Oleksandr Smyk (1957–2022) was a Ukrainian bard, poet, and playwright. Born on October 26, 1957, in Hruzke, Sumy Oblast, he graduated from Rivne State Pedagogical Institute in 1977 and Kyiv University in 1983. Smyk was a member of several national unions, including those of theater artists, kobzars, journalists, writers, and the All-Ukrainian Music Union. He organized the first private House of Creativity "Potik Irva" in Kremenets in 2004 and initiated the "Literary Ternopil" library-museum project in 2012. Smyk served as the head of the Department of Culture and Arts of the Ternopil City Council from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2015 to 2020. He was also the deputy mayor of Ternopil for humanitarian affairs from October 2014 to November 2015. As an artist, he authored numerous songs and poems and developed concepts for music festivals such as "Taras Bulba" and "Vyvykh." His song "Snihy, snihy" became the soundtrack for the film "Orest" in 2017. Smyk was honored as a Merited Artist of Ukraine in 2018. He passed away on May 18, 2022, in Ternopil. ([musical-world.com.ua](https://musical-world.com.ua/artists/smyk-oleksandr-ivanovych/?utm_source=openai))