Modern, historic letters showcase love in dangerous times By: AV Kitching Posted: 6:00 AM CST Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026

Love is in the air at Oseredok.

The Ukrainian cultural and educational centre’s current exhibition, Love Letters: A Timeless Experience, bears witness to the fraught and emotional journeys of past and present Ukrainian-Canadian couples through historical love letters, digital declarations and personal artifacts as they navigated courtship, separation and reunion.

Spanning the 20th and 21st centuries, the exhibition draws on a combination of archival material, including the cultural centre’s collection of rare wedding photographs and studio portraits, and visual installations to trace the love lives of Ukrainian-Canadians across the decades.

A letter-writing manual penned in 1913 by linguist and author F. Dojacek forms the backbone of the immersive show.

“The book Guide for Lovers or How To Write Love Letters offered invaluable advice and sample letters for gentlemen and ladies in Manitoba,” media historian and exhibition co-curator Olga Khamedova says.

The slim volume was written to educate male immigrants on the art of romantic letter writing in order to woo Ukrainian ladies who were either still in Ukraine or had already settled in this country, and came complete with examples of imagined responses along with prompts for suitable replies.

“It was very convenient for both men and women to read the book because there is an acceptance response and a refusal response, too,” Khamedova says.

From initial declarations of affection to first dates — which often took place in diners and dance halls — to records of traditional weddings and recollections of modern marriages, the exhibition brings to life the community’s love stories amid times of hardship and transition.

Carefully preserved photos of rural weddings, captured by amateur photographers, provide a rare glimpse into the past.

“One striking image shows a bride, groom and their guests dancing on a wooden platform set against the backdrop of the Manitoba Prairies,” Khamedova says.

“Scenes like this reflect the spirit of Ukrainain Canadian weddings from between the 1920s to the 1960s, festive occasions for the community to gather, sing traditional songs and play traditional instruments like the tsambaly, a type of dulcimer.”

There are also wedding portraits of young couples taken by Charles Krasnopera in Winnipeg’s (now defunct) Vogue Photo Studio during the 1950s and 1960s showing traditional korovai, the intricately decorated Ukrainian wedding bread, placed beside North American wedding cakes, reflecting a merging of cultures as Ukrainian Canadians started adopting Western wedding traditions while preserving their heritage.

Alongside joyful occasions are also photos of more restrained ceremonies held in displaced persons camps in Germany and Austria between 1946 and 1948.

The exhibition also celebrates modern love, highlighting more recent relationships, including those conducted in times of war.

“The archives of Oseredok preserve true treasure with many fascinating materials. There are many emotional moments in archival work, and the most touching one for me was finding letters published in newspapers — letters from Ukrainian wives to their husbands who were working in Canada during the First World War,” Khamedova says.

“And now, as the war continues in Ukraine, many families are once again separated. That is why this exhibition was born — to connect these two realities and highlight the theme of love and war.”

Juxtaposed with letters written during the First World War are printed text messages sent by women to their husbands who were on the front line. Many of them were left unread.

In 2023 the women began to share the texts online, posting screenshots of their last messages to loved ones with whom they had lost contact.

“This exhibition is about the idea that love conquers war and death,” Khamedova says. “For me this is more than just an exhibition. It’s a symbol of hope.”

winnipegfreepress.com/avkitching

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Exhibition preview

Love Letters: A Timeless Experience
● Oseredok Ukrainian Cultural and Educational Centre, 184 Alexander Ave. E.
● Tuesday to Saturday until May, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
● Visit oseredok.ca for more information