2023-07-28 19:48:52
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Against the backdrop of the summit in St. Petersburg outlined the contours of cultural interaction with the Black Continent
St. Petersburg is hosting the second summit of African countries, which is designed to show that Russia has headed south. The President promises free grain, assistance in strengthening the sovereignty of African countries, Africa should become one of Russia’s key partners in the new world order, so we will cooperate in all areas, not excluding cultural ones. Culture will become a “bridge” through which relationships will be strengthened, and they are already being built. MK assessed what projects they managed to build for the African summit.
Shortly before the African summit in St. Petersburg, it was announced that the building of the former NCCA (National Center for Contemporary Art) at the Zoological Museum would be converted into an African Museum. Once this place was the epicenter of contemporary art in Russia, but in 2016 the NCCA was actually destroyed as an institution and became part of ROSIZO. And in 2020, the building was transferred to the Pushkin Museum. Now the ex-director of the Pushkin Museum, Marina Loshak, then promised that the building on the Zoological Museum was waiting for a new life, the center would become even larger, however, something went wrong. The center at that time had been under reconstruction for several years, which was promised to be completed in 2022, but the work was delayed. Now what has been done (if done) will be remade for the African format. It is reported that the conversion will take one and a half to two years. What – after all the adventures with the NCCA – is almost unbelievable. But here the gesture was important: the very announcement of the creation of a separate museum dedicated to Africa.
A series of exhibitions that opened in different regions of Russia is also a gesture. What have you done? The Yaroslavl Art Museum opened the exhibition “Magic of Africa”, which presents works from the collection of Eddie Novarro (1925–2003), a photographer, traveler and collector. The exposition includes masks, sculptures and household items from the first half of the 20th century from the countries of Central and West Africa. In the Museum of the East – a project from the “Sense of Color” funds. The exhibition is dedicated to the most famous art school of the Black Continent – the Poto-Poto School of Painting, founded by the French artist and ethnographer Pierre Lods in Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo) in 1951.
On July 27, the chamber project “Beauty as Rhythm” opened at the Hermitage’s General Staff Building, presenting five wooden female figures from three different African cultures – Dan, Bamana and Mosi. Such sculptures had both aesthetic and magical significance.
The most important and largest exhibition was organized in the St. Petersburg Manege. “Inverted Safari” is the first attempt to show the Russian audience the contemporary art of Africa in all its diversity. The project represents the main artistic currents of the contemporary art of the Black Continent, which have been developing over the past 60 years. The exposition includes works by 49 African and 14 Russian artists, in total – more than 300 exhibits. Forum participants can visit it freely by presenting a badge. African guests were taken here on an excursion before a reception with the governor of St. Petersburg.
Another exhibition opened on July 28 at the St. Petersburg Museum and Exhibition Center “Russia – My History”. It was called “Petersburg – Africa. Contours of interaction”. Here the emphasis is on the history of diplomatic relations – from the African ancestor of Alexander Pushkin, Abram Hannibal, to the present day. In a word, in culture, as in politics, the contours of interaction indicated in the title of the project are being gently but concretely outlined, which, as always happens, will be outlined more clearly with time.
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