GRAND HAVEN, Mich. – The name Marushka has meant a lot in Grand Haven and the art world for quite some time. The silk-screening and screen-printing company has been making designs loved the world over for more than 50 years. For the first time, the owners have opened up their personal collection of vintages, auctioning them off in order to raise money supporting Ukrainian refugees.
“There’s a huge interest in the stretched canvas and stretched linen product that we did from the 1970’s through the 1990’s,” said Karen Ford Smith, co-owner of Marushka. “There are very few of some of these things left.”
The big ticket items of the auction are serigraphs — unique prints from Marushka made in the 1980’s. According to the owners, only 28 designs were made, and only 24 of each design was printed.
“They’re also able to know that they gave to a good cause, not just purchased a piece of art,” said Shyle Lyons, Marushka’s social media manager. The auction began a week into April, but four new items were put up for bidding this week.
In addition to the serigraphs, Marushka also created a new shirt and sweatshirt design specifically for Ukraine relief. Five dollars from every shirt sold is being donated, as well as 100% of the proceeds from select prints and canvases.
After just two weeks of the auction and fundraiser being active, Marushka has raised more than $5,000. The goal is $10,000, and Lyons says the auction will not close until they reach or pass that goal.
To reach the auction site, click this link. For the Marushka website, where you can see all of their designs, including the Peace for Ukraine shirts, click this link.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.