Culture festival The Image of Russia has kicked off in Padua, Italy. 

      Dedicated to the famous Silver Age of Russian culture, the festival is an attempt to travel one hundred years back and rediscover the art of the early 20th century.

      The festival organizers also tried to unite Russian compatriots living in Padua. According to Natalya Pirogova, the festival curator, the Russian community is numerous in the city, and people get together for poetic parties with recitals of Osip Mandelstam and Boris Pasternak, mini-exhibitions, etc. In this sense the Image of Russia festival is a fine opportunity to gather them all.

      The festival was opened with a conference on the writer Mikhail Bulgakov and the philosopher Geogry Gurdzhiyev. Altogether fourteen various meetings will highlight the history of Russia through the prism of art.

      The festival will come to an end on  with a dance performance under the name I Believe in You featuring moms and their children on May 21.