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Artworks & Artefacts

Preserving Ukrainian Heritage

About Our Permanent Collection

Since 1936, the Ukrainian Museum of Canada has been collecting artworks and artefacts that reflect the rich cultural history of Ukrainians and Ukrainian Canadians. Today, our permanent collection includes more than 12,000 objects, carefully stored in our 1,300-square-foot, temperature-controlled facility.

These artworks and artefacts shape our exhibitions, inspire our programs, and preserve stories for future generations.

Pysanky • Icons & Religious Art • Embroidered Clothing • Ceramics & Pottery • Pysanky • Icons & Religious Art • Embroidered Clothing • Ceramics & Pottery • Pysanky • Icons & Religious Art • Embroidered Clothing • Ceramics & Pottery • Pysanky • Icons & Religious Art • Embroidered Clothing • Ceramics & Pottery •

Tapestries • Handmade Objects • Contemporary & Folk Art • Woodcarving & Metalwork • Tapestries • Handmade Objects • Contemporary & Folk Art • Woodcarving & Metalwork • Tapestries • Handmade Objects • Contemporary & Folk Art • Woodcarving & Metalwork • Tapestries • Handmade Objects • Contemporary & Folk Art • Woodcarving & Metalwork •

Український музей КанадиУкраїнський музей Канади

Our collection spans centuries of creativity and craftsmanship:

Textiles

We hold one of the largest collections of Ukrainian textiles in North America, featuring woven tapestries (kylymy), ceremonial towels (rushnyky), embroidered shirts (vyshyvanky), headscarves (khustky), and other elements of traditional dress, such as woven sashes (poyasy) and aprons (zapasky).

Artworks

Our art collection spans historic and contemporary works that reflect the richness of Ukrainian and Ukrainian Canadian experience. It includes twelve iconic paintings by William Kurelek, commissioned in 1965 to honour Ukrainian pioneer women, as well as works by Dmytro Stryjek, Ann Harbuz, Molly Lenhardt, and many others.

Pottery & Ceramics

Our ceramics collection ranges from a 6,000-year-old Trypillian vessel—a rare link to Ukraine’s ancient past—to vibrant Kosiv pottery and the pioneering work of Ukrainian Canadian potter Peter Rupchan. The collection is securely housed in a reinforced vault—installed by crane during the museum’s construction in 1980—to ensure the preservation of these irreplaceable pieces.

Pysanky

We are proud to steward over 200 decorated eggs, from traditional pysanky made with the wax-resist technique to wooden, embroidered, and hand-painted interpretations. Together they reflect centuries of artistry, symbolism, and renewal in Ukrainian culture.

Handmade Tools

Our collection preserves the tools of Ukrainian settlers and farmers—sickles (serpy), scythes (kosy), axes (sokyry), and more—symbols of the hard work and determination that transformed the Prairie landscape into a new home.

Woodworks

The Museum holds a wide range of rizba woodcarvings and inlaid works, from decorative boxes and plates to candleholders and decanters. Each piece reflects the craftsmanship and imagination that define Ukraine’s rich woodworking traditions.

Religious Items

As rural churches across the country closed throughout the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, many of their sacred items found new homes in museums—including the Ukrainian Museum of Canada. We are honoured to preserve tabernacles, banners, candlesticks, crucifixes, and other objects from the Eastern Orthodoxy and Ukrainian Greek Catholic faiths.

Jewellery & Beadwork

From necklaces to rings to beaded watch fobs, the Museum’s jewellery collection is extensive. These personal accessories carry the history of their former owners, and their intricate beadwork and bright colours symbolize the vibrancy of Ukrainian culture.