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The 2021 Russian Federation National Award in Literature and Art has been presented to Viktor Moskvin for his activities in education and his efforts to return, preserve and popularise the legacy of Russian diasporas abroad.

Viktor Moskvin was born on January 5, 1955, in Alabushevo, Solnechnogorsky District, Moscow Region. He is Director of the Alexander Solzhenitsyn House of Russia Abroad (Moscow).

A Merited Worker of Culture of the Russian Federation (2006), he was awarded the Order of Friendship (2014), and a commendation from the President of the Russian Federation (2008). He received the Russian Government Award in culture in 2009. PhD (History).

Viktor Moskvin initiated the creation of the Alexander Solzhenitsyn House of Russia Abroad in Moscow, and has led the Russian expatriates’ centre since its foundation in 1995. The Solzhenitsyn House has become a world-renowned multifunctional cultural, educational and research centre. Russian emigres and their descendants have donated more than half a million books, archival documents and museum artefacts.

The centre conducts extensive research and educational work. It has organised dozens of international conferences and published over 600 books. The Russian Way film studio has produced 41 documentaries. The Russia Abroad international film festival has been held annually since 2007.

The first Museum of the Russian Diaspora, which opened in 2019, combines a conventional museum format with multimedia technology.

The 2021 Russian Federation National Award in Literature and Art has been presented to Pavel NIKONOV for his contribution to the development of domestic and world fine arts.

Pavel Nikonov was born on May 30, 1930, in Moscow. He is an artist.

People's Artist of the Russian Federation (1994), a recipient of the Order of Honour (2001), winner of the 2002 National Award in Literature and Art.

Head of the easel painting workshop at the Surikov Moscow State Academic Art Institute, Russian Academy of Arts.

For more than 60 years, Pavel Nikonov has been an active participant in the modern artistic process. His name is associated with the emergence of the “austere style,” one of the iconic trends of the Soviet era. In the 1980s-1990s, he developed a new expressive style reminiscent of the avant-garde art of the 1920s. Large canvases painted with a free brush represent the modern period in the artist's work.

The artist's works on display at the exhibition The Nikonovs: Three Artists demonstrate the development of the main trends in Russian painting of the second half of the 20^th and early 21^st centuries and the story of the relationship between an artist and the state, an artist and society. They raise questions about the role and place of art in today’s cultural processes.

The 2021 Russian Federation National Award in Literature and Art has been awarded to Gulzada RUDENKO for her contribution to the study, preservation and popularization of Russia’s historical and cultural heritage.

Gulzada Rudenko was born on August 30, 1956, in Urnyak (Tatar ASSR). She is General Director of the Yelabuga State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve.

Winner of the Russian Government Award in Culture (2009) as well as other professional, regional and departmental awards. Under her leadership, the Yelabuga Museum-Reserve has repeatedly been awarded high museum and public awards.

Gulzada Rudenko has headed the museum-reserve since 2002. Under her leadership, the Yelabuga State Museum-Reserve has emerged as one of the leading museum associations in Russia, and the largest research and educational institution and cultural and tourist centre in the Republic of Tatarstan. Today it includes 495 hectares of protected area, 184 cultural heritage landmarks, 16 museum and exhibition facilities, as well as museum, educational, musical and ethnic arts projects, exhibitions in Russia and abroad, and the All-Russian Spasskaya Fair. Its venues are visited by more than 500,000 people annually. Yelabuga is more than a museum; its protected grounds include a historical centre with untouched blocks and ensembles of merchant buildings from the 19^th century. It is a harmoniously and comprehensively growing space, comfortable and convenient for residents and tourists of all ages; a model city for historical communities of federal significance.