In order to install this monument in Kreschaty Park, the authorities of the city and its residents were inspired by the love story of an Italian prisoner of war and a Ukrainian woman who was hijacked to work in Germany. “I come to Ukraine every year. I still remember the events of the war that connected us with Maria. And these tears in my eyes are tears of joy,” says Luigi Pedutto.
They met in Austria back in 1943. A soldier who surrendered to the Italian army and a peasant woman, Mokrina, who was driven away by the Nazis to work from Ukraine. In a prisoner of war camp, they worked in a sewing shop. Luigi, secretly from the guards, sewed handkerchiefs for her. Mokrina shared her meager rations with him in the dining room. She did not know Italian, he only learned a couple of phrases in Russian.
“It was the first time in my life when I learned what love is,” says Luigi Pedutto.
In May 1945, Soviet troops liberated them. It would seem that a happy family life is about to come. He wanted to take Mokrina to him. The Italian authorities refused. Then he himself was ready to move to the Soviet Union.
“I explained that I am Italian, but I want to go with this woman to Ukraine. “No,” he says. “Our Stalin does not want this,” recalls Luigi Pedutto.
So their paths diverged. Luigi got married and had a son. She also got married, worked in a mine in Ukraine, raised three children. Almost at the same time, Luigi and Mokrin were widowed. But they always remembered each other.
“Then, during the war, it seems to me that it was a very sincere feeling. And it’s very good that they carried it, he didn’t forget it. Probably this kind of love, I don’t know if there is such a thing now,” says Galina Emelyanova, Mokrina’s granddaughter Yurzuk.
Before parting, Mokrina left Luigi her address in Ukraine. He wrote repeatedly. But the letters did not reach. In 2004, Senor Pedutto found out about the “Wait for me” program and asked for help. A few months later, he found his first love. They met after 60 years. He invited her to his town of Castel San Lorenzo, showed her an olive grove. Luigi is now a frequent visitor to Mokrina’s hut. Every summer he comes to help with the housework. Beautifully looks after – prepares Italian dishes for her, replacing parmesan with processed cheese.
This story left no one indifferent. In honor of the Italian and Ukrainian, who carried love through their lives, on May 7, 2013, a love story monument was erected (KievFashionPark; sculptors Alexander Morgatsky and Grigory Kostyukov).
“Maybe the young people will want to see what kind of monument it is,” says Mokrina Yurzuk.
Mokrina Andreevna could not come to Kyiv at 93. At the opening ceremony of the monument, Senor Luigi could not hold back his tears.
“This is a wonderful monument. Everything that I feel in my heart, the sculptor managed to convey very accurately,” said Luigi Pedutto.
The monument to the history of love is located just a few meters from the Lovers Bridge (Parkovy Bridge), not far from Mariinsky Park. There is no doubt that many newlyweds will visit this place on their wedding day.
On April 30, 2017, in the Italian town-commune of Castel San Lorenzo, a copy of the Kyiv monument “Love Story” was opened. Luigi Pedutto did not live to see the monument in his homeland – he died in 2013. Mokrina Yurzuk died in 2015.
“Emotions are overwhelming. Honestly, I did not expect such a reaction from people. I could not imagine how the inhabitants of this small town would react to our initiative, how important it is for them, are our feelings the same? But what I saw exceeded all my expectations. The whole city took to the streets. We observed the conscious, sincere attitude of people. They took pictures at the monument, those who knew Luigi remembered him … It is very touching. I think that together we did a good job, “Anna Bezlyudnaya, head of Inter Media, shared after the opening ceremony of the monument. group.
Sculptures within the framework of the “Kiev Fashion Park” project can be seen in other interesting places in Kyiv:
– Landscape alley,
– Rusanovskaya embankment (Grandma with kravchuchka),
– Pechersky Landscape Park\Singing Field (Big Baking Tournament, The world through rose-colored glasses),
– Mariinsky Park (Director.Observer),
– Rare bird,
– Taras Shevchenko Park (classic grandmother).