Natalia and Tetiana have been embroidering for over 20 years, inheriting their skills and passion for embroidery from their grandmother, Maria Matviyko, from the village of Velyki Sorochyntsi in Poltava Oblast. Their grandmother was an avid embroiderer who also participated in exhibitions.

For millennia, the art of creating motanka dolls has been passed down through generations, and Natalia and Tetiana continue this ancient tradition.  These dolls, more than mere toys, are believed to be protective talismans warding off evil forces. To avoid attracting unwanted attention, they are traditionally crafted without faces.
Some motanka dolls, particularly those from the Slobozhanshchyna region, feature intricate cross patterns that replace eyes. These crosses are created by carefully intertwining threads of various colour.

The sisters use only natural materials such as linen, hemp, cotton, and wool, and they embroider by hand using over fifty techniques from various regions of Ukraine. Their works have been exhibited not only in Ukraine and Poland but also in Turkey, Thailand, and Georgia. In 2012, as part of the Viva Ukraine festival, they prepared an exhibition presented at the Ethnographic Museum in Wrocław.

In addition to their other works, the Katrychenko sisters showcase embroidery from the culturally rich regions of Reshetilivka and Borshchiv.

The technology of “white on white” embroidery of Reshetylivka in Poltava Oblast was inscribed on Ukraine’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage  in 2017.

Borshchiv folk embroidery was inscribed on Ukraine’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2020.

Contact
www: Dolls by Sisters Katrychenko fb
e-mail: lialka.motanka@gmail.com
phone: +380974641942