Ukrainian refugees had to leave their country, due to bombed homes or extreme danger. Fleeing to safety and finding a place where they can live and continue their lives, knowing they are not in danger.

They are mentally and physically exhausted, their lives are broken for nothing. Education, jobs, buildings all are destroyed in Ukraine. Refugees leaving behind their country and families causes unimaginable pain. Arriving in a foreign country where you don't speak the language. Traumatised by war and separation from your loved ones, connected only by video calls, helpless and disconnected.

The objective of Sketchbooks Ukraine is, to provide a connection with other Ukrainian refugees and meeting face to face and on Zoom. We aim to create a community for them, where adults can create, chat with the freedom of expressing themselves in their own language. To meet and interact with long term UK resident Ukrainians, we help them adapt and assimilate to our way of life. Giving them a ready made community.

The children will be going to school in a foreign country, having to adapt to so many new things. Sketchbooks will give them the opportunity to relax and express themselves in their art and easy conversation, meeting with Ukrainian speaking children who have grown up in Cornwall who can assist in the critical assimilation that they need.

Many of these people who are refugees will be suffering trauma. We want to give them a comfortable and reassuring place where they can escape from the pain of their separation from family and country.

Shallal Sketchbooks is an ongoing project engaging hundreds of people from across the UK and beyond who have made a sketchbook for our growing sketchbooks library. Our objective here is to create an extension to involve our new Ukrainian visitors in their new environment.