Ceremony of the biennial contest laureates awarding "Alatyr 2015"

At the Kaliningrad Regional Amber Museum on 26 June briefing about the results of the Sixth International Biennial of Amber Artworks "Alatyr 2015", solemn opening ceremony of the exhibition and contest within the biennial "Metaphysics of Light", opening of the concurrent exhibition "Time Connection" by the jewellery group "Smolensk Diamonds", awarding of the contest laureates took place. The large-scale project is supported by the Ministry of Culture of Kaliningrad region. General partner of the biennial is JSC "Yantarniy Yuvelirprom", subsidiary of the JSC Kaliningrad Amber Combine". General media partner – Federal State Budgetary Institution "Editorial Board of the Russian Newspaper". 

178 artists from 12 countries – Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia (including Kaliningraders) Spain took part in the creative contest. 290 works were presented for the competition. The works were evaluated by the international jury, which consisted of the experts and specialists in jewellery and stone carving art from Denmark, France, Italy, Poland, Russia.

– The authors created works that are astonishing in their beauty, uniqueness and their composition, – mentioned in her speech the Minister of Culture of Kaliningrad region Svetlana Kondratieva. – I would like to say the words of appreciation to the Amber Museum, which raises the bar of the biennial higher and higher every year, winning new friends and partners. I would also like to thank the artists of our region, who take an active part in this event. Thanks to such large-scale international projects amber becomes not just a symbol of our land, but also of the whole Russia.

Director of the Amber Museum Tatiana Suvorova made a point of the project that includes alongside with the contest and concurrent exhibitions scientific and practical conference "Problems of restoration and conservation of amber", educational programme, workshop "Storage and preventing conservation of amber works", which took place within the framework of the co-project "Let's Save Cultural Heritage Together" of the State Hermitage and the Coca-Cola System.

– The theme of restoration and conservation of amber is very important for Kaliningrad as all the Kaliningrad museums have amber collections and in this situation we have no professional restorers in our region, – said Tatiana Suvorova. – Necessity of conservation and restoration of the sunstone is especially relevant for archeological findings.

This year for the first time works of the association of Russian designers and artists Russian Amber, these works are result of creative cooperation between young Moscow authors and experienced Kaliningrad masters from the Association of amber processors. 

We are grateful to the general partner of the project JSC "Yantarniy Yuvelirprom", other partners, members of the jury, curators, participants of the conference and educational programme. We ate thankful to the jewellery group "Smolensk Diamonds" and OJSC "Yuvelirtorg" for organization of the concurrent exhibition "Time connection", where jewellery based on the unrealized original sketches of the Carl Faberge Company artists from the collection of the State Hermitage is demonstrated.

Salutatory addresses towards organizers and participants of the biennial were also said by the Minister for industrial policy, entrepreneurship and trade development of the Kaliningrad region Dmitriy Chemakin, chair of the Committee for social policy, health care, culture and sports of the Kaliningrad Regional Duma Natalia Makretskaya, attache of the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation in Kaliningrad Vladislav Klimenkov, general director of the JSC "Yantarniy Yuvelirprom" Vadim Vodopyanov, deputy general director of the LLC "Jewellery Group "Smolensk Diamonds" Yuriy Gerasyov, vice-consul of the Consulate Generale of the Federal Republic of Germany Keil Holz.

Briefing about the results of the biennial "Alatyr 2015" was given on the same day. Chairmen and members of the contest jury, curators, artists, participants of the scientific and practical conference, of the educational programme, of the workshop by the restorer artist of the State Hermitage that took place within the biennial, partners of the project, journalists of the Kaliningrad and federal media took part in it.

At the briefing the chief editor of the media group "Western Press" Lyubov Antonova presented a new photo album "The Journey of Amber" by Viktor Guseynov (Kaliningra – Moscow), the book was published by the media group with the assistance of the JSC "Kaliningrad Amber Combine".

The opening ceremony was held to the strains of jazz. The popular compositions were played by "Smooth Jazz Operators" (director Alexander Chaikin). There was a collection show of the sunstone pieces and contemporary jewellery made of it from the studio "Amber House – Kaliningrad" and show of the jewellery by the Kaliningrad fashion artist Tamara Beletskaya. The defile was made by the members of the dance theater "Amber Tribe" (director Marina Lyatun).

At the final the most exiting and intriguing part of the event – awarding of laureates and diplomants of the contest happened.

General partner of the biennial "Alatyr 2015"​:
JSC "Yantarniy Yuvelirprom", subsidiary of the JSC "Kaliningrad Amber Combine"
General media partner of the biennial "Alatyr 2015"​​:
Federal State Budgetary Institution "Editorial board of the Russian Newspaper"  
Project partners:
The State Hermitage  
Coca-Cola System 
Jewellery group "Smolensk Diamonds"  
OJSC "Yuvelirtorg"   
Amber and redwood manufactory "Emelianov and Sons"  
КKaliningrad Regional Public Entrepreneurs Organisation "Amber Union"  
OJSC "BEZKAY"
PE Shishov S.I.
PE Trusov A.K.  
PE Arutyunova I.A.
OJSC "Konigsland"
OJSC commercial manufacturing enterprise "Alk"
Creative workshop of Kaliningrad artists "Prussian Honey" 
Agricultural production cooperative "Flor" and flower shops chain "Rosa"  
Kaliningrad Regional Organisation of Writers  
Publishing house "Baltic Magazines", magazine "Solemn Occasion"   
Кaliningrad Regional Branch of the Creative Russian Artists Union  
Travel agency "Yunona" 
Travel agency "Amber Mosaic"  
Restaurant "Reduit" ​