on everyday and historical motifs. Among the first known works are Kiss to the Mother and Hutsulka. At that time, the sculptures consisted of one or two figures, sometimes three. In the 50s, Svida mastered ceramics, worked on porcelain and terracotta compositions ("Secret", "Above the book"). Each creation of the sculptor introduces the peculiarities of the life of Transcarpathia, its history and the connection between man and nature. In addition, the author used ceramics as models for wooden compositions, which he loved the most. The use of models shortened and simplified the entire process.

Another facet of Svyda's work was a portrait. The heroes of the sculptures were the artists Iosif Bokshay, Adalbert Erdeli, as well as a number of historical figures. There is also a certain amount of metal, plaster, plasticine works. They are stored throughout Ukraine, in the museums of Transcarpathia, in Kyiv, Lvov, Chernivtsi, Kanev. In the second half of the 20th century, Vasily Svyda taught at the Uzhgorod School of Industrial Art, trained outstanding artists, including Taras Danylych, Mikhail Belen, Tatyana Luchko and many others.