RUSSIA EXPO expressed support for the residents of the Belgorod region

On May 25, the RUSSIA EXPO held events in support of the residents of the Belgorod region and the "Belgorod — Our Hearts are with You" campaign. The Exposition also organized fundraising for the residents of this region who suffered from shelling.

"When you leave Belgorod — it feels like you've gotten into another life. There is a slightly different reality there now. But when you are here — you can feel the support of a huge number of people. We will try to keep this warmth of people's hearts and bring it to Belgorod to share with all the victims," emphasized the founder of the charity fund "Holy Belogorye Against Childhood Cancer" Evgenia Kondratyuk.

Earlier, the RUSSIA EXPO announced the beginning of the campaign "Belgorod — Our Hearts are with You" and fundraising for the residents of the region affected by the shelling. To make a donation, it is enough to follow the link. Besides, QR codes, by which it is possible to transfer funds, are demonstrated at the stands and expositions of the RUSSIA EXPO. Funds are collected to the accounts of the public organization "Holy Belogorye Against Childhood Cancer" IPO. The help will be allocated for expenses related to treatment and rehabilitation of citizens who suffered from shelling in the Belgorod region. This includes expenses related to the care of the seriously ill and prosthetics.

At the exposition "Beauty in the Eyes of the Beholder", which was held at the stand of the Belgorod region throughout the day, visitors were able to see real artistic masterpieces that Belgorod craftsmen created from fragments of S-400 air defense missiles. In the exposition "In Spite of..." at the regional stand, flower vases made of spent shell casings of self-propelled artillery units were installed. These casings were filled with black soil and plants from the Belgorod region as a symbol of continuing life.

In its turn, the audio-visual installation "Belgorod in the Heart" consisting of 34 works allowed the guests of the Exposition to comprehend everything the city had experienced, to feel the feelings of love and devotion to Belgorod, to remember those who are no longer with us. 

The co-authors of the installation are citizens who dedicated beautiful poems to their native Belgorod. Throughout the day a teleconference has been held at the stand of the region. During the first live broadcast, the photographer and creator of the "Belgorod in the Heart" installation, Viktor Molostov, joined the call and spoke about the history of the installation's creation.

Photo: Sergey Baranov/Press office of the RUSSIA EXPO

"I have accumulated a large number of photos that captured the terrible events in Belgorod. My team and I found out that the townspeople write poems about these events. And we decided that my photos and the poems of Belgorod citizens would become a project that would show all our pain. At the end of the exposition there is a stand with a mirror where the words "I am proud of you!" are written. This is a symbol that the city is proud of its people. Belgorod is a city of strong people," said the author of the exposition.

Throughout the day, the stand organized a demonstration of video wishes from visitors to the Exposition and participants of the #BelgorodWeAreTogether campaign in social networks. As part of the "White Postcard" campaign, guests were leaving their wishes for the residents of Belgorod and the region on a special stand with envelopes. Marina Slobodina, a resident of the Moscow region, came with her son Vadim after learning about the Belgorod Support Day: "We have already been to the Exposition. But today we came purposefully: not for a walk, but to express our support and help. When people are in trouble, it is important to make them feel that they are not abandoned. They are loved and supported".

In addition, a telethon was held at the RUSSIA EXPO, during which athletes, bloggers, designers, actors, and heads of organizations spoke about the importance of helping people in difficult circumstances, and shared their experience in providing support to the residents of the Belgorod region.

In the Department Store space in Pavilion No. 75, Belgorod region masters-artists held a series of masterclasses introducing visitors to the folk crafts of the region. Oksana Roschupkina, People's Master of Russia and the region, showed how to mold a clay toy.

The guests learned about the history and development of the Old Oskol clay toy craft, traditional features and molding technology of Old Oskol clay toys. People's Masters of the Belgorod region Lyudmila Brigadenko and Anastasia Teleshenko held a masterclass on wood carving and helped visitors to immerse themselves in the traditional craft and make a wooden key chain with a unique pattern. And at the masterclass on weaving "Novooskolsk Urban District Ornament", Yana Nikitina, People's Master of the Belgorod region, spoke about the peculiarities of the composition and color scheme of the pattern and taught how to weave on a real loom.

The Cultural Projects Zone of Pavilion No. 75 hosted a show of Alena Akhmadullina's special collection "Belogorye" within the framework of the "Silhouette of Kindness" campaign. The fashion designer was inspired by folk arts and crafts of the Belgorod region. The distinctive feature of the collection is that it was created in collaboration with artistic and creative groups of the region. You can order certain items from the collection on the website of the "Holy Belogorye Against Childhood Cancer" public organization by making the recommended donation.

The day ended with a concert program "New Folk" by the best creative teams of the Belgorod region, which is an organic interweaving of origins and the present, a projection of the cultural code of the region.