On June 27, 2024, on the occasion of the Constitution Day of Ukraine (June 28), a patriotic cultural and artistic educational event - a master class "How to draw a Cossack Mamai" was held in the O.O. Osmerkin Art Memorial Museum.
    The image of the Cossack Mamai is a generalized symbol of Ukrainian history, it shows the universal love of Ukrainians for the Cossacks and the exceptional role it played in the history and culture of Ukraine. In this image, the popular canonization of the Cossacks took place, paintings with the image of a Cossack-bandurist were hung in residences in the most honorable place, often next to icons. It is in the figure of the Cossack Mamai that the archetype of the "warrior-hero" is encoded in a figurative form. Cossack Mamai is one of the most beloved characters of Ukrainian folk art, he was painted not only in the form of an easel painting, but also on walls and doors, on dishes, chests and even beehives.
    The leading researcher of the museum, artist and teacher Olha Krasnopolska, first interestingly told about the fact that the image of the Cossack Mamai continues to live actively even in the third millennium, testifying to the cultural identity of Ukrainians in the age of globalization, and then she demonstrated a step-by-step depiction of the Cossack, explaining her idea as follows: “I developed this scheme based on one of the most famous images of Cossack Mamai. It is symmetrical, similar to the classic traditional "tree of life" pattern and, moreover, is easy to understand for any age and level of artistic training. By the way, this scheme was developed for the illustrations of one future book." The image of a Cossack-bandurist was chosen for drawing. And there is also symbolism in this - if the figure of the Cossack personifies not only the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks, but also the whole people who rose up against the brutal slaughter, then the bandura in the hands of the hero symbolizes the extraordinary songwriting and good nature of the Ukrainian, it is not by chance that the bandura players were feared and hated by the enemies of Ukraine.
    It is significant that the participants of the event were students of various age categories from 8 to 14 years old, who fondly recreated on paper with gouache and watercolor paints, felt-tip pens and colored pencils one of the most beloved characters of Ukrainian folk art Kozak Mamai. Adults - mothers who brought their children to the museum for the event - also actively participated in drawing. Following the instructions of the artist Olha Krasnopolska, all participants of the master class each created a heroic image of the legendary Cossack bandurist in their own way.
    At the end of the creative meeting, everyone took a picture in the museum exhibition hall, and took their own drawings with them, because the Cossack Mamai created by oneself will become a real amulet not only for the person who made it, but also for the whole family, which is so important now, when the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine defend the territorial integrity of our country, its freedom and independence, which are the highest values and signs of a democratic state, declared in the Constitution of Ukraine.