Valery Melnikov is a deaf retired man living in the village Markovo of Amur Region on the China border (about 4,200 miles from Moscow). In 2012 he decided to make an unusual New Year card, so he took a shovel and made a figure cleaning snow on the ice.
His neighbors loved the card so much, that Valery repeats his New Year greeting every year. This December, Valery used commonly recognized festive images: fir trees, snowmen
Local officials told Amurskaya Pravda newspaper that the artist frequently visits the place of "his solo exhibition" to check if his creation is fine and fix the snow if necessary. Villagers consider Valery's cards as their local winter brand.
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