The author of the almost four-meter bronze figure with a trowel in his hand was a famous sculptor Vyacheslav Melikov. It is known that a local student posed for him. According to the author, the collective image of the Norilsk builder, who lays the mortar for the last brick in the arch of the house under construction, should symbolize the heroism of the city’s first builders. This is evidenced by the inscription on the granite pedestal: “To the builders of Norilsk. To their courage and vitality”.
Among the speakers at the grand opening of the monument on the Builder’s Day were Norilsk Mayor Oleg Budargin, new director of the Polar Division Vitaly Bobrov, and the heroes of the event.
Ten years later, in 2012, the landmark was updated, adding another element to the composition – the bronze book History of the City of Norilsk.
Text: Varvara Sosnovskaya, Photo: Nikolay Schipko