Фота: "Віцебская Вясна".
A new mural dedicated to Uladzimir Karatkevich is being painted on the wall of No. 2 Marata Street in Orsha. The work began following a wave of outrage among local residents and the wider public over the destruction of the previous artwork.
This spring, during major renovations and insulation work on the building, the end wall facing the street named after the writer was covered with an insulating cladding. The well-known black-and-white mural by Orsha artist Dzmitry Talkachou, created to mark Karatkevich’s 90th birthday, disappeared along with it. The loss of one of the city’s main landmarks, cherished by local residents and tourists, sparked a strong reaction in online communities and regional media, reports Vitsyebsk Spring.
It was decided to create a new image in the same location. The work is expected to be completed by November 26, the 96th anniversary of the writer’s birth.
The artwork is being restored by artist Liubou Rabeka of the Shakola art creative association. Unlike the original graphic design, the new portrait of Uladzimir Karatkevich will be in color and set against a natural landscape. The wall will also once again feature the famous line from his work: “I Was. I Am. I Will Be.”
Over the past year, Filipau has curated and hosted the educational project “Let’s Meet by the Clock.” It held around 20 events at six different venues, including the A. S. Pushkin Minsk Regional Library. The creative gatherings focused on Minsk’s history, urban culture and legends, and featured well-known Belarusian researchers and local historians.
Among the canceled events was a meeting titled “Minsk in Photographs from Different Eras” with local historian and Belarusian Union of Artists member Dzmitry Masliy.
Censorship and bans on in-person appearances by independent cultural figures remain among the tools used to exert pressure on Belarus’s cultural sphere.