Worth While: Photography Exhibitions in Moscow!
Worth While: Photography Exhibitions in Moscow!
The Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography (Центр Фотографий Имени Братев Люмьер) opened in Moscow in 2010 and contains three exhibition halls, a gallery of photography for collection, a bookstore and a cafe. The center is specifically dedicated to Russian, Soviet and foreign photography of the twentieth century. In addition to regular exhibitions, the center is also involved in photography teaching and research and has its own publishing project. Here is a brief description of a few interesting exhibits currently on display at the Lumiere Brothers Center:
“Soviet Photo” (“Советское Фото”) was the most popular photography magazine of the USSR, featuring the work of both amateur and well-known professional photographers. With the slogan “Photo Reporting and Amateur Photography”, the magazine was active from 1926 until 1997 and covered the many major historical events in the country during this time. This exhibit features photographs from the magazine’s archives, offering a unique view into recent Soviet and Russian history.
“Between War and Peace” (“Между войной и мирой”), a solo show by British documentary photographer James Hill, will be displayed until August 2. Hill traveled around Russia, Europe and CIS countries documenting war conflicts and societies in transition. This exhibit features essays by the photographer about his experiences witnessing these events firsthand. I was especially struck by one of James Hill’s quotes: “It takes a far finer balance than I ever imagined to live with the past […] the more powerful the image, the deeper its hold. I am caught between the duty to remember and the desire to erase.”
Looking forward, the museum will open the exhibition “Mazaccio and Drowilal: Wild Style” (Мазаччо и Дровилал: ДИЧь) from July 17 until August 30. The photographers, Elize Mazac and Robert Drowilal, captured kitschy 1990s items and prints which commodified animal life. Their work provides a glimpse into modern representations of animals and the state of our relationship with nature and “wild” creatures.
The Center is located at Bolotnaya emb. 3, bld. 1/Болотная Набережная, 3, стр. 1 in Moscow (metro station Kropotkinskaya/Кропоткинская).
Photo: Creative Commons under license CC BY-SA 3.0
This post was brought to you by Amy, currently studying Russian at Liden & Denz
