On March 12, the Women in Arts Award for gender equality and protection of women's rights HeForShe was held.

The movement for equal rights for women and men is increasingly becoming a global trend. Gender equality is a matter for all people, all sexes and every sphere of public life. The wave of gender equality has not escaped the art world either.

Thus, in 2019, the UN Women in Ukraine and the Ukrainian Institute established the Women In Arts Award, which is awarded to women for current achievements in Ukrainian art. The award ceremony takes place annually in March as part of HeForShe Arts Week.

The All-Ukrainian Award is aimed at supporting and promoting the professional development of women in the field of art and culture of Ukraine at the national and international levels, as well as overcoming gender stereotypes and eliminating inequality.

Since the movement was launched by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson on September 20, 2014, it has been joined by heads of state, leading scholars, global corporations, athletes and artists who share a philosophy of gender equality. The HeForShe movement in Ukraine is implemented with the financial support of Sweden.

The Award honoured women of creative professions in 8 nominations:

Alina Kleitman

"Women in Visual Arts"

Irina Tsilyk

"Women in Cinema"

Oksana Liniv

"Women in Music"

Sofia Andrukhovych

"Women in Literature"

Vira Baldyniuk

"Women in Cultural Journalism, Criticism and Research"

Tamara Trunova

"Women in the Theater"

Julia Fediv

"Women in Cultural Management"

Valery Burlakova

"Special Distinction"

The winner of the “Special Distinction” prize is determined by the members of the Supervisory Board. The prize is awarded to women whose activities cannot be assigned to any of the categories or who do not meet the formal requirements and criteria of the award, but whose contribution to Ukrainian culture is important.

The Supervisory Board includes ambassadors of foreign states and heads of the cultural institutions of foreign states who work in Ukraine, take an active part in the development of bilateral, in particular cultural relations between Ukraine and the countries they represent.

The statuette-award for the Women in Arts Award was created by contemporary Ukrainian artist Maria Kulikovska. The shape of the statuette is the palms of the hands, which are intertwined and symbolize interaction and support.

UN Women is the United Nations agency for gender equality & women's empowerment, established to accelerate progress on meeting the needs of women & girls worldwide.