The "Mural of Gratitude," titled Lublin – Rescuer City, was painted on a garage wall on the city's Daszyńskiego Street.
Ukraine’s Consul General in Lublin, Oleh Kuts, said earlier this month that the people of Lublin and the surrounding region had shown “a heartfelt instinct to help” from the very first days of the war.
“It became an example to the whole world,” he said. “Over more than three years, this cooperation has deepened. Now we work together, gain experience together, and build plans for the future. We are creating a new success story.”
The mural is the work of artist Łukasz Kuzioła, who said the idea was to depict neighbourly solidarity and scenes of everyday kindness.
The image shows apartment windows where residents greet one another, exchange flowers, or paint pictures. Outside, children play football and people walk their dogs.
“The atmosphere is positive,” Kuzioła said, adding that recognisable elements such as Lublin’s castle and the city’s symbol—the goat—also appear.
'We feel they are our brothers'
Lublin is home to an estimated 20,000 Ukrainians, according to Deputy Mayor Beata Stepaniuk-Kuśmierzak.
She emphasised that it was important for those fleeing the war to feel welcome and supported in every aspect of life.
“Multiculturalism is in our city’s DNA,” she said, adding that Ukrainians would play an essential role in Lublin’s bid to become European Capital of Culture in 2029. “We can’t imagine realising it without the Ukrainian community. We feel they are our brothers.”
Lublin’s tradition of cultural diversity runs deep. Since the Middle Ages, the city has been a crossroads of ethnicities and religions—home at various times to Poles, Jews, Ukrainians, Armenians and others.
For centuries, the Jewish community was the largest minority group, particularly in the Podzamcze district, where it shaped the city’s spiritual and economic life.
This multicultural legacy still echoes in Lublin’s festivals, food and architecture. Lublin's European Capital of Culture programme, set to begin in 2026 and running until 2029, is titled "Re-unite."
Zoryana Vavrynchuk, one of the mural’s initiators, said the project was “a sincere symbol of gratitude from our nation to the people of Lublin, and a sign of the strong friendship between Ukraine and Poland.”
In April 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded Lublin the honorary title of Rescuer City in recognition of its exceptional assistance to Ukrainians displaced by the war.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP, lublin.eu