On December 4, 2024, the Exhibition Hall of the Federal Archives in Moscow will host the opening of the historical and documentary exhibition "Heritage and Heirs", dedicated to the upcoming 80th anniversary of the Victory of the Soviet people over Nazi Germany. This is an exhibition of works by participants of the XX International Children's Creativity Competition "The Beauty of God's World: a common thread", dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
The exhibition was prepared by the Federal Archival Agency, the Center for Educational and Cultural Initiatives "GENERATION", the Synodal Department of Religious Education and Catechesis. The project coordinator is the State Archive of the Russian Federation (GA RF).
The exhibition "Heritage and Heirs" is based on a look at the war through the prism of children's consciousness, revealed in two aspects — through archival documents about the fate of children during the war years and modern children's drawings dedicated to the war.
The main part of the exhibition was made up of children's and youth drawings submitted to the State Duma of the Russian Federation in 2024, created as part of the International Children's Creativity Competition "The Beauty of God's World". Simple and touching, childishly sincere, naive, colorful drawings attract attention to the important task of preserving the historical memory of the Great Patriotic War. All the drawings are divided into thematic sections covering different aspects of children's lives in wartime. The events of the war captured in pencils and paints — the most important battles, evacuation, guerrilla warfare, labor in the rear — acquire a historical context in the presented archival documents and photographs.
The exhibition "Heritage and Heirs" intertwines artistic and documentary materials, which creates a non-standard approach to the study of the history of the Great Patriotic War. The exhibition is designed for representatives of the general public, students of schools, colleges, art schools. In total, there are more than 180 exhibits on display.