Picket Organized Near Lviv Regional Council to Protest Passing of Altamonte's Paintings to Roman Catholics

Museum workers, renowned artists, colleagues of the late Borys Voznytskyi organized a picket in front of the Lviv Regional State Administration today demanding to leave in the museum the battle scene paintings of Martino Altamonte, which the Ministry of Culture intends to pass to the Roman Catholic Church of St. Lawrence in Zhovkva.

The picket was attended by Lubomyr Medvid, Ihor Kalynets, Andrii Saliuk, Bohdan Kozak and others, the press service of the Lviv Regional Council repoted.

The protesters held banners “The Battle of Vienna Is Not a Sacral Work,” “Foreigners Not To Dispose of Our Museum Masterpieces.”

The participants of the picket were supported by the head of the Lviv Regional Council, Oleh Pankevych, who invited them to participate in a meeting in the council.

Let us remind that Oleh Pankevych addressed the Minister of Culture calling him not to take the paintings away from the museum. He noted in particular: “I am calling you to preserve these paintings for the Lviv Region, for the Ukrainian culture and Ukrainian nation. I know that my position is shared by the majority of the deputies of the Lviv Regional Council. I hope that the interests of the state will prevail over the possibility to get doubtful political dividends.”

Today, in Zhovkva, a meeting will be held with the participation of representatives of the Ministers of Culture of Poland and Ukraine where the question of the transfer of the two paintings of Altamonte to the Polish Roman Catholic Church of St. Lawrence in Zhovkva.