{"id":564775,"date":"2026-07-31T23:14:28","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T20:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reform.news\/?p=564775"},"modified":"2026-08-02T13:03:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T10:03:33","slug":"podlasie-choosing-to-stay-home-ilona-karpiuk-on-the-belarusian-culture-center-in-bialystok-and-language-as-a-compass","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reform.news\/en\/podlasie-choosing-to-stay-home-ilona-karpiuk-on-the-belarusian-culture-center-in-bialystok-and-language-as-a-compass","title":{"rendered":"\u201cPodlasie. Choosing to Stay Home.\u201d Ilona Karpiuk on the Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok and Language as a Compass"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Podlasie is a unique border region of Poland where Western and Eastern Christian traditions meet, and where the Belarusian language and culture are an integral part of the local landscape. Yet, because of the region’s complex historical context, for some generations discovering their own national identity became a revelation that shaped the course of their lives.<\/p>\n

In this new series, we tell the stories of prominent Belarusians from Podlasie and the Bia\u0142ystok region for whom national identity became the result of a conscious choice.<\/p>\n

I first became acquainted with today’s guest about ten years ago, when I came across a remarkable song based on Ales Razanau<\/strong>‘s poem \u201cOn This Land,\u201d performed by the Bia\u0142ystok-based band Ilo&Friends<\/strong>. I was struck by the distinctive vocal style of the band’s lead singer, Ilona Karpiuk<\/strong>, and by her interpretation of the Belarusian poet’s work. Ten years later, in exile, I met Ilona again. She remains a musician with Ilo&Friends<\/a>, but she is also now an experienced cultural manager. Today, Ilona serves as deputy director of the Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok (Centrum Kultury Bia\u0142oruskiej w Bia\u0142ymstoku<\/span>) \u2014 one of Poland’s newest institutions dedicated to Belarusian culture. Its official opening is scheduled for September.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Ilona Karpiuk. Photo: Yauhen Attsetski.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Part I. A Center That Did Not Emerge From Nothing<\/b><\/h2>\n

When we arrive in Bia\u0142ystok, a light rain is falling over the city. Ilona welcomes us in a separate office on the second floor of a building at 1A Warszawska Street, where part of the new institution is now located.<\/p>\n

\u2014 It feels as though the Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok has always existed, given the historical context,<\/em><\/strong> I remark, but I understand you only recently acquired these new premises?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014 That’s true. But I should point out that the Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok was established only in 2024,<\/em> the manager replies. It is one of the newest institutions dedicated to Belarusian culture in Poland. Moreover, the Center is a self-government institution established by the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the only institution in Poland created specifically for a national minority \u2014 in this case, the Belarusian minority. We are registered as an institution operating under Polish legislation governing cultural activities and public finances.<\/em><\/p>\n

The institution’s status is an encouraging development, as it means the Center now enjoys long-term support from the state.<\/p>\n

Ilona explains how this became possible.<\/p>\n

\u2014 You could say it was the result of a convergence within the community. It happened thanks to a fortunate combination of circumstances, but also because for many years various non-governmental organizations in the Bia\u0142ystok region had been working to support Belarusian culture.<\/em><\/p>\n

She is referring to the Belarusian Social and Cultural Society, the weekly Niva<\/em>, both active since the 1950s, the Belarusian Students’ Association founded in the 1980s, the Belarusian Historical Society, the Belarusian Democratic Association, the well-known Kamunikat Foundation, and many other initiatives. Together, they created a network that sustained Belarusian identity. Then, in 2023, as Ilona puts it, “favorable winds began to blow,” making it possible for a new institution to emerge.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Even earlier, we created a non-governmental initiative called the Belarusian Culture Center \u2014 with exactly the same name \u2014 to demonstrate that our organizations were ready for such an institution to be established. This “Center” acted as a body that could explain to the regional authorities the importance, purpose and necessity of creating such a structure,<\/em> Ilona Karpiuk says. Based on that project, the then-marshal supported the proposal and submitted our application to the regional assembly. It received enough votes to pass,<\/em> she explains, describing the process through which the Center came into being.<\/p>\n

Whatever the circumstances, the project became a reality. The Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok opened and now employs 11 people. Initially, it operated from the Marshal’s Office building while awaiting the renovation of premises on Mickiewicza Street. More recently, however, the administration decided to lease a building at 1A Warszawska Street to allow the institution to function and develop more fully.<\/p>\n

Today, the Center is developing several areas of activity, ranging from building an archive to organizing concerts of classical Belarusian music.<\/p>\n

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In the archive of the Belarusian Culture Center in Bia\u0142ystok. Photo: Yauhen Attsetski.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Part II. The Archive: From Stsiapan Kopa’s Tapes to Old Newspapers<\/b><\/h2>\n

Our first stop in one of the Center’s “departments” is its archive. More precisely, it is an archival collection still in the process of being assembled. Yet even this small room, with shelves lined with boxes containing artifacts, immediately captures our attention.<\/p>\n

\u2014 At the moment, the collection includes more than 3,000 items,<\/em> Ilona says, pointing to the shelves. We collect documents, photographs, books, leaflets, posters \u2014 everything related to Belarusian culture.<\/em><\/p>\n

The cultural manager shows us one of the institution’s first collections: more than 200 cassette tapes recorded by musicologist, folklorist and researcher from Podlasie Stsiapan Kopa<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u2014 During the 1980s and 1990s, Stsiapan Kopa traveled from village to village recording songs, fairy tales and stories about local customs and rituals. He also worked with folk ensembles across the Bia\u0142ystok region and led village music groups,<\/em> she says about the well-known local figure.<\/p>\n

The deputy director notes that the Center recently received a grant from Poland’s Ministry of Culture and National Heritage to digitize the collection, which includes recordings, documents and Kopa’s research materials.<\/p>\n

\u2014 We plan to process the material and publish it on our website so that anyone can listen to songs performed in different local dialects,<\/em> the manager adds. Where did these songs come from? Who recorded and performed them?<\/em><\/p>\n