WHERE TWO CULTURES MEET by Vera Makaenko

Vera (left) and Tatyana Bugaenko of Omsk, Russia
( Tatyana's artwork serves as the backdrop to above photo)

It is wonderful to have friends in your native country, but it is much better when the whole world has become your friend. Now, the Omsk, Russia People to People chapter has many friends whom we would like to thank through this special article. The language of music and fine arts is an international one.

The Omsk Chapter began joint art projects with U.S. Chapters in 1996. The first program was named GRAN after the name of the guitar created in Russia. Often called "The Guitar of the 21st Century." This is a new instrument with an unusual sound. It was created by two musicians from Russia - Anatoli Olshansky and Vladimir Ustinov - and a third co-creator, Paul McCartney, who said in the interviews that he used the instrument recording his latest albums.

Omsk guitar players Victor Melnichenko and Tatyana Kosareva gave more than 20 live concerts in Delaware and Pennsylvania. The audiences were delighted with their playing and the sound of the instruments, greeting the GRAN Duet with a storm of applause.

Another wholly fantastic project was Long's Park in Lancaster, Pennsylvania (co-sponsored by the Susquehanna Valley Chapter). Omsk painter Tatyana Bugaenko (above) took part in this project after having passed the test of the Long's park expert jury. The only foreign artist among the 190 invited painters of the 20th Annual Long's Park Arts and Crafts Festival. Ms. Bugaenko said, "I was astonished seeing great scale and diversity of the art show, splendid organization of it, technical equipment and permanent attention and support of Long's Park Direction. I feel grateful to everybody for it."

Looking back to both projects, we would like to once more thank all of the people who organized, helped and participated in them.

Russia is very far from the United States, but thanks to the mutual desire to know each other better, to find the same points where two cultures meet, and to build a new community of people in the name of People to People, such cultural exchanges are becoming possible.

At the European Conference May, 2000
(l-r). Oleg Priobrazhenskij from Troitsk.

Vera Makaenko with artists from Nikolaj and Tatyana.

Tatyana Bugaenko presents People to People  Europe with a gift.

Peter Whitby, Chairman of the Board of Trustees

Tatyana Bugaenko, Artistic Ambassador from Omsk

Ernst Honegger, President of PTP Europe

Vera Makaenko, Omsk Chapter President