"Marble Mile" - a Platform for Public Diplomacy

23/07/2021 00:12

A sculpture festival is held within the project "Marble Mile: Forum of Identity". The Eurasian Peoples' Assembly and the Idea Foundation are partners of the festival. It is supported by the Presidential Grants Foundation. Authors from three countries are invited to participate: Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Serbia. Over the course of three weeks, they create works of gray marble on the theme of national identity.

The sketches were chosen by the participants of the tourist route "Marble Mile", students of specialized universities - EASI and UrGAHU, experts. As a result of such a popular vote, sketches of future works by sculptors Kirill Krokholev (Belarus), Tamila Mamatova (Kyrgyzstan), Luka Radoevich (Serbia) were selected.

The theme of this year's festival is related to the national traditions of different peoples. During their stay in the Ural land, the participants of the festival get acquainted with the people, traditions and peculiarities of the region, they create a positive image of their native land. A surprising discovery for them was a visit to the workshop of Oleg Nakolyushkin, who creates models of Orthodox churches. The meeting was attended by Marina Plyasunova, Head of the Department for Interaction with Representations of the Eurasian Peoples' Assembly (Moscow), Olga Rusakova-Kanville, President of the Art Concept Cultural Development Association (Paris), Gulshan Dolonbaeva, Head of the Kyrgyzstan-Ural Public Organization (Yekaterinburg).

As part of the “Bread of Life” project, the sculptors met with the culture and traditions of the Chuvash people, met with the leaders of the national associations of the Polevsky urban district, with representatives of the Local Chuvash National Cultural Autonomy Public Organization (Yekaterinburg) and the Chuvash Cultural Center of the Sverdlovsk Region. It was a discovery for the sculptors that more than 160 nationalities who generously share their knowledge about their culture, strive for peace and harmony between peoples, live in the Middle Urals.

During a meeting the Head of the city, Konstantin Pospelov, expressed the idea that an ethnopark should be created in Polevskoy. It will become a symbol of the commonality of the Eurasian space and public diplomacy, since Polevskoy is a leader in the implementation of international projects promoting the city's brand, its unique historical and cultural codes. According to Deputy Head Irina Kuznetsova, NGOs here become a discussion and unifying platform for authorities, business and active citizens interested in a constructive dialogue that contributes to the development of the territory and humanitarian ties in the field of culture.

The Marble Mile festival has been held in the Polevskoy urban district at the initiative of the Idea Foundation since 2018. In 2018, sculptors Katya Sesfontes (Sweden) and Tanya Preminger (Israel) worked at the festival site. In 2019, with the support of the Presidential Grants Fund, - representatives of four countries: Japan, Israel, Romania and Armenia. In 2020, in the village of Mramorskoe, the site of the first industrial development of marble in the Urals, on the border of Europe and Asia, the leaders of national and religious associations of the Polevskoye urban district took part in the laying of the Eurasian Garden.