Six Books about Moscow
The love myth of Moscow, the beauty of the urban fringe and understanding the Luzhkov style – the editorial board of Interview chose the most interesting books published over the last several years about the capital.
GRIGORY REVZIN. RUSSIAN ARCHITECTURE AT THE TURN OF THE 21st CENTURY
The book Russian Architecture at the Turn of the 21st Centuryby critic and art expert Grigory Revzin came out last year and is a large and expensive album with nice illustrations and detailed text. Revzin sums up 20 years of the development of post-Soviet architecture, analysing the fate of all the notable trends: the paper architecture of Avvakumov and Brodsky, the neomodernism of Skokan, the neoclassicism of Atayants and even "glamorous avant-garde."
RUSTAM RAKHMATULLIN. ADMIRING MOSCOW. TOPOGRAPHY, SOCIOLOGY AND METAPHYSICS OF A LOVE MYTH
Admiring Moscow is a type of continuation of the theme of metaphysical local studies that Moscow historian Rustam Rakhmatullin outlined in the book Two Moscows, or Metaphysics of the Capital. This time, the author discusses a special dimension – love. Rakhmatullin gathers together all the famous love stories – from Basil III and Solomonia Saburova to Marina Tsvetaeva and Sergei Efron. His "love addresses" create an interesting picture of the fabric of each region.
WALTER BENJAMIN. MOSCOW DIARY
Last year, Ad Marginem reissued Benjamin’s Moscow Diary, which was first released in Russian in 1997, reminding us of a wonderful testimony about the Moscow of the mid-1920s. Benjamin's Moscow is very detailed, tangible, and multidimensional. He walks around the capital as a collector, buying different trinkets like paper birds, lacquered boxes or Christmas toys in the form of a samovar.
ILYA VARLAMOV. ABOUT MOSCOW/PRO MOSCOW
Ilya Varlamov became a popular blogger largely due to the fact that he can penetrate mythical urban spaces that are closed to the public – for example, the archives of Lenin Library or Surkov’s office. The book offers a more general view of the capital. In addition to well-known attractions, the album also includes significant events in the capital’s life: school graduation, airmen walks, religious bathing in icy waters, and Eid al-Adha.
ALEXANDER GRONSKY. PASTORAL
Alexander Gronsky shot the series Pastoral on the outskirts of Moscow, although it seems as if the pictures were taken in a misty forest of Game of Thrones. Recognizable urban specificities return the viewer to reality: a thrown out chair, high-voltage power lines, and a dilapidated brick wall with the timeless inscription ‘Vasya was here.’ Pastoral received the 2012 World Press Photo prize in the Daily Life category.
MOSCOW IN A POSTER. VOLUMES 1, 2
The constructivist images of Rodchenko brought glory to the Soviet poster around the whole world, but this kind of art is not only interesting from a graphic design perspective, but also as a historical artefact. The two volumes were published by Contact-Culture and include more than 200 posters released in the period between 1884 and 1997. They can be used to track certain milestones in the country’s life: pre-revolutionary advertising, great construction, the anti-alcohol campaign, military activism, perestroika, and much more.