Ukrainian brand RITO, within the framework of Ukrainian Fashion Week and in collaboration with the National Museum of Decorative Arts of Ukraine, presented a new collection — a contemporary interpretation of the artistic legacy of Hanna Sobachko-Shostak, a master of decorative painting whose practice embodies the deep archetypes of folk culture.

Hanna Sobachko-Shostak invented flowers that did not exist in nature: “flower-birds,” “flower-fish,” “rainbow-flowers.” Her visions merged with Slavic ornaments, where animals and plants transformed into one another. This represents a unique cultural code that is vital to preserve and weave into modernity.

“I first saw an incredibly bright embroidered pillowcase by Hanna Sobachko-Shostak at an exhibition dedicated to Alla Horska. Then came the immersion into her art and the question: why had I never seen this before? Which of her works could I translate into knitwear, and what techniques should I choose? After that — sketches and unique development of each piece. It’s the magic of combining complex knitting technologies with hand embroidery,” says RITO designer Aliona Pikul.

The key piece of the collection is the “Radish-Flower” jumper. It is particularly valuable because the artist’s work was partially created by machine knitting and then fully completed by hand embroidery — 30 hours of painstaking work. “Radish-Flower” is one of Hanna’s most vivid and avant-garde paintings: this “flower” with an eye fascinates and becomes a true talisman for its wearer.

The “Autumn Flowers” dress and stole feature fragments of a flower with a “bird-like” gaze, symmetrically “embracing” the shoulders. The technique of linear embroidery with white stitches on dark fabric creates an effect where the line seems to dissolve against the gray background. Each piece represents 20 hours of meticulous handwork.
A fine jumper with a graphic leaf — an enlarged element from “Autumn Flowers” — was knitted using the intarsia technique. At this scale, the motif transforms into an independent abstraction.

The long cardigan with a red flower is another example of combining programmed knitting technology with hand satin-stitch embroidery. The motif comes from an embroidered pillowcase created by Sobachko-Shostak in 1951.

Meanwhile, the blue and pink flowers on the cream cardigan were inspired by her painting “Awakening” (1915). Their naïve and charming look captivates with simplicity.
The collection also includes RITO’s signature scarves, now adorned with flowers from “Awakening.” In the capsule’s coat, the contours of “Awakening’s” flowers were given a three-dimensional effect: the design team inserted an additional knitted cord beneath the hand embroidery, using the same yarn from which the coat itself was made.

All garments are crafted from soft, slightly fluffy lambswool yarn. It is lightweight, warm, and especially suitable for the autumn-winter season. Each technique in the collection was developed individually for a specific piece. A special detail is Hanna Sobachko-Shostak’s autograph, recreated in embroidery on every item. Just as the artist herself always carefully signed her works, RITO emphasizes: this collection is not just inspiration, but a continuation of a living dialogue with the artist.

“Artists like Hanna Sobachko-Shostak absorbed centuries of folk tradition from birth. They are true bearers of an authentic cultural code that we strive to preserve and carry forward,” the team affirms.

Folk culture is unconsciously transmitted, like an instinct, from generation to generation. That is why the collection seeks not only to preserve this heritage but also to carry it beyond the museum space — to integrate it into the present so that more people can experience the unique world of Hanna Sobachko-Shostak.