Haviuk Yurii

. Member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine (1982).

He was born on 27 September 1947 in Rakhiv. After graduating from the Rakhiv secondary school in 1965, Yurii entered the Lviv Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts, Department of Art Glass (his teachers were E. Mysko, I. Samotos) studying there from 1966 to 1971. As the famous journalist, writer and publicist Oleksandr Maslianyk wrote, “colourful and such polyphonic environment definitely formed the artistic self-awareness of a young man, and the unique beauty of mountain landscapes, folk epics about the Carpathian Velety, Opryshky and Oleksa Dovbush influenced the rebellious character of Yurii: he wasn’t a conformist, always defended his own position, stood firmly and uncompromisingly on his native land. An imaginative perception, a philosophical comprehension of the native land history made it possible to embody folk ballads and legends in the works of art.” As a result, a brilliant graduation work – volume and spatial composition made of cast glass titled “Dovbush”, which won the admiration of the respectable professors and was eventually set at the Historical and Regional Museum of Oleksa Dovbush in Pechenizhyn village, Ivano-Frankivsk region.

Completing his education and military service, the artist worked in the field of sculpture, painting and art glass. In 1975, he became a member of the sculpture section of the Lviv Union of Artists. At that time, he worked on the creative orders at the Lviv Ceramic and Sculpture Factory.

According to art historians, the first significant and serious plastic work of Yurii Haviuk was the image of the outstanding scientist, astronaut Yurii Kondratiuk. The artist created a deep in its inner psychology image of the mother – the work called “Mother Waiting For Her Son”, which was presented at various exhibitions and received the highest marks of specialists.

One of the first monumental works of Yurii Haviuk is a monument to all those who died in the 2^nd World War, set in Vedmezha village in Volyn region. “Athletics” was made for the Zhytomyr sports complex, a monument to Taras Shevchenko – for Volodymyr-Volynskyi, a monument to the victims of Stalinist repressions – for Zhovkva. Noteworthy is the work created together with his son Oleksandr for Mostyska – a monument to Stepan Bandera. Significant in the sculptor’s creative biography are two half figures of Yurii and Sviatoslav Roerich created by him for the International Centre-Museum named after Roerich in Moscow. In addition, Yurii Haviuk is the author of the monuments to a Hutsul in chalk copper set in Rakhiv, to Taras Shevchenko, and, in the co-authorship with his son Oleksandr, to the Afghan soldiers, Volodymyr the Great, the Mother of God. The father and his son also created a memorial plaque in honour of Bishop Ivan Marhitych as well as relief “Holy Family”.

When working, the artist uses the technique of oil painting as well. He has a lot of easel paintings, among which there are many landscapes of the native Hutsul land, portraits of mountain people, contemporaries and historical figures. His works are characterized by expressiveness of colours, while the texture and openness of the colour spectrum are fascinating (a painting series “Around India” (1990), “The Carpathians” (2000), “Vereshchaky Village” (1995), “Loneliness”, “In the Hay” (both in 2002).

Since 1989, he has been a head of the cultural society Living Ethics named after Roerichs in Lviv. Its collection has the presented to Lviv sculpture of Taras Shevchenko in Shevchenko grove. The member of the editorial board of the magazine “Grazhda” made a design and implemented the idea of the Grand Prix “For The Best Hutsul Museum” (a half figure of Dovbush on horseback).  Yurii Haviuk's creativity is highly appreciated by the communities of the places where numerous works of the artist were established. Thus, in 1993, he became an honorary citizen of Volodymyr-Volynskyi for his creative work for the town, and in 2007 – of his native Rakhiv.

Participant in numerous regional, republican and international exhibitions. His sculptures and paintings are kept at the Lviv Art Gallery, International Centre-Museum of M. Roerich in Moscow as well as in numerous private collections of Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Germany, England, Israel, the USA, and Canada.