Russian artist killed in Poland sold one painting for $20,000 and donated to the AFU. Here's what his Belarusian acquaintance Bokhan recounted.
Blogger Uladzislau Bokhan, who had known Siemyon Skrapecki for several years and corresponded with him literally on the eve of the tragedy, told "Belsat" about how the artist lived, how he made a living from his art, and why he regularly received threats in recent years.
One of Siemyon Skrapecki's caricatures. Source: social media
Just a few hours before his death, Siemyon Skrapecki discussed new actions against the Russian regime with Uladzislau Bokhan. According to him, on the night from Saturday to Sunday, Skrapecki suggested organizing a joint action in Berlin or Warsaw after his recent performance near the Russian embassy in Germany. They did not manage to work out final plans.
The blogger had known Skrapecki since 2022. They met at the "ReBelarus" exhibition in Warsaw, which took place shortly before the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine. There, the Russian artist presented his works with sharp political themes. According to Bokhan, after that they kept in touch, although they were not close friends. Their communication revolved mainly around art, politics, and social activism.
“As a person, he was quite complex. It was sometimes difficult to communicate with him because he was very emotional and sharp in his statements. I didn't always agree with what he said. But as an artist, he was a true genius,” says Bokhan.
In his opinion, none of the contemporary artists conveyed the atmosphere of "deep Russia" outside Moscow as accurately. Skrapecki was from Altai Krai and often addressed the life of the Russian provinces in his work.
According to Bokhan, the artist constantly received threats in recent months. Especially after he began actively ridiculing the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. Skrapecki even published screenshots of aggressive messages from Kadyrov's supporters in his Telegram channel.
In addition, in one of his posts, he reported that police were on duty near his home. Bokhan believes this might have been related to the artist's appeal to law enforcement agencies due to the threats. However, Skrapecki did not mention any specific dangers in personal conversations.
"A large community of people existed around his art"
Skrapecki not only participated in Russian anti-Putin actions but also supported the Belarusian diaspora in Poland. According to Bokhan, the artist attended Belarusian solidarity actions in Biała Podlaska, and also participated in joint protests near the Russian embassy in Warsaw.
Bokhan also said that Skrapecki lived primarily from his creative work. According to him, the artist received about $500 monthly from monetizing content on YouTube and social media. His main income came from selling paintings. Some of his works were very expensive.
Skrapecki had been involved in political satire for over fifteen years. According to Bokhan, he sold one of his works for approximately $20,000 and donated this money to support Ukraine and its Armed Forces.
“He always had clients; a large community of people who supported him existed around his art,” the blogger noted.
The news of the artist's death came as a complete surprise to Bokhan. Upon reading reports of the shooting in Biała Podlaska, he immediately thought of Skrapecki, who lived in that city. The blogger then tried to contact him and his wife but received no reply. He then began to compare information and photos from the scene with materials the artist had published on his social media.
“Everything matched — the age, citizenship, and location. That's how I realized it was most likely him,” Bokhan recounted.
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