A NEW art installation in the centre of North Berwick has created a powerful image to highlight the ongoing plight of the Ukrainian people.

The piece was designed and created by Tetiana Hurn, a Ukrainian refugee who recently arrived in the town with her young son Nikolai to escape the conflict in her homeland.

Tetiana had been driven by the desire to “give something back” to the people of North Berwick who have welcomed her arrival in the town.

The artwork is located in the repurposed phone boxes on Westgate operated by pARTicipate, an art group that creates community-led and thought-provoking art installations.

The image depicts a young woman in a field of sunflowers (Ukraine’s national flower), in blue and white national dress, with text above saying “we are all connected”.

Geraldine Prince, pARTicipate co-ordinator, explained that the painting helped express the gratitude of Ukrainians who had come to Scotland, while also creating a beautiful yet potent image in the centre of the town.

'Expression of hope'

She said: “In May, Tetiana Hurn and her young son were amongst the first groups of refugees to arrive in North Berwick.

“Inspired by the welcome and support they received, as an experienced street and mural artist, Tetiana wanted to ‘give something back’, and accepted the invitation to make the present installation, expressing her own visual response to this historic moment.

“The starting point was the telephone, an idea central to pARTicipate’s artspace and a medium of communication that connects people.

“Perhaps distantly echoing Salvador Dalí’s Surrealist object Lobster Telephone, Tetiana uses the sunflower held to the figure’s ear as an imaginary means of communication, as others may use a shell to listen to the sound of the sea.

“The sunflowers also acknowledge the powerful way that Van Gogh used the energy of the sunflowers in numerous paintings, in which they represent ‘gratitude’.

“Gazing out with an expression of hope, the message communicated and received by the symbolic figure is one of welcome and safety for Ukrainians in Scotland and in East Lothian.”

Tetiana has also received a grant from North Berwick Trust to complete another mural on the corner of High Street and Quality Street.

READ MORE: Ukrainian refugee plans striking mural for North Berwick High Street

It is still to get the nod from East Lothian Council, but would be inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson and depict a gannet, lighthouses, as well as famous landmarks from North Berwick and elsewhere that connect the experiences of travellers and refugees.