VITEBSK, 11 July (BelTA) – For centuries an atmosphere of creative pursuit was created in the city of Vitebsk where the international art festival Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk is taking place. Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko made the relevant statement during the festival’s opening ceremony, BelTA has learned.
Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that the festival had become an entire age while its philosophy “Through art towards peace and mutual understanding” has deep roots.
“The first stone of the city that we rightfully call our cultural capital was placed here, on the picturesque bank of the Dvina River 1,050 years ago. There is something in this corner of Belarus that for centuries inspired the creation of masterpieces of figurative arts, unique specimens of architecture, great works of literature and music as well as festivals, contests, and multiple other projects,” the head of state said. “A unique atmosphere was created here for centuries. An atmosphere of creative pursuit. An atmosphere of the dialogue of civilizations. For centuries trade routes that connect the east and the west, the north and the south intersected here. This city imbibed new ideas and concepts with gratitude. And it developed because of it.”
Aleksandr Lukashenko noted it is the reason why the history of the festival Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk started here: in the city of people, who are renowned across the globe, people, whose careers went through the city’s workshops. Vitebsk has become a creative birthplace of genuine geniuses.
“When we hear about it, we imagine monumental portraits and sculptures of Azgur, unusually live images created by Repin, Pen, and Malevich. We look at Vitebsk’s cityscapes through eyes of Chagall, who drew the favorite city his entire life. Even when he was thousands of kilometers away from it. When we think about this city, we recall Lagin, who gifted a fairy-tale character to Soviet kids: Old Khottabych. We hum the tune of the Road to Berlin, the song that Fradkin composed one year before the Great Victory. We honor the memory of the talented military leader Ivan Lyudnikov, who supervised the operation to liberate Vitebsk Oblast during the Great Patriotic War. We take pride in the Nobel Prize winner Zhores Alferov, who was born in the city upon Dvina and has become a legend of the world science. Speaking of Vitebsk, we recall our contemporaries as well: an entire constellation of artists we can no longer imagine our festival without,” the Belarusian leader cited a number of examples.
