The National Library of Belarus
The building was designed by architects Mihail Vinogradov and Viktor Kramarenko and first opening to the public in 2006. Prior to the construction of this building, the Belarusian National Library’s history was a tumultuous one (not unlike the history of the city itself), with location changes, name changes, and complete closures plaguing the institution since its inception in 1922 as the Belarusian State and University Library.
Now, the library boasts a solid collection of over 8 million items of a variety of media, including newly introduced electronic media resources. Nearly one hundred thousand Belarusians are members of the library, with over two thousand visiting the library per day.
But, if you do have a real thirst to explore the interior of the diamond, and its many attractions (including cafes, the Book Museum, and several galleries), it’s possible to join a guided tour. The slight downside is that these tours are only available in Russian or Belarusian, so while you may see a lot, you’ll obviously understand nothing if you don’t speak the language. Stop by the official library website for more information on guided tours of the National Library. The cost of a guided tour is roughly 1 euro per person.
However, the primary tourist attraction for locals and international visitors alike, is the 22nd and 23rd floors, home to the only public observation deck in Minsk. The outdoor observation deck atop the diamond offers a breath-taking panorama of downtown Minsk, its rapidly expanding urban boundaries, as well as the sprawling forests surrounding the city. The top floor of the Library is also home to a cafe as well as an art gallery, complete with large windows and the same stunning views from the outdoor observation deck above.
To visit the library’s observation deck, head to the back door of the library (helpfully marked with English-language signs). Pay the entrance fee (currently 7000 rubles/1 euro) at the ticket booth, and you’ll be guided to the elevator which will zip you up the 22 floors to the very top of the library in a few minutes.
But if the idea of being perched on top of a 72 metre-high building sparks the acrophobia in you, there’s always the beautiful open parks, huge square, and even a pond to explore, making the National Library not only a cultural landmark, but also a great place to relax.
The National Library of Belarus
 | The National Library of Belarus was established on 15September 1922. Originally it was the main library of the Republic of Belarus and was called the Belarusian State University Library. There were only 60,000 items at the opening of the Library. About one thousand people were its users at that time. Some time passed and the Library opened its departments in other Belarusian cities such as Vitebsk, Mogilev, and Gomel. There was a universal library collection covering all fields of knowledge including materials concerning Belarusian literature, history, sciences, etc. |
| In 1932 the Library celebrated its 10 th anniversary. On this occasion the Library was named after V.I.Lenin. At the beginning of 1941 the Library collections totaled over 2, 000, 000 items; over 15,000 users visited the Library. The further Library’s development was interrupted by World War II. Though the library was destroyed during the war, it was built anew and in October 1944 it opened its doors to readers. By 1948 the collection of the Library had been restored though many gaps still remain unfilled. In 1992 the State Library of Belarus was renamed into the National Library of Belarus. | |
| The new building of the National Library of Belarus, situated on the Independence Avenue, opened its doors on June 16, 2006. It was designed by architects MihailVinogradov and Viktor Kramarenko. The building is 73-metre high and it has 22 floors. It is an absolute unique building, a gorgeous engineering and architectural construction. The shape of a «diamond» symbolizes the value and endlessness of the world of knowledge. There is the first Belarusian printer FranciskSkaryna bronze monument in front of the Library’s central entrance. |  |
| Today the National Library of Belarus is the main informative and cultural centre of the country. It houses the largest collection of Belarusian printed materials and the third largest collection of books in Russian behind the Russian State Library (Moscow) and the Russian National Library (St Petersburg). | |
 | The Library service is in great demand. More than 90 thousand Belarusian citizens are the Library users. Every day the Library is visited by more than 2.2 thousand people. The Library users have an access not only to bibliographic, full texts, graphic, sound and linguistic databases of the National Library but also to databases of other libraries and informative institutions, including foreign ones. There are 20 reading rooms in the Library to satisfy education and research needs of users in different subjects. They hold 2 thousand places and are located on three floors. |
| Each reading room is fitted up with the modern scanning, printing and copying equipment. There are also a multipurpose conference hall (a place for business meetings and negotiations), a musical-art hall and art galleries. In addition to serving as a functional library, the National Library is a city attraction. It has an observation deck overlooking Minsk. The area in front of the library is used for many public concerts and shows. |
MADAME TUSSAUD’S
 | Madame Tussaud’s wax museum is one of the major tourist attractions in London, displaying waxworks of historical and royal figures, film stars, sports stars and famous murderers. It has branches in Amsterdam, Bangkok, Las Vegas, Berlin, Washington D.C., New York City, and Hollywood and some other. | |
| Marie Tussaud (Anna Maria Grosholtz (1761–1850) was born in Strasbourg, France. Her mother worked as a housekeeper for Dr.PhilippeCurtius, who was a physician skilled in wax modelling. Curtius (whom Marie called “uncle”) taught Tussaud the art of wax modelling. She showed a lot of talent and started to work for him. In 1777 Tussaud created her first wax figure, of Voltaire. She perfected her skills by modelling the Royal family of France and other famous people, for example Benjamin Franklin. |  | |
| From 1780 to 1789 she taught art to the sister of Louis XVI. Members of the royal family were so pleased with her work that, on their invitation, she moved to live at Versailles. | ||
| During the French Revolution (1789–1799) she was forced to make death masks of the revolution’s most famous and prominent victims, such as Louis XVI, Robespierre, Marie Antoinette. Her death masks were held up as revolutionary flags and paraded through the streets of Paris. When Curtius died in 1794, he left his collection of waxworks to Marie. In 1795 she married François Tussaud. They had two children, Joseph and François. |  | |
 | In 1802 she moved to Great Britain, organized her show “Madame Tussaud’s” and spent the next 33 years travelling around the country. In 1835, she established her first permanent exhibition in Baker Street. In 1842, she made a self-portrait which is now on display at the entrance of her museum. Some of the sculptures done by Tussaud herself still exist. In 1850, at the age of eighty-nine she died peacefully in her sleep. |   |
  | The exhibition consists of a series of halls: the Conservatory, the Grand Hall, and the Chamber of Horrors. In her first hall there is the ‘Sleeping Beauty’ figure with a mechanism that simulates breathing. The second hall is known as The Conservatory, where visitors can view life-size wax figures of sport, film and TV personalities. Historical, political, military and royal figures can be found in the Grand Hall. The most famous room is of course the Chamber of Horrors. There are models illustrating methods of execution, famous murderers, the most famous prisoners of the twentieth century, who were sentenced to life imprisonment for their crimes. | |
| Some people think that this museum is frightening. Others consider that its collection of wax statues has no artistic merit. But all agree that it is unusual, fascinating and intriguing. |
 Who are or were the most famous painters in your country? You are going to read about the life of Pablo Picasso. Discuss these questions. (a) Why is he famous? (b) What nationality was he? (c) Which century was he born in? (d) Do you know the names of any of his works? (e) Do you know anything about his life? | |
| HIS EARLY LIFE On 25 October, 1881, a baby boy was born in Malaga, Spain. It was a difficult birth and to help him breathe, cigar smoke was blown into his nose! This baby grew up to be one of the 20 th century’s greatest painters PABLO PICASSO. |  |
Picasso showed his genius from a very young age. His first word was lapiz (Spanish for pencil) and he could draw before he could talk. He was the only son in the family, so he was thoroughly spoiled. He hated school and often refused to go unless hewas allowed to take one of his father’s pet pigeons with him! Apart from pigeons, his great love was art. When in 1891 his father got a job as an art teacher, Pablo went with him to work and watched him paint. Sometimes he was allowed to help. One evening, his father was painting a picture of their pigeons when he had to leave the room. When he returned, Pablo had completed the picture. It was so beautiful and lifelike that he gave his son his palette and brushes and never painted again. Pablo was just 13. HIS LIFE AS AN ARTIST  His genius as an artist was soon recognized by many people, but others were shocked by his strange and powerful paintings. He is probably best known for his Cubist pictures. His portraits of people were often made up of triangles and squares with their features in the wrong places. One of his most famous portraits was of the American writer Gertrude Stein, who he met after he had moved to Paris in 1904. His work changed ideas about art around the world, and to millions of people, modern art means the work of Picasso. Guernica(shown above) which he painted in 1937, records the bombing of that small Basque town during the Spanish Civil War, and is one of the masterpieces of modern painting. HIS FINAL YEARS Picasso married twice and also had many lovers. He had four children. The last, Paloma, was born in 1949 when he was 68 years old. At the age of 90 he was honoured by an exhibition in the Louvre in Paris. He was the first living artist to be shown there. Picasso created over 6,000 paintings, drawings, and sculptures. Today, a Picasso costs millions of pounds. Once, when the French Minister of Culture was visiting Picasso, the artist accidentally spilt some paint on the Minister’s trousers. Picasso apologized and wanted to pay for them to be cleaned, but the Minister said, ‘No, please, Monsieur Picasso, just sign my trousers!’ Picasso died of heart attack in 1973. |
Art in My Life
Nobody can deny that art plays an important role in the life of a man. Art appeals to our hearts and minds, feelings and ideals. Art affects and influences all our senses, emotions and also intellect. Art includes music, literature, film, photography, architecture, sculpture and paintings and so on.
A museum is a repository of the world’s masterpieces. It is the place where you can enrich your knowledge, where you can look at the achievements of mankind. A museum is a wonderful place to satisfy your aesthetic taste. The significance of museums in our life is great. Museums give the possibility to be always in touch with the past as well as discover something new for yourself. I think museums effect the formation of personality and the outlook.
I like visiting museums because it relaxes my body and soul and I acquire inner harmony and balance. My favourite museum is _____________. Honestly speaking, I would like to visit ____________museum in the near future.
For me art is not just entertainment but also a way to express my emotions and imagination. Thanks to art, I can communicate with different people of all nationalities and every walk of life. Every artist tries to develop his own style that differs from other ones. I am not an exception. While creating my works I try to combine my own originality and the experiences of previous generations. I think that my works are never dull and colourless. I hope they are interesting, thought-provoking and mature. As the works of my favourite painter ____________(Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Pablo Picasso …).
National Library of Belarus
The National Library is an attractive landmark of Belarus. Today the library is more than a rich collection of books. It is a multipurpose center that combines high technologies, ultramodern design and unusual architecture.
National Library history
In 1926 the Belarusian State Library became an independent institution. The decision to build new premises for it was made then.
During the Great Patriotic War the Belarusian State Library named after Lenin lost about 83% of its books and special equipment. It managed to evacuate all the rare and early printed books, editions stored in the circulation department and reading halls while the reserve fund building burnt down completely together with what was inside.
After the war the library was reborn and developed, collecting more books and establishing international ties.
With time its collections grew much larger, necessitating the construction of new, larger, and modern premises.
Design of the new library building
The design envisaged the construction of an original building in the shape of a rhombicuboctahedron — a complex polyhedron of 18 squares and 8 triangles resting on a supporting podium ( stylobate ). The surface of the diamond is covered by glass.
Nevertheless, it took 13 years to get the daring design approved and implemented.
The central entrance looks like an open book with pictures to highlight the development of the global written language and the Slavonic one as well as a quote in 19 languages from Frantsisk Skorina’s Bible that encourages people to learn.
The Library’s interior uses works by modern Belarusian artists and sculptors for decoration.
The authors of the National Library design and other famous buildings are Viktor Kramarenko and Mikhail Vinogradov. They have been awarded the state prizes of the Republic of Belarus twice.
National Library of Belarus today
The collection of the «diamond of knowledge» contains about 9 million editions on various media. Those are printed editions, manuscripts, microcopies, digital materials and other materials created in Belarus and abroad in over 80 languages.
Visitors are welcome to use versatile information resources and collections of the Library:
National Library of Belarus
Introduction
“…. Ut sit homo Dei perfectus ad omne opus bonum instructu…”
“So that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:17)
With these words written in several leagues and pentagonal panels displayed as open book, receives the National Library of Belarus who want to internalize the knowledge stored within its walls. It also pays tribute to Francisk Skorina, humanist Belarus represented by a sculpture at the entrance to the library.
The original project for the National Library of Belarus was developed in 2002 taking into account the foundations of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus (Belarus), who in 1998 ordered the construction of the building in the city of Minsk.
The Library became the main information and cultural center of the country, including 8 million units on various subjects. National Library created its own computer system, generating a greater number of literature, graphic information, text, sound and ligüísticos database. Users also have access to other libraries and information institutions, including some abroad.
Objective
The aim of the new building was to create a unique architectural complex, both in construction and in the program, designed to meet the informational and cultural needs of the users.
This was held an international competition which was won by architects MK Vinogrdov and V.V. Kramarenko with his project “Diamond Belarusian”. It announced a competition in 1989, but it was not until 13 years later, 2002 that the project was undertaken.
Location
The main entrance of the new library is directed to Moscow in Nezavisimosti Ave 116, in Minsk, capital of Belarus (Belarus).
Located on the shore of one of the rivers that cross park surrounded Minsk is a city attraction. The area created in front of the library is used to perform many concerts and public performances.
Concept
One of the basic concepts taken into account in the design of the library, both in its composition and in its planning, was the location in the central part of the tank that would house the strocks of books, considered the optimal location for these are readily distributed to the reading rooms and information
Figuratively the “stock tank” resembles a diamente. Its shape symbolizes the mind, the knowledge of the great values that have accumulated over thousands of years by mankind and that are in the Library. With this concept, its form is the depositary of an additional spiritual function enhances the sound as art
Description
The building is an allegory of humanistic knowledge, the use of geometry and a return to the principles of Vitruvius arquitectua inside, its main architectural component shaped volume “rhombicuboctahedron” cube octahedral diamond, which rises on a base formed by three circles staggered in height home reading rooms and public spaces.
With a total floor area of 113,669 meters square, 54,960 correspond to the reservoir. The building reaches a height of 73.67 meters, spread over 22 floors.
Construction details
In the main entrance there is a parking access entrance and circulation own library of 7 meters wide, twice the main entrance Nezavisimosti Avenue.
Along the outer walls technology corridors are lit by the sun that create air chambers to help prevent sudden temperature changes.
A portion of book stock serves to neutralize thermal temperature differences maintaining appropriate humidity conditions for safety air inside the library.
A core that runs through the entire height of the prismatic body of the library houses the space distribution rooms, stairs, elevators both cargo and visitors, vertical ventilation channels and internal communication channels.
Lower volumes of the building, “stylobate” projections are implemented primarily as visual opening to “The Diamond”, instead serving as terraces and summer reading.
Spaces
The distribution courts and corridors with access to the reading rooms are divided into three levels that form the base of the tank and around a central core, allowing the visitor clearly oriented in the interior space without losing time searching the room corresponding.
The spaces are divided into lecture halls, conference hall, cafeteria, book museum, exhibition halls, administrative offices and ancillary rooms.
Both the conference room with capacity for 500 people as the cafeteria can make social and cultural programs independently of the Library.
Deposit books and reading rooms
The reading rooms and book storage are locked in a polyhedron that closes up like a ball and the dominant part of the building with a volume corresponding to a “hyper-tank”. This form differs from the traditional offers a number of benefits such as conservation of heat or the lowest number and size of the internal connections.
All forms of use of the volumes contained in the reservoir are distributed through special telelifts dispersed radially from the center of the core that runs through this part of the building.
According to the project there is a special room catalogs and files below the tank room.
The library has 19 reading rooms and numerous spaces for the same purpose as the terraces located on the three floors underlying the deposit. Distributed in the different rooms are offered to more than 1,500 users desks.
Parkings
There are two car parks with a capacity of 235 and 239 cars respectively, for visitors and located along the Avenue, on one side of the main entrance and 500 meters of it.
Another car park for staff of the library, located next to the homes of those on the street Starovilensky with 198 seats.
Viewing deck
At the top of the building there is an observation platform, 72 feet above ground level, which offers a view of the city of Minsk. Since 2009 is the only structure in Minsk with a public observation deck.
Materials
Its structural shell shaped diamond base is covered with glass panels that shine 24 hours a day and represents gem. The architects Victor Vinogradov Kramarenko and Michael wanted to preserve and transmit this vision even at night
The architect and professor Viktor Kramarenko describes the challenge: “At sunset the brightness of the facade fades, outdoor lighting is not effective, the glass panels reflect light into space. The suggestion was hiding the light sources behind the glass, creating a large 25×25 monitor side and 62 meters in diameter. 4,646 were placed LED color changing around the building, as a result, viewers can see even a few feet away, a fantastic show with incredible dynamic graphics. It is an extraordinary building engineers and lighting designers ”
A filial of GVA Lighting Inc. in Belarus was responsible for the design and placement of the lighting system consisting of 4,646 RGB light fixtures, 1,349 drivers, 54 dividers, divider channel RS485-eighth, a converter USB/RS485- 1. LED entire network is managed in a dynamic and controlled through software operating as diseñanos.
The software used for the design of light effects is presented with a flexible interface for easy control and creating light shows. The designer can create, modify and schedule a personalized performances, appearing on screen and in real time the effects achieved
The functionality in tracking and troubleshooting the lighting control system dramatically reduces the time required for maintenance. In “diagnostic”, the software is able to check the operation of all LED fixtures. In case of deviation from the operational parameters, or variation of thermal states, a detailed report on the faulty component together with its exact location information to the operator.
