Virtual Exhibition «The True Story of Shamyakin. The Documentary Legacy of a Classic»

January 30, 2026, marks the 105th anniversary of the birth of Ivan Petrovich Shamyakin, a national writer of Belarus and master of the realistic genre. To mark this anniversary, the Belarusian State Archive-Museum of Literature and Art (hereinafter referred to as BGAMLI) has prepared a virtual exhibition, «The True Story of Shamyakin. The Documentary Legacy of a Classic».

BGAMLI is the most important custodian of the writer’s documents. Since 1969, a separate Ivan Shamyakin collection, 154, has been formed here, currently one of the largest personal collections in our country. In addition, documents associated with the writer are held in other collections of the archive-museum. The documentary legacy of I.P. Shamyakin is a testimony to his life and creative career, a window into the world of the past. Thanks to it, contemporaries have the opportunity to independently and objectively evaluate the writer, his worldview, and his contribution to Belarusian culture.

The exhibition «The Uninvented Shamyakin: The Documentary Legacy of a Classic» includes photographs, versions of his literary works, diplomatic notes from his time at the UN, letters, and even cartoons by the renowned Belarusian graphic artist M.Ya. Lisovsky.

Explore the virtual exhibition «The Uninvented Shamyakin: The Documentary Legacy of a Classic»