The town of
Smilovichi, the birthplace of Chaim Soutine, one of the most famous artists of
the Paris School, cherishes and promotes Chaim Soutine’s cultural heritage.L'Espace de Soutine Museum in Smolevichi was opened in
2008.
Chaim Soutine was
born on 13 January 1893, in Smilovichi. The artist came from a large family of
a Jewish tailor. His parents did not support their son's passion, and the young
man left for Paris in 1913. Almost nothing remains from the period when Chaim
lived in Smilovichi. The museum gathered the information literally bit by bit
from archives, and reconstructed the history of the Soutine family: who his
parents and ancestors were. Today, Chaim Soutine's paintings are worth tens of millions
of dollars. Three of the artist's works are kept in Belarus.
The artist's life
is inextricably linked to the history of the town's Jewish background. The
museum displays a fragment of a 19th-century Torah scroll that was housed in
the Smilovichi synagogue. It also showcases the works by young talents, based
on Chaim's most famous paintings.
In addition to the
Chaim Soutine exhibition, there is a hall dedicated to Faïbich-Schraga Zarfin.
These names have made Smilovichi a true cultural center in Cherven District and
Minsk Oblast in general. The museum holds several original paintings. Visitors
have the opportunity to view Faïbich-Schraga Zarfin’s palette and fabric
samples created from his designs.
