Professions

Sculpture of attendant Vasya

Sculpture Bath attendant in Lida
Sculpture Bath attendant in Lida

Other names for the sculpture “Bath attendant” are “Avid bather” and “Merry Vasya”. The sculpture was installed near the bathhouse in 2004 in autumn. Residents immediately renamed him Merry Vasya.

The appearance of a new sculpture was not a special action or the fulfillment of the desires and requests of the local population. The monument to an avid bather is just a signboard for advertising purposes. The bather must invite people to use the services of the city bath, in front of which, in fact, he is located. Modern baths are, of course, not the same as they used to be. New baths are increasingly turning into saunas. But that’s not bad at all.

Sculpture of attendant Vasya
Sculpture of attendant Vasya

The professional sculptor Vladimir Zhbanov worked on the manufacture of an unusual monument to the bather. This is not the first time this master creates sculptural compositions in Minsk. His works adorn city streets. To date, city baths are institutions not for the poor. Only wealthy people come to bathe and take a steam bath. Bath services have become beyond the reach of ordinary hard workers. After all, they have to lay out from 9000 rubles.

An interesting fact is that the city baths did not immediately pay for the installation of a new monument (or did not pay at all.) The company that made the monument, an avid bather, even wanted to take the monument back. But, probably, this event had a negative impact on the popularity of the institution. And after a while the “attendant” returned to his bathhouse. This happened in the fall of 2007.

Sculpture Bath attendant in Belarus
Sculpture Bath attendant in Belarus