The art-residence “Staro-Tatarskaya Sloboda” started working in Kazan

(KZN.RU, December 4, Alsu Safina). The new creative object, art-residence “Staro-Tatarskaya Sloboda”, opened in Kazan. The site provides opportunities for writers, poets and playwrights to stay in Kazan and create artworks related to the history, culture and modern environment of the city. The first guests of the residence were young but already recognized authors Natalya Yakushina and Alexey Arzamazov, told Azat Abzalov, the head of the Department of Culture, at the Business Monday.

According to him, Sergey Shargunov, Andrey Astvatsaturov, German Sadulayev have already agreed to come to the art-residence. Negotiations are conducted with Alexey Ivanov and many other Russian and foreign authors.

The new project was noticed by the literary community. The new nomination “Kazan History” for plays written in Russian and Tatar and with a place of action in Kazan, organized in conjunction with the art residence, appeared in the international contest “Lithodrama”.

Ilsur Metshin first announced the organization of an art residence in May during the ceremony of awarding the International Golden Apple Prize. Ildar Abuzyarov, a well-known writer, a laureate of the Pushkin Prize, became the author of the idea and the curator of the project.

“Artwork can be a very powerful way to tell about the city, its history, culture, and traditions. We hope that in the near future, the pen of writers who expressed a desire to visit the art-residence will create works that will become masterpieces like Guzel Yakhina's novel “Zuleikha opens her eyes” and will tell about our multinational people, a wonderful land, and the city far away beyond its limits. Therefore, we will support you”, noted Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan.

Talking about the first guests of the residence, A. Abzalov drew attention to the fact that the magazine “Expert” named Natalia Yakushina among those who would soon become the pride of Russian literature. She is a writer, a journalist, a playwright, the chairman of the organizing committee of the International Dramatic Competition “LitoDrama” and a seminar of playwrights at the theater “School of Modern Play”.

N. Yakushina is published in the magazines “Russky Pioner”, “Yunost”, “Koltso A”, “Nezavisimaya gazeta”, “Moskovsky Komsomolets”, various collections in Russia and abroad.

Last week, Alexey Arzamazov, a poet, a publicist, a translator, Doctor of Philology, professor, the leading researcher at the Udmurt Institute of History and Literature of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, arrived at the Kazan art-residence. He is also an expert of the federal program for supporting Russian national literature.

Alexey Arzamazov plans to give a lecture at the Kazan University, get acquainted with the city, its museums and theaters, visit the Institute of Philology and Intercultural Communications, the Institute of Language, Literature and Art named after G. Ibrahimov, the Union of Writers of the RT.

“Staying in the art residence, Alexey is going to translate the poems of modern Tatar poets into Finno-Ugric languages, to write a work, dedicated to the young Tatar literature, as well as replenish sections of the scientific monograph “Literatures of the Peoples of Russia: Names, Problems, Contexts”, said the head of the Department of Culture.