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cover of episode Ukrainian Artists on Their Oscar-Nominated Documentary 'Porcelain War'

Ukrainian Artists on Their Oscar-Nominated Documentary 'Porcelain War'

2025/2/5
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Ukrainian artists Slava Leontyev and Anya Stasenko use porcelain figurines to depict their lives before and after the Russian invasion, employing metaphors to express the fragility and resilience of Ukraine. The documentary "Porcelain War" showcases their art and their experiences as fighters.
  • Ukrainian artists use porcelain art as a metaphor for Ukraine's fragility and resilience.
  • The documentary "Porcelain War" uses animation to bring the artists' stories to life.
  • The artists' work also reflects the impact of war on nature.

Shownotes Transcript

The 2025 Academy Award-nominated documentary “Porcelain War” tells the story of Ukrainian artists Slava Leontyev and Anya Stasenko as they defy the Russian invasion through their art and by aiding in the war effort. In the intricately painted porcelain figurines they create, the artists represent how their lives used to be — and their hopes for the future. Leontyev, Stasenko and producer Paula DuPré Pesmen join us to talk about the film and the power and fragility of art in the face of war. Later in the hour, we’ll speak with former Ukraine ambassador Steven Pifer about the future of U.S. aid to Ukraine under the Trump Administration.

Guests:

Steven Pifer, affiliate, Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University; former ambassador, to Ukraine; former senior director, National Security Council in the Clinton administration

Paula DuPré Pesmen, producer, “Porcelain War”

Slava Leontyev, artist and co-director, “Porcelain War”