CAMPAIGN OUTLINE

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the abrupt withdrawal of state funding in 1991, conditions at the Chekhov House-Museum in Yalta have steadily deteriorated. The physical state of the house which Chekhov built in 1899 is now critical. The purpose of our campaign is to draw attention to the Museum's plight, raise the funds needed for essential repairs, and to guarantee its longterm future survival. Our aim is to raise 200 000 EUR so that necessary restoration work can be completed by the 150th anniversary of Chekhov's birth, in January 2010.

The Museum is unique in having preserved the writer's house intact from the moment when its owner left it, two months before his untimely death in 1904 in Germany. Immediately nicknamed 'The White Dacha' when it was built, it is the house where The Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard and the stories such as The Bishop were written, and it gives visitors a rare glimpse into the private life of a great Russian author, whose study of the human condition has made such a supreme contribution to world culture.

Thanks to Chekhov's younger sister Maria, 'The White Dacha' survived the Russian Revolution, Civil War and Nazi occupation, but the advent of Ukrainian independence has proven to be the toughest challenge. The Ukrainian government is unresponsive to the Museum's needs, refusing support on the grounds of Chekhov's Russian nationality. The Russian government is similarly unhelpful, arguing that the Museum is no longer its responsibility, because it is situated in Ukraine. The regional Ministry of Culture of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea now provides the Museum's only funding, which is sufficient only to pay the partial (and very meagre) salaries of its custodians; there is no money available for the continued upkeep of the buildings themselves. The withdrawal of state support, meanwhile, has had catastrophic effects. In the winter of 2005-2006, the Chekhov House suffered a breakdown in its heating and electrical wiring system. This led to severe problems with mould and damp. Wallpaper and plaster began to flake and fall off the walls and ceiling, making the first floor of the museum unsafe, and forcing its temporary closure. Stop-gap measures have been undertaken to enable the Museum to re-open, but there is still no adequate heating and temperature control system. Demolition of adjacent buildings on higher ground has presented a new and very serious threat of flooding, and the Museum has also been powerless to prevent careless construction work carried out on the neighbouring property, which has caused serious subsidence. Cracks have appeared in the walls of the house, and there is also evident damage to the garden which was originally planted by Chekhov himself.

Since becoming Director of the Chekhov House-Museum in 2006, Alla Golavacheva has campaigned tirelessly to find sponsorship to restore this unique museum and to secure its future survival, but her calls for help in Russia and Ukraine have largely fallen on deaf ears. We are confident that Chekhov’s many admirers abroad will feel differently about the need to preserve this precious building and its unique contents, and will step forward to save it.

Rosamund Bartlett
Elena Michajlowska
Alexander Walsh