Exhibition "Unique Autographs in the Family of the Writer E. N. Chirikov"

From May 1 to 30, 2024, as part of the Year of the Family, the State Museum of Vladimir Vysotsky will host an exhibition dedicated to the 160th anniversary of the birth of the Russian writer Evgeny Chirikov.

The work and life of Evgeny Nikolaevich are a window into the world of classical literature, Russian thought and Russian culture.

E. N. Chirikov was born on July 24, 1864 in Kazan, into the family of a landless nobleman. The writer's father was a retired officer who served as a local police officer and assistant ispravnik in various districts of the Kazan and Simbirsk governorates. The future writer's childhood was spent in villages and county towns of the Volga region. Chirikov graduated from the Kazan gymnasium and later enrolled at Kazan University. In 1888 Evgeny Nikolaevich lived in Tsaritsyn, where he met Maxim Gorky, who later became his best friend. On August 19, 1892 he was married in Kazan to his wife Valentina Grigoryeva.

In 1920 Russia was in the throes of civil war. Although the events on the horizon made the writer consider leaving the country, Evgeny Nikolaevich was not morally prepared for it. He hoped until the last moment that he would not have to leave Russia and be separated from his family. At first the family moved to Constantinople, and in 1921 they relocated to Sofia. In October Evgeny Nikolaevich moved to Czechoslovakia, where he settled in Prague. While in Czechoslovakia, Chirikov continued to return to the theme of the horrors of the civil war. He gives the deepest reflection on the civil war in the novel "The Beast from the Abyss: A Poem of the Terrible Years".

The writer died on January 18, 1932 in Prague. He was buried in the Olšany Cemetery.

Evgeny Nikolaevich Chirikov was a Russian writer, author of literary works: "Invalids", "The Redhead", "Strangers", the novel-trilogy "The Life of Tarkhanov", the novel "Family" — the fourth part of the novel "The Life of Tarkhanov", "My Novel" — about events during the civil war in southern Russia, "The Beast from the Abyss (A Poem of the Terrible Years)", "Father's Home". In total the writer wrote about 35 short stories. The best known among them are "The Red Harlequin", "The Devastated Soul", "The Avengers", which reflect the horrors of the civil war. Most of his stories and novellas are devoted to his youth, the provincial Volga region and pre-revolutionary Russia. He is the author of the collections: "Between Heaven and Earth", "Maiden's Tears" (1927) and "Evening Bell (stories of love)" (1932).

In all his works Evgeny Nikolaevich Chirikov wrote about the values of family happiness and the horrors of the civil war. Evgeny Nikolaevich's life path was filled with honor, dignity and love for people, for his native land and for the Motherland.

The exhibition of the E. N. Chirikov Literary Museum (Nizhny Novgorod) "Unique Autographs in the Family of the Writer E. N. Chirikov" will be presented by Mikhail Alexandrovich Chirikov — the founder of the E. N. Chirikov Literary Museum (Nizhny Novgorod) — together with the State Museum of Vladimir Vysotsky.

Advance registration by phone: 8 (495) 915-75-78.