Shlomo, arch and murals: Vinnytsian cats in images and sculptures

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In May 2022, the incredible story of a rescued cat in Borodyanka (Kyiv oblast), which was destroyed by the Russian occupiers, spread around the world. The animal lived for a month on the 7th floor of a high-rise building, mutilated by enemy shelling, without food and water. The cat survived, becoming one of the symbols of the unbreakability of the Ukrainian people in this war with Russian invaders.

In general, the city of Istanbul, the island of Malta and even Ukrainian Odesa are first associated with cats. But the locals also love furry friends in Vinnytsia, and that’s why you can see a lot of them in murals and sculptures. For International Cat Day, which is celebrated every year on August 8, we decided to make a selection of famous images of furry pets in the urban space of Vinnytsia.

Shlomo

The most famous cat of the city is the legendary and elusive cat Shlomo. He lived at the beginning of the 20th century in the Jewish quarter and so expertly stole meat from the apartments that stories about him have reached our days.

This cat is immortalized in a sculpture located in front of the museum-café “Pan Zavarkin ta syn”. The sculpture depicts Shlomo , who steals a sausage from a local man while he drinks coffee. Nearby there is a can with the inscription “feed the cat”, and tourists regularly throw donations there “to feed Shlomo”.

With the arrival of spring, when local cats come out to lie down, basking in the sun, the atmosphere and coziness of Jerusalemka is felt especially strongly. But there are a lot of cats in the city. You only need to get off the central streets and will definitely see these furry ones somewhere.

Cats on Kyiv bridge

In Vinnytsia there are several more sculptures of cats cast in bronze, and you can find them on the Kyiv Bridge over the Pivdennyi Buh. On one side there is a sculpture of a cat lying on a railing, and on the other two cats playing with butterflies.

These animals and bird sculptures were a gift to the people of Vinnytsia on St. Nicholas Day in 2018. A team of Vinnytsia designers and artists worked on the realization of the idea, and the sculptures were made in the local workshop “Ovrah”.

A few years ago, an unfortunate story happened with one of the three cats, but with a happy ending. In spring 2019, the figure disappeared, and this greatly outraged local residents. The Vinnytsia City Council even announced a reward for help in identifying and apprehending thieves. But divers found the bronze cat the very next day at the bottom of Pivdennyi Buh. Later, the figure was returned to its place, and additional video surveillance cameras were installed on the bridge to prevent vandalism.

Arch of Leontovych Central Park

It is interesting that one of the main symbols of Vinnytsia – the arch at the entrance to Leontovych Central Park – is also associated with cats.

This snow-white arch with four pillars, as well as the spire near it, was built in 1967 according to the project of Roman Markhel and Vladyslav Horbatyi. It is believed that the composition symbolizes man’s flight into space: the arch itself is the Earth, and the spire near it is a space rocket.

However, according to another, no less well-known version, the architect Roman Markhel was inspired to create such an arch by a wooden figure of a cat with a curved back. Therefore, the spire, according to this version, is nothing more than a cat’s tail stretched upwards.

Mural “Cosmic Dreams”

There are several dozens of murals in Vinnytsia, and of course cats are also there. In 2019, as part of the art project “VIN-ART-CITY”, a black furry friend decorated a mural on a five-story building on 6 Kosmonavtiv St. It was the debut mural of Vinnytsia artist Nataliya Vusyk entitled “Cosmic Dreams”.

Most of it is space with the signs of the zodiac and the great whale constellation. And in the lower right corner is a dreamy girl with her pet cat.

The cat on the VinSmart windowsill

Another painted cat decorates the building of the VinSmart center at 91 Soborna St. Today, this is the most patriotic cat in Vinnytsia, because the image is made in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. In summer 2016, when his photo got into the network, this picture became almost the most wanted in Vinnytsia.

A funny cat sitting on the windowsill and looking at passers-by was drawn by Iryna Kovalevska, a teacher and organizer of the VinSmart center. The woman says that no special idea was put into this drawing, but the cat is one of the most popular pets, and it is the animal that is the easiest for children to draw.

She has been working with children for 28 years and leads a creativity group. She also says that a cat can be drawn fat or thin, with a long or short tail, eyes can be big or squinted, and this develops the imagination quite a bit.

“I have two cats that live in my house. Both were taken from the yard. And in the lessons, I also tell the pupils that animals should be loved, not insulted, if there is an opportunity, take them home, if not, then you can feed them or take care of them,” – said Iryna Kovalevska.

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International Cat Day was established in 2002 by the International Fund for the Protection of Animals. It is designed to raise awareness about cats and learn about how to help and protect them. Here are some tips from the all-Ukrainian humanist movement UAnimals on how to help street animals survive:

Have you finished your porridge? Do not throw in the general garbage, take a separate plate and collect everything that has not been milked. Do you have foods that you do not have time to eat? Put them on a plate in the same way.
Take the collected food outside and leave it open near heat (sewage manholes, pipes, near basements, near entrances). If you have animal food, you can share it with the homeless.
Do not leave large amounts of food in one place.
Animals also need to drink, so leave water trays next to food.
UAnimals is calling to join the flashmob #waterforanimals, because due to the summer heat, street cats and dogs are at risk of death from dehydration