During this holiday, the Aglona basilica is attended by tens of thousands of believers, who, whilst there may also see the restored works of the recognised Latvian sculptor Igor Vasiliev. The restoration of these works was completed recently by using funds granted by the Rietumu Charity Fund.
Aglona is a major religious centre of Latvia. Annually, about 150 thousand pilgrims and other visitors come here for the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, not only from Latvia, but also from other countries. This is the location of the famous Aglona basilica, where in 1993 Pope John Paul II served a mass in the presence of 380 thousand believers.
Aside from its unique historical relics and masterpieces of sacral art, the basilica has works created by Igor Vasiliev (1940-1997). The famous Latvian sculptor and Professor of the Art Academy of Latvia became widely recognised due to his outstanding portraits in wood and bronze. During the last years of his creative activities, Igor Vasiliev made a lot of works based on religious themes.
The Rietumu Charity Fund has been helping to preserve the master’s heritage for a number of years. With the support of the Fund, a sculpture of Igor Vasiliev has been installed in the seaside village of Vecaki, not far from Riga, where he lived and worked. The Fund has also financed the release of a catalogue for the opening of the sculptor's museum in Latvia.
Supporting the preservation of monuments of sacral art is one of the priorities of the Rietumu Charity Fund. During the last six years, the Fund held an annual contest called “Sacral Heritage of Latvia”. Based on the results of this contest, more than 40 churches of different denominations, each being a unique monument of architecture, culture and history, with their own individual internal decorations, have all been restored in different regions of the country.