On March 31, Fairfield University’s Center for Social Impact and Center for Arts & Minds welcomed the public to the opening lecture and reception of Icons on Ammo Boxes: Christian Art of Hope and Sorrow from the War in Ukraine at the University’s 1720 Post location.
Art from the Front Lines
Since 2015, Ukranian artists Sonia Atlantova and Oleksandr Klymenko have transformed fragments of ammunition boxes recovered from the front lines of the Russia-Ukraine war into sacred works of art. Their son, Herman Klymenko, joined their work in recent years.
Drawing from the centuries-old tradition of Orthodox icon writing, their internationally recognized Icons on Ammo Boxes project bears witness to the tragedy of war while offering prayer and hope for a just peace.
The exhibition includes the 11 pieces of the artists’ Mariupol Deisis (2022), a striking series created in response to the near-total destruction of the city of Mariupol in 2022. Following the traditional Deisis iconographic motif—Christ in Majesty flanked by the Virgin Mary, and St. John the Baptist in poses of intercession—the series evokes judgment, mercy, and the plea for humanity amid devastation. Also on display is a new 2025 Marian series dedicated to Ukrainian children held in Russian captivity, as well as a newly created icon of St. Ignatius of Loyola, made exclusively for the Fairfield exhibition, and an icon of the Mother of God with Child that was presented to Pope Leo XIV by Ukraine’s President and First Lady.
Hope in a Time of War
Speaking at the opening lecture and panel discussion, exhibition coordinator Yelena Duda shared the personal context behind the exhibition and noted that the works are for sale, with proceeds supporting mobile hospitals. “Thousands of lives have been saved by the mobile hospitals,” Duda said. “Buy an icon, save a life.”
Sergei Chapnin, director of communications at the Orthodox Christian Studies Center of Fordham University, provided further geopolitical and religious context around the project. “Icons are prayer in the language of images,” he said. Through these particular pieces, “the artist is trying to convey to the rest of the world that there is still hope: God is present. When death is at hand, that is when faith is strongest.”
Following their remarks, Fairfield University Vice President for Mission and Ministry Rev. Paul Rourke, S.J., joined Chapnin, Duda, and Melissa Quan, EdD, director of the Center for Social Impact, for a panel discussion and Q&A with the audience. At the conclusion of the conversation, attendees viewed the artwork on display at the University’s 1720 Post Road location and enjoyed Ukrainian-inspired bites.
Visiting the Exhibition
Icons on Ammo Boxes will be on display at 1720 Post Road in downtown Fairfield through May 22, 2026. To schedule a visit, contact Mary Crimmins at mcrimmins@fairfield.edu.
