Fifty participants from five national teams present their works at the Ornaments of the BRICS countries exhibition

Ulyanovsk hosts the international exhibition 'Ornaments of the BRICS countries'. According to the organizers, which are the ANO “Center for Innovations and Communication”, the Russia-BRICS Project Office for International Youth Cooperation and the Creative Industries Foundation of the Ulyanovsk Region, the project is a vivid embodiment of multicultural cooperation between youth representatives from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The information partner of the project, implemented with the support of the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives, is TV BRICS.

The basis of the art exhibition is a series of bright ornamental compositions prepared by fifty participants of five BRICS national teams, which are the result of their research on traditional ethnic ornaments of their native countries. Russia was represented in the project by two regions – the Ulyanovsk Region and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

The event was hosted by the head of the project, coordinator of the Russia – BRICS project office for international youth cooperation Kira Ivanova and the Ulyanovsk team supervisor, ethnic designer Natalia Dashuk.

"In the process of creating the exhibition, we encountered unexpected snags. Firstly, since the word "ornament" also means "decoration" in English, most of the teams did not quite understand the task at first, which then had to be explained for some time. It also turned out that among some Brazilian indigenous peoples there is no such thing as "name of a separate pattern" at all, so the team had to ask permission to photograph their ritual objects, clarifying their meaning, in order to create drawings based on them for the exhibition. And in South Africa, ornaments are mainly depicted on house walls and the fabrics of traditional costumes of various peoples living in the country and carry a deep sense of the connection of generations, often denoting whole phrases or status in society," shared Kira Ivanova.

Throughout the exhibition, visitors were accompanied by video greetings from all the team members, giving people the opportunity not only to enjoy the traditional ornaments of the BRICS countries, but also to get acquainted with its creators in absentia.

The audience had the opportunity to plunge into the festive atmosphere, enjoy communication with other art connoisseurs, taste traditional treats from five countries, as well as admire the colorful performances of the Folk ensemble of song and dance "Volgari".

Also during the exhibition period, which will last until 9 June in Ulyanovsk, the creative space "Kvartal" will host a screening of the "Dostoevsky Intercontinental" documentary film created by the united partner editorial board of TV BRICS, as well as a creative meeting with the designer and organizer of the Russian culture and traditions festival "Beauty of Simbirsk" Natalia Dashuk, who will tell listeners about the specifics of creating a collection based on elements and motifs of traditional costumes.

On 10 June, the exhibition "Ornaments of the BRICS countries" will embark on its tour of the creative spaces "Tretye Mesto" in the Ulyanovsk region, as well as in the creative space "Gorizont" in Dimitrovgrad (Ulyanovsk region). Then the exposition will visit the latitude of the Arctic Circle – in the District House of Crafts of the city of Salekhard. Further the ornaments will be exhibited in various cities of Russia, as well as in Brazil, India, China and South Africa.