A limited edition signed print will be offered April 24th to help in the aid effort in Ukraine.
Clars Auction Gallery is proud to be offering a print of the photograph Girl with Candy by now world-renowned Ukrainian photographer Oleksii Kyrychenko. Oleksii blew-up on social media after uploading the photo of his young daughter holding a (unloaded) double barrel rifle with lollipop in mouth, just days before Ukraine was attacked by Russian forces. Oleksii, who’s been a photography hobbyist since school, wanted to capture and show the world what a war-torn Ukraine would look like for its people and its children. Despite attempts to share the images on Facebook, they were not truly appreciated until his dystopian photograph became reality.
Oleksii said, “I posted the photo to a few Facebook foreign photo groups. They were banned immediately in those with Russian admins. The other groups were ambiguous about the piece. A lot of people criticized the photo for showing a child with a weapon. Finally, the photo remained posted in only one group.” But after the atrocities of the war began, he went on to say, “Suddenly the image had spread all over the world. The opinions of these photos have changed completely, as now the world has seen the real face of the Russian invasion.”
Clars will be auctioning a print of the photograph, printed here in Oakland by permission of the photographer. It is one of a limited edition of 5, which will be auctioned in our April 24th sale with an estimate of $1,000–$2,000.
Oleksii has requested that half of the proceeds be donated to Come Back Alive, a non-governmental organization helping the Ukrainian military by supplying troops with technical support and medical aid.
