About Oleg Gryshchenko
Oleg Gryshchenko is a Ukrainian artist and co-founder of Pictoric. He loves the ancient art and style of engraving. It is exciting for him to work with it, using the capabilities of modern graphic editors. Oleg likes to refer to historical and cultural artifacts in his works. His most successful work is a series depicting mythological stories about real Ukraine’s struggle against the Russian aggressor. They have been successful and received many positive reviews at international exhibitions he has held since the beginning of the invasion.
Check Oleg’s work on Behance, or here or here to learn more and support >
What is Pictoric?
Pictoric is an online platform and community of illustrators and creatives to fight against Russian aggression in Ukraine. They collect and create illustrations, posters, and comic books to support Ukraine and its people, convey accurate information, and inspire the world to fight for freedom and democracy.
What is Warline?
WARLINE became the first Pictoric project in the NFT sphere. It is a chronology of the Ukrainian history of modern times, set in stone. The NFTs are facts accompanied by personal reflections. The formula of each NFT is clear and straightforward: each token is a real news piece from an official source and an illustration from Ukrainian and international artists.
For its 8th drop, the Warline collection by META HISTORY created a collaboration with Pictoric, the largest community of Ukrainian illustrators, graphic designers, and artists, which includes more than 700 works.
Interview with the founder of the Ukrainian art community Pictoric, Oleg Gryshchenko.
Pictoric, the largest community of Ukrainian illustrators, graphic designers, and artists, created 50 works of art for Warline, the largest charity NFT collection about war.
The collection, which includes more than 700 works, became the first Pictoric project in the NFT sphere. The team of META HISTORY museum, which creates Warline, invited the community to bring the level of work in the collection to a qualitatively new level. To do NFTs it’s not only a symbol of gratitude to buyers whose money helps Ukraine but also a valuable collector’s item, which will increase in price in the future. It fits the goal of Pictoric, whose founders strive to represent Ukraine in the international arena with worthy artistic projects. The NFT art, which is at the peak of discussion for the third year, must be addressed by any organization operating on the cultural front.
The co-founder of Pictoric, Oleg Hryshchenko, speaks about the collaboration designed to portray Ukraine better.
Why did you choose Warline to support Ukraine?
We have made more than 50 exhibitions in different countries of the world together with Pictoric partners. All of them were in a more traditional format. We understand that to disseminate information about events in Ukraine. We must use all opportunities. Each of us now spends a lot of time online. Accordingly, art must also adapt and find its audience where it is convenient to interact with art. And if the popularity of NFT looks like a chance to win the support of hundreds of thousands of people in our fight for independence, why not use it to say something important? Therefore, Pictoric cooperates with META HISTORY, entering a new niche – art combined with the most modern technologies.
What exactly did you like about the concept of META HISTORY?
We wanted to find a project for partnership, the idea of which would not be superficial. There are a lot of initiatives. However, they appear and disappear without attracting the viewer’s attention in the future. A strong concept is needed to stay in the audience’s field of vision in the long term to claim their affection.
META HISTORY has it: clear, transparent, needed by society, with the potential to enter the state’s history. After all, it is necessary to document and tell about the events. And about the authors who create this chronicle for future generations. It is also essential to attract money to help Ukraine. We support these goals and want to be with the team that achieves them.
Do you think Pictoric, along with META HISTORY, will make it?
Warline is an incredibly relevant project. And with the war’s end, it will not lose its relevance. On the contrary, its value will increase in the future. After all, our victory is inevitable. And in the future, more artists will be willing to join the struggle. At least to learn about its history is to know about Ukraine’s path, changing itself and the world. So all that is required of us, by and large, is to continue to capture history for the future, making full use of the talent of the artists. Time will do the rest: the fog of war will dissipate, the truth will be revealed, and propaganda will be defeated.
Does it matter that META HISTORY is an NFT project?
I am now more of an observer who joins individual conceptual projects with interest. It is also the first full-fledged NFT project for Pictoric Warlinethat we implemented. But in general, new opportunities in art are attractive to me. They mean development and moving forward, thanks to the evolution of technology. There is an opinion that art is dead and nothing new appears. But no – art continues to find new forms and possibilities. As an artist, it keeps me in shape and excites me as a connoisseur. However, I have yet to purchase any NFT jobs. For now, my job is to create it.
In your opinion, which art actions are the most effective for communicating with the world about Ukraine?
If we talk about our experience and those projects in the Pictoric curatorial group with Olena Staranchuk and Anna Sarvira, the most successful was the tough campaigns. By combining the efforts of illustrators, journalists, and cultural managers, we reach the widest audience and receive feedback and support that allow us to develop the project further.
One of the best examples today is the project “Even in dark times, there is light,” where we tell visual stories about the struggle of ordinary Ukrainians, where personal initiatives and heroes are volunteers, children, teachers, athletes, and many others. And since each hero has his audience, the project finds a way to reach those people whom we are unlikely to acquire.
What will you personally do after Ukraine’s victory in the war?
I love to travel. Therefore, after the victory, I want to travel through Ukraine. Specifically, de-occupied cities where to implement creative projects and create a new Ukrainian culture.
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Go to the Warline Collection on Meta History >
You can also support Ukrainian illustrators and Pictoric through PayPal: pictoric.ua@gmail.com
