My intaglio class had us etch a copper plate discussing the themes of identity and culture. Leleka was etched in late March, right around the time the storks come back to Ukraine to settle in for spring and summer. The woman is wearing traditional dress, a long white, linen dress with a wool skirt and apron. The scythe, a double meaning, is not meant to signify death, as this is a traditional tool used by people, even still used today. It’s meant to signify my father, as he built one himself as a young man, and mourns its loss here in America. The house in the background is also a traditional house, one my father lived in when he was a boy, and the trees are simply the trees that surrounded his childhood home. The mountains are meant to be the Carpathian Mountains, as I have lineage stemming from there, the “Hutsul” people. The storks on the house are meant to signify rebirth and spring, new life. It is good luck to have a stork build a nest on your house, and you should never disturb it. The piece is meant to signify hope, and a hope of rebuilding and returning home.