"They cut off the locks and put up their own." The first private wood carving museum in Ryazan is closing.
The master's free museum is closing. Alexandra ZiminaHe's already taken out half the collection, Zimin said. рассказал "Regional Aspect".
Zimin is a self-taught woodcarver who has taught children and adults woodcarving for free for over 30 years and has exhibited his work. Museum in the very center of the city is popular with tourists, and Zimin himself was chosen as the “face of Ryazan” in the Russian media project “Heroes of Our Time” about 10 years ago.
The old building is municipal property, leased by the Woodcarving Club. It's in disrepair, and Zimin has long been banned from teaching children there. There had been problems with the lease and the condition of the premises before, but over the past year and a half, according to Zimin, "strange movements have begun around the building." First, a businessman approached him with an offer to transfer the lease.
"Then some people came and said, 'We're from the SVO, vacate the premises, we'll be staying here.' They cut off my locks and put up their own. Then some supposedly administrative officials came, but they didn't show any documents. They told me to change all the wiring within 24 hours or move out. That's impossible!" — the master explained.
He began to fear for his collection and other belongings, so he took half of it to the village and left some in the yard of his house to be picked up later. Everything was stolen that night. He went to the police, but they were of no help. No one bothered to deal with the unknown men "from the SVO" who cut the locks either.
— I don’t understand whether to continue fighting or to run away, — Zimin reasons. — The land here is worth millions, and everyone keeps telling me the house will be torn down for development. And the lease ends in a month.
He wanted sell The entire mask collection is being sold wholesale, so that it can be sold to one person. So far, it's not working. Zimin has started selling them off individually to help his wife, who has been battling cancer for over five years. He's worried he won't be able to help her in time, and the mask collection will simply disappear.
You can read the master's story here.
