The Apartment – Museum of the family of Ivan Franko has been opened in Kyiv

Ceremonial opening of the Apartment – Museum of the family of Ivan Franko took place in Kyiv on November 25, 2016, where the exhibition of the paintings of Taras Franko was presented.

The main objective of the Museum is to glorify courage, patriotism, love of freedom of Ivan Franko and his family. Life of Franko`s family serves an example of self-sacrificing attitude towards his people in whirl of everyday fight for the truth and justice.

This Museum establishment has been created in the building, where the family of Taras Franko was resettled by the Soviet government out of Lviv in 1949.

The whole family of Taras Ivanovych lived in this apartment. The daughter of Taras and sister of Roland – Dariia-Liubomyra – had been living here and maintaining it up to 2015.

The Museum consists of two halls, where the archive documents, photographs from the family archive are kept. There is a memorial room partially displaying the mode of life of the family of Taras Franko, items of the interior, documents and works of Tars, Zinovii, Dariia and Roland Franko. The exposition dedicated to the children of Ivan Franko: Adnrii, Petro, Taras and Anna, whose life is also associated with Kyiv, is represented, as well.

It shall be noted that the Museum has been established upon the initiative of the grandson of Ivan Franko, Roland, and Ivan Franko International Prize participated as the organizer of the event.

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Extraordinary Franko`s family

The children of Franko are prominent figures. Taras is a Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics and translator, the enthusiast of sport development in Halychyna area, educationist, journalist, inventor and artist. Petro is an educationist, writer, scientist-chemist, founder of the sport society “Ukraine”, co-founder of “Plast”. Anna is an vigorous social activist, an activist of the Red Cross.

Franko`s family was not only the first humanitarians, but also the athletes. There are not many those who know that Franko`s children have been the founders of sport clubs. They were the first, who published the book on the Swedish drill – physical drill – in Ukrainian, told Ihor Kurus.

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The grandchildren of Ivan Franko, children of Taras, continued the honoured traditions of their family. Zinoviia-Rostyslava, the Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics, social activist, openly supported the arrested Sixtiers, what resulted into repressions against her by the Soviet government. Daria-Liubomyra is also a Doctor of Philosophy in Linguistics, “the guardian” of the heritage of Franko’s family. Roland-Oleksandr is a Doctor of Technical Science, has 50 scientific papers and inventions.

Owing to his standing, Ukraine has obtained a pole station on the Northern Pole named after Academician Vernadskyi (former name, after Faraday) from Great Britain on a free basis. At present, Roland is the Head of the Board of Ivan Franko International Prize, the initiator of the international prize named after Ivan Franko (which, by the way, was awarded to Liubomyr Huzar the previous year).

About the ApartmentMuseum

It is a common apartment in Kyiv, but without denying, it is located in the very centre, near the Opera House. High ceilings, wide corridors, spacious rooms. No repair, stylish repair or at least a simple one, has been made. Indeed, it is not eclectic palaces of Yanukovyches-Pshonkas, but there are much more content in those walls.

The exposition is placed in two rooms. There are pictures on the walls, particularly of the brush of Taras Farnko. He made many illustrations to his father’s works. He also made the portrait of Ivan Yanovych. All signatures in the pictures are original, written with hands of the painter himself.

There are stands with books, documents, photographs, typed works and letters along the walls.  There is also a work table of Taras Ivanovych and a typewriter “Continental”. It is not the original one, but the very one ordered in Poland at that time, about which the Museum administrators have found out from the letter of Taras to his sister.

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An original photograph, where young Petro and Taras Franko are among the Society “Sokil”, a photograph of the marriage of Taras to Kateryna Franko-Falkevych, are among the other exhibits of the Museum. An original book “The First Ukrainian Practical Cuisine” by Olha Franko, typed but unpublished work “The Teacher” by Anna Franko are presented there, as well.

All furniture of the Museum is original, of the time period of Ivan and Taras Farnko. Some of them have been brought by Taras from Lviv.

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Actually, it is not all interesting things in the Museum. But it is better to touch the history personally.

About the future

Apartment – Museum will open for the visitors next week. According to Ihor Kurus, visitors will enter by small groups since the premises belong to the housing fund of the city, thus, there are some features in visiting the museum.

However, ideas and activity of the researches of Franko’s life do not stop at this atage.

“We hope that the dream of Roland Tarasovych about installation of the full-size monument to Franco in Kyiv will come true, especially with such a great museum”, – hopes Ihor Kurus.

We would like to note that the Apartment-Museum was sanctified by Archbishop Drohobytskyi and Yakiv Sambirskyi, with whom Diocesan Administration Secretary Archpriest Andrii Bezushko concelebrated.

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