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    “Dreamers” by Gleb Kashtanov in Mazyr, Belarus

    An extremely vivid mural painting “Dreamers” was created by a Belarusian muralist Gleb Kashtanov in Mazyr, Belarus. The mural on a facade of a 9-storied building in a new actively developing district of town became the continuation of the project “Traditions for the Future” supervised by Belarusbank and the street-art team “Urban Myths”.The plot of the mural is based on the author’s rethinking of an ancient Mazyr legend about the origin of the world and locals. The characters of the mural painting are modern children, who are about to start building their own future. Their real world is intertwined with ancient legends and fairytales.The monumental painting “Dreamers” is a part of an ambitious art-project named “Traditions for the Future”. The project “Traditions for the Future” is a series of motivating murals in Belarusian cities and towns. Every picture reflects the values of entrepreneurship and personal initiative through the prism of Belarusian legends and history. The project is being implemented by Belarusbank and the street-art team “Urban Myths”.Mazyr became the second town of the project. This town has a unique Belarus hilly terrain with deep ravines and its history is full of mysteries. Nowadays Mazyr is a dynamically developing industrial town, where there are a lot of children and young people.The author of the mural painting tried to convey images of unique nature, legendary ancient history of the town and confidence in the future. Before starting work the organizers consulted a local historian. One of the legends, told by the historian, inspired the author to create the mural.Here’s the legend:“A long time ago, when the Sun was a God and walked from West to East, the first land began to rise from the waters of the sea. That time, migratory birds were resting on the hills, and they brought the seeds of rare plants to Mazyr. These plants are now found in local ravines.One day, the Sun was going across the sky and heard a fantastic song. It was sung by Milavica (Belarusians call Venus, a goddess of love and beauty, Milavica,). This charming girl sailed on a boat in the sea between the hills. The Sun fell in love with Milavica and followed the sounds of the song. The first “Paliashuki” (residents of Paliessie) were born from the love of the Sun and Milavica. Descendants of those people now live in Paliessie, and the Sun moves from East to West.”The mural “Dreamers” became the biggest for Gleb Kashtanov in his career. Gleb is an ambitious and promising muralist from Vitebsk (Belarus). He has a professional education in the art sphere and develops his personal style in street art. More