Vocational School No. 79

Vocational School No. 79 is a state institution of vocational education, founded in 1963 in Petrykivka. It is one of the few formal educational institutions in Ukraine where Petrykivka painting is taught not as an extracurricular circle but as a full-fledged trade profession.

The “Wood Painting Artist” trade

Among the trades taught at the school — alongside “Cook-Waiter,” “Tractor Driver-Mechanic,” “Locksmith-Repairman,” and “Motor Vehicle Driver” — a special place belongs to “Wood Painting Artist” (Художник розмалювання по дереву). Graduates of this program receive a 3rd-category qualification along with practical skills in painting wooden items in the traditional Petrykivka style — these very graduates go on to become the masters who continue and develop the tradition today.

Training combines theory with practice: students master the ornamental elements of Petrykivka painting (flowers, berries, leaves, birds), brushwork technique including the traditional handmade “cat’s-fur” brushes, work with tempera paint and varnish, and apply their skills to real objects — trays, boxes, and cutting boards.

Contribution to the tradition

The school (formerly known as SPTU-79) has trained generations of specialists for the Petrykivka region for decades. Its graduates include masters who went on to work at the Petrykivka Folk Art Center, the Experimental Petrykivka Painting Workshop of the Dnipropetrovsk Art-Industrial Combine, and other institutions, as well as teachers who now pass on the craft to a new generation of children through clubs and art schools. Alongside the traditional practice of apprenticing directly with a master, the school remains one of the main channels of formal transmission of Petrykivka painting technique to new generations of artists.