Children Drawing Portraits of War Participants — Both Living and Dead

War propaganda is seeping ever deeper not just into schools, but also into extracurricular institutions. Across Russia, children’s art schools are being transformed into platforms for militarist campaigns.

The largest of these is the “Portrait of a Hero” campaign, supported by the State Duma and the “Defenders of the Fatherland” Foundation. According to organizers, more than 18,000 children participated in the initiative, with over a thousand events held in nearly every region of Russia.

In Murmansk, as part of this “nationwide patriotic project,” a participant in the war, Roman Oleshkin, was invited to the local children’s art school. While asking him questions, students sketched his portrait — one of which will be sent to a national exhibition.

In the Tula region, the campaign was turned into a record-setting event. 1,007 children from 60 regions of Russia and Belarus drew portraits of “heroes” simultaneously. The event concluded with a large-scale “Lesson of Courage” — a meeting with “SVO veterans.”

“Portrait of a Hero is not just a creative campaign; it’s a crucial tool for patriotic upbringing. It helps children feel a generational connection, fosters respect for heroism, and preserves living historical memory,” — said State Duma deputy and project curator Maria Vasilkova.

In addition to national campaigns, regional propaganda events are also taking place. In Krasnoyarsk Krai, an exhibition of portraits of United Russia members from Norilsk — participants in the war and military veterans — was opened. The artworks were created by students and teachers of the Talnakh Children’s School of Arts.

In the Magadan region, an exhibition titled “In Memory of Our Heroic Countrymen” was held, featuring portraits of fallen soldiers drawn by young artists based on photographs and “biographies of their heroic deeds.” Relatives of the deceased were invited to the opening, and organizers announced plans to expand the project to other districts in the region.

Children’s art schools — meant to be spaces of creativity and freedom — are increasingly being turned into instruments of state propaganda, where even art is made to serve war.