Festival in Chagall’s city

The 27th edition of Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk brought together artists and spectators from around the world. For the first time, the festival welcomed representatives of Vietnam, Guinea and Egypt. The geography of the festival expands every year. Hospitable Vitebsk did everything to welcome guests in style. Many cultural and entertainment events were organized preceding the official opening of the festival.

These included a spectacular procedure to draw the running order for the Junior Song Contest Vitebsk 2018. According to the tradition, the event is themed around a fairytale. This year, the organizers chose the Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen. The main idea was to show that children's talent, pure and beautiful voices can melt the hearts of the strictest jury members. Taking part in the event was Belarus’ Artyom Skorol, a 12-year old soloist of the Mulyavin National Music Center.

On the occasion of its 100th anniversary, the country’s biggest information agency BelTA presented a photo exhibition Moments of the Century. According to Vitebsk Oblast Governor Nikolai Sherstnev, these photos reflect the living history of our country from 1918 till 2018. A separate section of the exposition was dedicated to Slavianski Bazaar: over 50 photos on 26 stands depict the “celebrity life” of Vitebsk during 27 years of its existence.

For the first time ever, the exhibition program of the festival featured an exposition from North Korea. The art project Korea is the Land of Morning Calm was dedicated to Belarus’ Independence Day and the 70th anniversary of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. More than 220 artworks made by contemporary Korean craftsmen using a variety of techniques amazed with their fineness and realism.

The diverse festival program featured events to everybody’s liking: concerts, exhibitions, theater plays, and film screenings. The kaleidoscope of events in festive Vitebsk was truly unique, with a special atmosphere reigning in the city of Chagall this July.

Vitebsk festival in our special photo report