Maria Prymachenko – Ukraine’s symbol of hope

Maria Prymachenko, Ukraine’s naïve folk-art painter, has become an icon of national identity. Copies of her 1982 painting “A Dove Has Spread Her Wings and Asks for Peace” are now being used in demonstrations as a symbol of hope. Last week a museum housing many of her painting was attacked by Russian forces and although some were rescued it is not known how many.  She was born 12 January 1909 near Chernobyl into a peasant family and was self-taught, developing her arti