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During the great Patriotic Yasnaya Polyana a month and a half was in occupation. All Museum relics in advance was taken in Tomsk, but the buildings, parks and ponds not evakuirovali. Leaving Clear, representatives of one of the most cultured Nations of Europe have set the house on fire Thick, but the locals managed to put it out. Then there were the long restoration work, and in may 1945 the Museum exhibits back into place.

Then there was the “dashing 90-e”, with their total lack of funding culture. However, this was the decade in “Yasnaya Polyana” healed new, not just “Museum”, life got here, as Director of the great-grandson of L. N. Tolstoy Vladimir Tolstoy, now a presidential adviser on culture.

not without a note of black humor: quarantine, closed this year all the museums of the country, for the “Yasnaya Polyana” was even longer test than the German occupation. That has happened here in these two months and what is happening here now, we spoke with the current Director of the “Yasnaya Polyana” Catherine Tolstoy.

the First question which excites many. “Yasnaya Polyana” opened to the public?

Ekaterina Tolstaya: In mid-June for the visitors opened the territory of the reserve. July 3, we opened the memorial building – the Tolstoy House and Outbuilding Kuzmin’s texts. However, while they can visit on your own without a tour. Now we offer tours only at the Central part of the reserve, where you can learn about the history of the estate and the nature of Yasnaya Polyana. While tours are conducted for small groups – no more than five people: this is a great opportunity to come with family or a small group of friends. Now come to us as the inhabitants of Tula and Tula region and guests from other regions. We do not limit visits to Yasnaya Polyana during the opening hours of the reserve, but please observe mask mode and social distance.

you and your wonderful staff made it through the quarantine? I personally find it hard to imagine Yasnaya Polyana without guests. I think that it was impossible to imagine in the lifetime of Leo Tolstoy. It has always been, guests, guests… the Pilgrims… And suddenly the quarantine! Maybe you are the opposite from the rest of the influx of people? I know some museums even saw this as a blessing. Had time to gather my thoughts, come up with new projects…

Ekaterina Tolstaya: Quarantine became a kind of challenge for the Museum, a kind of test of the fact whether we will be able to adapt to new conditions, keep your visitor. I can say that we did, managed to come up with a lot of interesting online activities and even celebrated the birthday of the Museum in a virtual format. By the way, has only one year left until the centennial of Yasnaya Polyana, and we are already actively planning its anniversary.

For visitors in etand two month, the main venues were our website and social networks. However, to completely stop the activities of the Museum, of course, we could not. Yasnaya Polyana is a nature reserve, and every day on the job went on duty officers memorial stables, greenhouses, forest, garden, Park. The order in the manor was kept by the staff of the security service and fire protection. The memorial building was necessary to dry and ventilate, so the keepers of the House of Tolstoy and Wings Kuzmin’s texts appeared regularly in the workplace.

of Course, to see Yasnaya Polyana without visitors was very unusual. Probably, this situation occurred for the first time in the history of the Museum. On the one hand, due to the lack of tour thread we got plenty of time to work on the landscaping of the Central part of the reserve. On the other hand, we are very sorry that our visitors can see the arrival of spring, flowering Apple trees and ornamental plants only in photographs. However, we tried very hard to talk about what is happening in the world of nature: even launched the project about the birds of Yasnaya Polyana and recorded their singing.

On your website I saw an interesting online project “Family album”. What is it?

Ekaterina Tolstaya: Is an online workshop in which we invite our participants to play their favorite family photos taken a few years ago – to gather the same team and repeat background, pose, clothing, emotions. Then the original and the new picture you want to combine into a collage and send it to us. On 8 July, the Day of family, love and faithfulness, we will summarize the workshop and will choose the best work.

the Idea for this project was born during the quarantine, when almost all of us began to spend more time with your loved ones. We decided to offer children and teenagers to talk about his family, choosing one of the family photos and worked with her. It is a very rewarding experience – each participant would create an image of their family, decides how to represent it. The project was interesting not only for children – we began to write and adults.

Already known, the new dates for the opening of theatrical festival “the fat”? It is hoped that it will be held on the territory of Yasnaya Polyana this year?

Ekaterina Tolstaya: it Was decided to move the festival Opens next year. In this case, you can be sure that he will be held in the usual format and without any restriction on number of visitors. Let me remind you that the festival is held during the warmer time of the year on several open areas in the Yasnaya Polyana estate, and it is visited by several thousand people. Next year the festival will be held for the fifth time and will be one of the key events of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Museum.

there Will in September with the traditional “��isataiskiy meeting”?

Ekaterina Tolstaya: can’t say with absolute certainty, but I hope that the “Literary meetings” will be held. It will be a real holiday for all participants – given that this year the meeting will be held in the twenty-fifth time. I hope we will meet again and on the birthday of Leo Tolstoy, which is celebrated on September 9.

Ekaterina! All are mentally tired from this damn virus. Tell through our newspaper across the country: “Welcome to Yasnaya Polyana!”. And let people finally smiling.

Ekaterina Tolstaya: of Course, we were in a difficult situation, but I have no doubt that we will successfully overcome. While the Museum was closed, we continued to chat with visitors and answer their questions. Many of them were looking forward to the lifting of restrictions to come to Yasnaya Polyana, and was very supportive of us with their sincerity and passion to our work. Now is the time to thank those who have stayed in touch, and get to know those who we haven’t seen yet. I invite everyone to visit our Museum. Looking forward to seeing you at Yasnaya Polyana!

In 1911, the writer’s widow Sofia Tolstaya twice referred to the Emperor Nicholas II with a request to take Yasnaya Polyana under the protection of the state, but was refused. The Countess did everything possible to keep the estate intact. Active participation in the life of the estate took the children of Leo Tolstoy, Sergei Lvovich (author of the first guidebook to Yasnaya Polyana, 1914) and Alexandra Lvovna. May 27, 1919 people’s Commissariat of education gave Alexandra Lvovna Security certificate, which certified that the estate and all in the thick of things, having “exceptional cultural and historical value and national heritage, are under state protection”. In 1921, the estate of Leo Tolstoy was converted into a Museum by decree of the all-Russian Central Executive Committee. “The Commissioner-curator” of the Museum was designed by Alexandra Lvovna Tolstaya, which played a huge role in the creation of the Museum and its development in the 1920-ies. But in 1929 she was forced to leave the Soviet Union.

the Entrance ticket to the Museum-estate without visiting the memorial buildings is worth $ 100. Full sightseeing tour of “the Reserve Tolstoy House, an Outbuilding of Kuzmin’s texts” – 300 rubles. The first tour starts at 9.30 am, the last at 16. 00. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office at the entrance to the estate, or online on the Museum website.

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Jennifer Alvarez is an investigative journalist and is a correspondent for European Union. She is based in Zurich in Switzerland and her field of work include covering human rights violations which take place in the various countries in and outside Europe. She also reports about the political situation in European Union. She has worked with some reputed companies in Europe and is currently contributing to USA News as a freelance journalist. As someone who has a Masters’ degree in Human Rights she also delivers lectures on Intercultural Management to students of Human Rights. She is also an authority on the Arab world politics and their diversity.