Art and emotions

[Josh Wilson]

>From the SRAS Encyclopedia: http://www.sras.org/news2.phtml?m=445


"Beware, Religion!"      back to table of contents

"Beware, Religion!" ("Осторожно, религия!") was an art exhibition at the
Sakharov Center in Moscow, named for Andrei Sakharov, the nuclear physicist
turned human rights champion of the Soviet era. The center's director, Yuri
Samodurov, stated that the display was supposed to call for respect for
faiths and believers but also to warn against religious fundamentalism and
religious encroachments on the state. He asserted that the subject was
timely as the Orthodox Church is beginning to wield substantial political
power. Among the exhibits was a painting of Jesus next to a Coca Cola symbol
and the words "This is My Blood." A few days after the opening, it was
vandalized by a group claiming it offended their religion (Christianity). In
the investigation, largely at the behest of the Orthodox Patriarch, the
group was not charged but rather Samodurov, his assistant Ludmila
Veselovskaya, and artist Anna Michaltshuk were arrested on charges of
inciting religious hatred, which carries a maximum prison sentence of five
years under Russian law. The judge ruled that Smodurov and Veselovskay had
knowingly staged a "frankly humiliating and sacrilegious exposition carrying
a blasphemous and cynical character" and fined each of them 100,000 RUR
(about a half a year's wage for an average Muscovite). Michaltshuk was found
innocent. The prosecution had also called for the offending artworks to be
destroyed, but the court did not include this in its ruling.
    Positions on the case (in Russian)
    Review of the exhibit (in Russian)


Also:

Murat Guelman has been physically attacked and his gallery has also been
vandalized several times by Russians offended by the art he displays
there... 

JW

Josh Wilson
Asst. Director
The School of Russian and Asian Studies
Editor-in-Chief
Vestnik, The Journal of Russian and Asian Studies
www.sras.org
jwilson at sras.org

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------