Some human destinies are so incredible that even the most experienced screenwriters could not invent them. Such a fate was bestowed upon Vladislav Maximilianovich Strzeminski. He was a Russian officer, a hero of the defense of the fortress of Osowiec, and an outstanding Polish avant-garde artist.

Vladislav was born on November 21, 1893, into a Polish noble family of Strzeminski and received an excellent military education. In 1914, he graduated from the Nikolaev Engineering School with the rank of second lieutenant. Ahead of him lay World War I.

Strzeminski's first assignment was service in the sapper company of the Osowiec fortress. Due to its advantageous location, the fortress became an insurmountable barrier for German troops. For six months, the garrison successfully repelled attacks. The latest types of weaponry were used against the fortress, including the legendary "Big Bertha" cannons, but to no avail. The Germans used choking gas and launched an attack on the scorched positions of the Russians. However, the remnants of three companies of the Zemlian regiment unexpectedly rose to meet the enemy, and the opponent retreated in horror. These events went down in history as the "Attack of the Dead." In the battle, second lieutenant Kotlinski was killed, and Strzeminski replaced him, successfully completing the attack.

Vladislav survived and continued to fight. For his feats at Osowiec, he was awarded the Order of Saint Stanislaus 3rd class with swords and a bow, as well as the George's weapon. In the spring of 1916, he received severe injuries from a mortar shell, losing a leg and an arm. For this, he was awarded the Order of Saint George 4th class and was discharged.

After the 1917 revolution, Strzeminski headed the arts department in the People's Commissariat for Education and, together with V. Tatlin, taught at the Free Art Workshops. From 1922, he lived with his family in Poland, where he became a legend of art. Strzeminski became a symbol of Polish avant-garde and, after World War II, faced persecution from the socialist government, but remained true to himself until his death in 1952. Today, his name is carried by the Academy of Fine Arts in Lodz, and a monument has been erected to him in Belarus.