Marchuk painted the first portrait of Taras Shevchenko at the age of thirteen, when he was in the 7th grade of a rural school in Ternopil Oblast.

"[1] Both came from a hinterland Ukrainian village; both reached the highest artistic heights without patronage, thanks only to their innate talent and titanic work; both, despite their fame and glory, were recluses all their livesMarchuk's "Shevchenkiana" consists of 42 paintings (out of a hundred planned), which were made in tempera (1983-1984).

Marchuk wanted to fully appreciate the environment in which Shevchenko made his prophecies and created vivid images through poetry.

[1] The artist conveyed the intensity of Shevchenko's words, the richness of spiritual aspirations, personal and existential searches, and philosophical reflections of the Kobzar.

In 1997, Ivan Marchuk was awarded the Shevchenko National Prize of Ukraine for his series of works "Shevchenkiana" from the collection "Voice of my soul".