Children on the front line: emotion must lead to action
War artist Arabella Dorman called for more to be done to protect children caught up in war and conflict when she launched her exhibition ‘Child of War’ at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral in London this week.
Her powerful images, together with children’s paintings and the artefacts of war that make up the exhibition, present a grim picture of the suffering of children caught up in conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, the Middle East and elsewhere: “In modern conflict children stand on the frontline … but it is not just about the trauma children suffer in war but also about the long term effects of that violence”, said Dorman.
“The suffering of children of children in war goes to the very heart of our humanity. It is time to heed that pain and act”.
She said the children’s paintings “offer a ray of hope”
“Children have this innate sense of dignity and strength … They dare to hope.”
The implications of the lasting impact on children were highlighted by Edna Fernandes, Co-founder of the charity Beyond Conflict, which is promoting the exhibition.
“Children can be condemned to repeat the cycle of horror they have experienced. This danger will reverberate through their lives and possibly be handed onto their own children.
“How can you rebuild peace if so many children are damaged in this way?”, she asked.
She called for tougher international action to safeguard children in war: “It almost seems that the targeting of children has become acceptable”.
Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski, the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Great Britain, said being moved by the images of suffering is not enough: “It should not remain at the emotional stage but it should make us ask what else we in the UK can do to help these children.”
He said the UK had a proud record of welcoming people and highlighted the 220,000 plus visas issued under the Homes for Ukraine scheme: “This should be an example of best practice of how we can welcome strangers to the country.”
Dorman visited the area around Bucha, scene of some of the worst atrocities committed by the Russian forces during their initial assault on Kyiv in the spring of 2022, collecting stories from children which she has represented in many of her paintings. In addition, she brought back some of the lethal shards of shrapnel from a school in Hostomel, together with a collection of children’s shoes just abandoned in a classroom as the shells rained down and which now feature as part of the exhibition.
One of the most chilling paintings in the exhibition was inspired by a letter a nine year old girl, Galya, wrote to her mother who she had seen shot and killed in their car as they tried to escape the advancing Russians. Galya was hidden in the back of the car and was miraculously rescued by neighbours. This what she wrote:
“Dear Mama,
This is a present for you for the 8th March [International Women’s Day which was popularly celebrated as Mother’s Day in the Soviet Union].
If you think that you wasted your time bringing me up, then you are wrong.
Thank you for the best 9 years of my life.
Thank you very much for my childhood
You are the best Mama in the world. I shall never forget you. I wish you happiness in heaven! I wish you to go to paradise.
We shall meet in the paradise.
I shall try to behave well in order to get to the paradise.
I kiss you. Galya.”
Bishop Nowakowski recently returned from a visit to Ukraine and said he came back with a message for everyone in the UK: “When you go back tell people about us. Pray for us. And when we are no longer in the headlines do not forget us”.
• Child of War is on at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral, 21 Binney Street, London W1K 5BQ until 6 June. It is open from 10am to 5pm and is free of charge.
• Following its London debut, the exhibition will move to Berlin before returning to various locations in the UK.
About Arabella Dorman
Arabella Dorman is an award-winning, internationally renowned artist and one of Britain’s leading portrait painters. Dorman has painted members of the Royal family, senior military personnel and other high profile individuals.
As an officially accredited British war artist, Dorman has worked across the Middle-East since 2006. She has been embedded with the British Army in Iraq (2006) and Afghanistan (2009 – 2013). Her humanitarian work has taken her to Gaza, Palestine & Israel (2017) Lebanon, Syria (2018) and most recently, Ukraine (2023).
David Worsfold 