Today, the Siberian Historical Forum has held the section 400th Anniversary of Krasnoyarsk. Humanitarian Development. Among the speakers of the section were Krasnoyarsk mayor Sergey Eremin, Candidate of Historical Sciences Alexander Dementyev, Deputy Head for Cooperation with Authorities of the Krasnoyarsk Railway, a branch of Russian Railways, Lev Tkachev and Director of Dom Kino (House of Cinema) and member of the Union of Cinematographers of Russia Larisa Antropova. The participants’ task was to understand what identity of the city is and the conditions for its formation through the historical past .

Sergey Eremin noted that the key focus of the discussion should be precisely the humanitarian development of Krasnoyarsk: “All our further evolutionary turns depend on humanitarian development. The city’s ambitions are concentrated in the historical aspect and our roots.”

In addition, speaking about Krasnoyarsk as an identity, the head of the city emphasizes that the main thing in this aspect is the formation of human capital and the beginning of understanding the city as a full-fledged participant in the entire complex of the humanitarian aspect of people’s life.

Lev Tkachev in his speech mentioned the topic of the Yenisey Sibiria brand: “The Yenisey Siberia is a melting pot of cultures: it is enough to remember how many nationalities and cultures passed through Minusinsk Hollow. The Yenisey style is the first national style in art that would go beyond theoretical postulates and would be applied in practice not only in the Yenisey Siberia but also in many other regions. When we develop our own style in architecture, fine arts and other areas, we will become much more competitive and stronger. Let’s create something unique and our own – something Krasnoyarsk!”

After Lev Tkachev’s speech, the discussion participants came to a conclusion that the brand should be more than just created, but it should be formed from the everyday practices of the townspeople, from the way they are used to living. In addition, it is necessary to work on the meanings of the brand and make strong associations it in the minds of people.

In turn, Alexander Dementyev spoke about how the reputation of Krasnoyarsk had changed in the light of historical development and listed the main eras of the city’s reputation peaks. The historian considers the second half of the 19th century to be the golden age in the history of Krasnoyarsk: “The beginning of Vasily Surikov’s work dates back to this time, and already in 1900 the Krasnoyarsk theme was heard at the international level, when the painting “Taking a Snow Town” received a personal medal at the exhibition in Paris. The Krasnoyarsk bridge across the Yenisey was awarded the prestigious prize of the industrial exhibition in Paris along with the Eiffel Tower the same year.

In total, Andrey Dementyev highlighted several reputation turns for these 400 years: from a military outpost to a modern metropolis. At the same time, the historian named the nature and activities of people as invariably positive aspects for the formation of the image of the city, those efforts of the residents of Krasnoyarsk aimed at its improvement and beautification.

Larisa Antropova revealed the history of Krasnoyarsk through cinema and demonstrated how Krasnoyarsk legends can become the starting point with which both identity and historical meanings can be formed.

At the end of the section, the participants formed proposals for the further development of the city including the formation of the brand of Krasnoyarsk and the socio-cultural concept of the city, as well as the preservation of its cultural heritage.