The Union State Prize is a symbol of the unity of the peoples of Belarus and Russia – Yu. Grigoriev

July 9, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. The Union State Prize in Literature and Art is a symbol of the unity of the peoples of Belarus and Russia. This opinion was expressed to a BELTA correspondent by the laureate of this high award for 2009-2010, People's Architect of Russia, Academician of Architecture Yuri Grigoriev during a meeting with Vitebsk architects. "For me, this is a great honor and an opportunity to contribute to strengthening our friendly ties," he emphasized. During a lively discussion on the development of Moscow's construction, new facilities appearing in the Russian capital, Yuri Grigoriev noted the importance of comprehensive education for representatives of his profession. "Today, an architect is obliged to know all related fields of his profession and to think comprehensively, because he is, in fact, the author of the city whose appearance he designs," noted Yuri Grigoriev. The laureates of the Union State Prize in Literature and Art for 2009-2010 were People's Artist of the Republic of Belarus Leonid Shchemelev, the team of authors including People's Architect of Russia Yuri Grigoriev, sculptors of Belarus Lev Gumilevsky and Sergey Gumilevsky, sculptors of Russia Yuri Orekhov and Grigory Orekhov, as well as the team of authors including People's Artists of the USSR Alexei Tkachev and Sergey Tkachev. The award ceremony will take place this evening at the opening concert of the XIX International Festival of Arts "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk". The Union State Prize in Literature and Art has been awarded every two years since 2002. During this time, its laureates have included 12 famous cultural figures: actors Alexei Petrenko, Rostislav Yankovsky, Alexander Kalyagin and Vladimir Gostyukhin, playwright Alexei Dudarev, theater director Sergey Artsibashev, writers Ivan Shamyakin and Stanislav Kunyaev, artists Mikhail Savitsky and Valentin Sidorov, composer Alexandra Pakhmutova and maestro Mikhail Finberg. -0-