Exhibition of children’s drawings
Recently, children imaginatively shared their views on the subjects of war and road safety, during an exhibition of drawings.
Anya Gorbatsevich, an eighth grade pupil at Minsk’s Akhremchik Gymnasium-College of Arts, has presented her picture of a burnt house and a woman embracing a child, explaining that she has tried to depict the tragedy of war, and how it affects individuals. It’s truly awful to lose a house but even more terrible when a child loses their parents.
Anya’s classmate, Valeria Voitsekhovskaya, painted a wounded soldier on the battlefield, while Zhenya Urodnich depicted prisoners within a concentration camp. Piotr Bogdanov, a curator of the exhibition and the Deputy Director of Minsk’s Gymnasium-College of Arts, comments, “Children have chosen their characters purposefully. Some have depicted stories they’ve heard from grandparents while others have shared impressions from books they’ve read.”
War Through 21st Century Children’s Eyes features hero-pilots, brave tankmen, mothers bidding farewell as their sons head to the frontline and Victory fireworks.
The second exhibition, devoted to road safety, aims to promote sensible behaviour among youngsters. The Press Secretary of the Road Traffic Police Department in the Pervomaisky District, Yekaterina Zhurimskaya, explains that children see adults making poor decisions, which act as bad examples: crossing roads in prohibited places or driving badly.
Many children’s pictures feature drivers using handsets, or failing to let passers-by cross the road, or failing to slow down for speed bumps. “Looking at the children’s drawings, law breakers may reconsider their behaviour, realising that their own children are learning bad habits,” Yekaterina notes.
Young guests at the House of Moscow in Minsk were delighted to meet the Editor-in-Chief of Moscow’s Misha children’s magazine (celebrating over 30 years of publication), Nina Grozova, and were able to chat to famous Russian children’s writer Tamara Kryukova.
The wonderful event was organised by Moscow’s Department of Foreign Economic and International Relations, and by Belarus’ Interior Ministry, and by its Education Ministry, with help from Minsk’s Pervomaisky District Department of Internal Affairs and the I. Akhremchik Gymnasium-College of Arts.
The opening ceremony featured: the Head of Minsk’s Public Security Police, Ivan Kubrakov; the Advisor of the Russian Embassy, Margarita Novodvorskaya; a representative of the Belarusian Interior Ministry’s Council of Veterans, Leonid Farmagey (a General Mayor of police in reserve); the Deputy Education Minister of Belarus, Victor Yakzhik; the Chairman of the Council of Veterans of Minsk’s Interior Affairs Department, Victor Pekarsky; and various other honourable guests.
Two shows will be further presented across the regional centres and districts.
By Yekaterina Medvedskaya
