Diana Lawryshyn

As a Ukrainian Canadian, my upbringing was deeply shaped by the folktales my parents passed down to me. My painting Sister explores one such story, the Ukrainian coming-of-age tale Kryvenka Kachochka, or Crippled Duckling. In this tale, a flock of enchanted sister ducklings are able to transform into young girls, a motif that reflects the mysterious and ever-changing nature of growing up. The moment I chose to illustrate captures Kryvenka Kachochka as she struggles to return to her duck form, aided by the flurry of feathers from her sisters—this time transforming not into a duckling, but into a mature duck.
While the painting draws on a girl’s journey into womanhood, at its heart it is also a story of sisterhood and kinship. It demonstrates how Ukrainian folk tales root themselves in nature—using animals and transformation as powerful metaphors to convey complex themes to children. By re-imagining this tale visually, Sister becomes not only a reflection of personal memory but also a preservation of Ukrainian cultural heritage, carrying forward the folktales that have long bound generations together.