Painting Through the Pain: How a Seed Grant Brought Healing to Ukraine’s Displaced Children

Sofiia Klymovych is an artist living in Kyiv who knows firsthand what it means to carry the weight of war. That personal experience, rather than distancing her from the crisis around her, became the foundation of a project rooted in empathy, creativity, and quiet resilience. Her vision was clear: give displaced children a space where they could breathe, create, and feel safe, and do it entirely free of charge.

With support from The Pollination Project’s Daily Grant Program 2025, Sofiia turned that vision into a living, weekly reality. The seed grant of $483.50 USD funded the essential infrastructure of the classes: ten easels, canvases, drawing paper, acrylic paints, gouache, brushes, pastels, pencils, chairs, and small tables for paints. These were not luxury items. They were the literal tools through which approximately 70 children found their voices.

“Working with children affected by the war and seeing their creativity and emotions expressed through painting has been both inspiring and therapeutic,” Sofiia reflected in her project report. “The TPP grant made it possible to provide free materials and support for these children.”

The classes were held in an offline, in-person format in Kyiv, combining artistic instruction with elements of art therapy. Many of the participants were internally displaced children, having fled their homes due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. For several of them, simply engaging in a new environment was its own challenge. Sofiia noted that many children initially struggled to open up or feel confident enough to pick up a brush. Her response was patience, flexibility, and consistency. Over time, that approach worked. Children who once sat quietly at the edges of the room began leading their own creative explorations, and parents reported reduced anxiety and improved mood in their children as the weeks went on.

“Over time, as trust was built, the children became more open, actively involved, and confident in expressing their emotions through art,” she wrote.

The project’s most emotionally resonant moment came during the winter holiday season, when the children channeled their gratitude into drawings for Ukrainian soldiers serving at the front. Packages of these artworks were prepared and sent to the military, creating a loop of care between the youngest and most vulnerable members of society and those bearing the hardest burdens of the war. Approximately 70 unique participants took part across the grant period, with 45 volunteer hours contributed and every single class offered free of charge.

Philanthropic seed funding of this kind, small in dollar amount and large in consequence, is precisely what The Pollination Project was built to provide.

“For me, as someone affected by the war, working with children through painting is therapeutic and inspires me to continue this project,” Sofiia wrote.

Many displaced children in Kyiv have not yet had the opportunity to join. She intends to change that.

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