< P> < strong > It is correct to say that before you go on a trip to a foreign country, you need to get acquainted with the beauties of your native land. Belarus is unique in this regard. Literally every city, village, or village has its own attractions, architectural, natural monuments, and legends associated with them. And all of them deserve Belarusians to know about them. The photo exhibition of Vladimir Tsvirko's author's project "Silhouettes of Heritage", dedicated to the Year of the Small Motherland, invites you to an exciting journey through your native land. It opened on November 13 at the Presidential Library of the Republic of Belarus. Vladimir Tsvirko, head of the Tiffany stained glass studio, creator of a private ethnographic museum, author of photography and tourism projects, as well as a regular contributor to the 150 Golden Routes of My Belarus section of our publication, notes: the photographs depicting architectural monuments are the true value of the Belarusian nation, reflecting the uniqueness of our Land, the soul of the Belarusian people. They feature temples, manor houses, monuments of palace and park architecture, most of which are included in the State List of Historical and Cultural Values of Belarus. They date from the beginning of the XV to the beginning of the XX century. All the objects amaze with their architecture, history, beauty, and uniqueness. < p>– The idea of the project appeared spontaneously. As a result of my travels," the author recalls, "it was interesting for me to see different parts of the country and capture the stories. But when I returned home and showed the pictures to my friends, I was discouraged by their surprise: few people knew that we had such an unusual and rich in sights country. My project has already been completed, but I understand that it is possible to shoot the material for another couple of years, or even more. According to Vladimir Tsvirko, over time he developed a professional sense of what to shoot and how. But it is important that the photographer comes to new places prepared – having looked through the archives in advance, having studied the literature. "Although I'm always happy when I go for a story, and the locals talk about some other fascinating objects. You see, for the average person, the ruins of outbuildings may be insignificant, but it happens that this particular architectural object deserves to be not only captured on film, but also preserved for future generations. In general, I really like to communicate with the locals, talk, listen to their stories and legends. The real book of life opens," the author smiles. We asked Vladimir Andreevich to tell us about some of the objects in his photographs. He noted first of all the triangular church-the Church of the Holy Trinity in the village of Bolshaya Svorotva, Baranovichi district. He is the only one in Belarus. There is a legend that such an unusual architecture is associated with Freemasonry. But this is just one of the versions. First, the Church of the Holy Trinity was built of wood back in 1747. The construction was sponsored by the writer of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Nikolai Ovsyany. In 1823, Yakub Nezabytovsky built exactly the same temple in the same place, but from rubble stone and brick. Nowadays, it has been restored to its original layout. < p>We come to the next photo, it shows the Kossovsky castle.

– during the reconstruction, three meters of soil were removed, and the lock opened downwards, – explained Vladimir Andreevich. - And the big windows used to be stained glass. The only thing that doesn't really appeal to me is that the castle has lost its frame. He was standing in a pine forest. And it looked so beautiful. Now they started planting trees around him... Look, I tried to show the castle in the greenery in the picture.

The next exhibit is the Chapsky estate in Priluki. Many people may know it by another name-the Enchanted Castle. Once there was a monastery on the site of the estate. Later, only the building and the bricks from it were rebuilt three times. There is a legend that a spell was cast on this castle so that some spirit could preserve it. And, as we can see, the mythical creature coped with the task: the unique architecture of the building has been preserved to this day.

The residents of Mogilev are probably proud of the beauty of their church of St. Stanislaus. Even through the picture, you can feel the power of this building. But it's not easy for a tourist to notice it in the city.

- The fact is that the Mogilev church stands on the outskirts. If you walk around the square, you won't even notice him, he's huddled behind the houses. The church was built in the classical style, although both Baroque and Renaissance are visible in it. It looks very rich," our interlocutor noted.

A total of 41 photographs are on display. Therefore, if you are interested and would like to get acquainted with all the subjects, come to the exhibition. It is open to the public until January 28, 2019.

< P> < strong > Victoria Apanasenok < / strong> < / p >