Saint P with me

06/08/2021

Friends, while I’m here in Kalmykia, I’d like to do some videos about my homeland.
There’s the first video in English about one of the sculptures we have in Elista. I did an interview with a Japanese sculptor! His name is Tamaki Yamanaka. I hope you’ll enjoy it!

That was a dream of mine to take interviews.

everyone! Let me tell you a story. I was preparing for a video about sculptures in Elista ...

07/11/2020

On the night of 25-26 October (7-8 November NS) the Bolsheviks seized control of Petrograd by arresting the Provisional Government that quartered in the Winter Palace.

Since 1915, the Winter Palace had been a hospital for wounded soldiers. The palace at that time wasn't a palace anymore. Nicholas II and his family were already prisoners of the Provisional Government and kept in Tobolsk.

The storm of the Winter Palace was not as epic as it was shown by Sergei Eisenstein in his film October: Ten Days That Shook the World.

The Provisional Government occupied only a few rooms - these were once the personal chambers of the imperial family - the Library of Nicholas II, the Malachite Drawing room, and the Small Dining room.

It took some time for the Guards of the Red Army to find these rooms. The Provisional Government was arrested without firing shots. Meanwhile, Alexander Kerensky left the Winter Palace in his car but earlier that day. In June 1918 he left Russia.

01/06/2020

My mom has an incredible home library. Recently I was going through some of the "History&Art" books and I've found a book about van Gogh's art. My grandfather gave it to my mother saying: " Read it. That's a book about a famous artist." And now it's my turn to read it. So, I'd like to share some of the paintings that resonated with my life. When I look at paintings I usually try to think about my feelings. I'm looking for symbolism, I'm trying to find a connection with my emotions and my reality.
⠀
There is a painting "the Lilac Bush" in the Rossi wing of the Hermitage. Honestly, I can't look at it for too long. That year, van Gogh was already in Saint-Remy and was being treated. Was he alright mentally when he painted this picture? That is my rhetorical question. For me, this picture is a swirl of color, total chaos. The chaos of blue color that makes you dizzy if you get closer. Even Pollock's " N5 " does not disturb me that much. I have an ambitious dream. I'd like to look at it in real life.
⠀
"Potato eaters" is my grandmother's favorite painting because of its' realism and sense of participation. My grandmother once described to me how they just like the peasants of the Dutch Nuenen gathered in the evening as a family to eat potatoes. It was in a small hut in one of the villages of the Krasnoyarsk region where the Kalmyks were exiled in December 1943. I love such pictures for its realism, for the wrinkles under the eyes of the peasants, for their puffiness and simple faces.
⠀
Van Gogh was dreaming of Japan in the spring of 1888, as I was in March of 2020. "Sprig of Flowering Almond in a Glass" turned out to be Japanese-ish. He used mostly pure colors, didn't add shadows, and the image became flat like in Japanese engravings. I arrived in Elista in March and enjoyed the fruit blossoming at our house. At the same time in March, I buried the idea of visiting Japan this year. Although on New Year's Eve I made a wish of going to Japan for a trip. I even watched Terrace House, trying to get to Japanese culture. The only connection that I have now with Japan is my mom's home-made Kombucha.
⠀

19/05/2020

I guess that you're already familiar with famous Easter eggs created for the ruling family of Russian Empire - the Romanovs. But I always wanted to write a post about my favourite and not famous pieces of art made at Faberge' workshop. They are so-called Objets de Fantaisie.
There is an outstanding item - Wild Pansy Flower. This particular piece of art is made of gold and covered in the most delicate polychrome enamel. The leaves are carved out of nephrite, and the mountain crystal glass is so marvelously crafted that it seems like actually contains water. It is the work of a workmaster Henrik Wigström, he was a Finnish silver & goldsmith, and one of the most important Fabergé workmasters along with Michael Perchin. I should note that Henrik Wigström and Michael Perchin were responsible for almost all the imperial Easter eggs.
Today we can call Carl Faberge - a mastermind, he was always one step ahead, a true trailblazer in the jewelry art. He was the first one who had an idea of creating such pieces of art for the 1900 Paris Exposition. But not everyone was so enthusiastic for the Fabergé flowers. For instance, a journalist who interviewed Carl Fabergé wrote in an article in a 1914 issue of the magazine Capital and Manor that he found them fragile and much too expensive: “Who buys such things? It’s money thrown to the wind!” The tsar’s jeweler retorted with dignity, “There are people who have grown fed up with diamonds and pearls, and it’s sometimes improper to give someone jewelry, but this sort of thing will do.”
And he was absolutely right! Wild Pansy Flower was the only one in the world that combines portraits and a special mechanism that allowed you to open the petals and show miniatures. This work was also presented to Alexandra Feodorovna. It was given to her by Nicholas II in 1904. The photos were of their children. Alexandra Fedorovna loved it. These flowers symbolize the affection of the one giving them for their beloved and were romantically called “Cupid’s delight.”

14/05/2020

There was a strange thing about me, I refused to put on jewelry on a regular basis. Mom gifted me a beautiful thread of pearls but I only wore it for a special occasion, e.g. visiting Mariinsky (opera and ballet theatre). Now, on the contrary, I want to dress up. But pearls are still associated with glamour, velvet dresses, rich women, and specifically with empresses. When I first started working as a guide, it was very difficult to remember the names of the wives of Russian emperors of the XIX century: Alexandra Feodorovna (husband Nicholas II), Maria Alexandrovna (husband Alexander II), Maria Feodorovna (husband Alexander III), Alexandra Feodorovna (Nicholas II). I began to read more about them, look at their lifetime portraits so that I could easily distinguish them by their face, and what did I find out? That they all love pearls! On ceremonial portraits of the Empresses, they just drown in pearls.

Pearls were plentiful in the country, mostly brought from the East. But there were also our local pearls, which were extracted in the Arkhangelsk province, the White sea is a source of freshwater pearls. Pearls were actively used in the decoration of icons, and, of course, as a decorative element in the decoration of hats and shoes.

At the end of the XIX century, pearls started to disappear. It was the fault of man (as usual): predatory production and changes in the environment. If earlier a rich merchant's wife from the Northern lands of the Russian Empire could easily buy a headdress studded with pearls, then at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries, the price of pearls began to grow by leaps and bounds. At some point pearls even won the competition among the jewelry.

In portraits of the XIX century, aristocrats adorn themselves with pearl threads, pearls look neat and elegant. But things were very different with the richest women in Russia. Tatiana and Zinaida Yusupov allowed themselves several rows of pearls and a diamond-pearl tiara. The cherry on the cake is the Pelegrina pearl (not to be confused with Elizabeth Taylor's Peregrine). For the history of jewelry, Francois Flemeng draws Zinaida Yusupova with a 33-carat pearl, which Felix Yusupov (the one who supposedly killed Rasputin) then successfully sold in 1953.

The Romanovs ' imperial lifestyle went off the scale so that the empresses were literally covered with pearls, Maria Feodorovna and Alexandra Feodorovna wore pearls almost as armor. Alexandra Feodorovna stood out especially, her love for pearls was expressed in millions of rubles. The purchase of pearls from the jewelry company "Karl Eduard Bolin" for 8 years equaled 500,000 rubles. Jaw-dropping price for that era! Please, keep in mind that the pre-revolutionary ruble in the current recalculation is 2,400 rubles or 30 USD.
I don't want to discuss corruption and where the Imperial jewels disappeared. I just want to say and remind you: wear your favorite jewelry, let them please you every day!

09/05/2020

Victory Day, 9th of May, is such an important day in Russia. Russian people and also people of the former USSR commemorate the defeat of N**i Germany in the II World War.
The Soviet Union lost 26 million people in the war, so that in every family there was at least one or two people died whether at the front line or other military actions and also starvation.

Today is the 75th anniversary of the Victory day. Time flies and there are less and less veterans of the II World War.

Victory Day and the memories associated with it create the impulse of national unity. From year to year on the Victory Day the whole nation unites whether just watching the parade on the Red Square, the fireworks, or participating in the Immortal Regiment procession. These are all rituals that gives us the idea of togetherness.

This year, due to the outbreak of Covid-19, people in Russia will stay at home.
⠀
#1945

17/04/2020

A LOT OF TOURUSTS ASK THIS QUESTION!

-Anna, what is your national souvenir?

I’m silent for 2 minutes while my brain works heavily because, honestly, there’s a huge variety of souvenirs from Russia. Matryoshka dolls, fur hats, icons, chocolate, Ivan tea, and etc.
But one souvenir that stand out is a cup made on Imperial Porcelain Factory in Saint Petersburg 💯
☕️ Established in 1744. That was the time when Chinese porcelain was so expensive and recipe for porcelain mass was kept in secrecy.
☕️Russian engineer (studied mettalurgy in Saxony) Dmitriy Vinogradov together with Michael Lomonosov invented the formula for the first Russian porcelain. It took him a while, 8 years 😱
☕️ IPM still works and have more than 1100 people, mostly women.
☕️ during the soviet period some of the authentic designs were created! Cobalt blue net design features thin blue lines of cobalt and 22-karat gold. It was created by Anna Yatskevich just after the II World War.
☕️ A coffee cup in an official shop in Saint Petersburg costs around 25-30 USD. I know that it’s more than a 3 dollar souvenir mug on a railway station. But let’s value authentic design and effort of hand made items. And one more thing: imagine yourself with a Porcelain cup of tea/coffee early in the morning vs a quick order in Starbucks in a paper cup that can’t even be recycled.
⠀

29/03/2020

📍The Peterhof complex (now it’s a small suburban town, 30 km from the city) is one of the most impressive landmarks in St Petersburg. It was originally constructed by 👑 Peter the Great, who intended it to be comfortably halfway between the navy base of Kronstadt and the newly founded capital St Petersburg.
⠀
These days, the complex comprises of two parts: The Upper Garden and the Lower Park with the stunning Big Palace. The Lower park is a huge area of total 102,5 hectares 😱. It is famous for its magnificent fountains boasting intricate designs and creative arrangements.
⠀
Peterhof is accessible by public transport, though I don’t recommend it, this can be tedious and confusing for speakers of languages other than Russian. The most efficient way of travelling to and from the site is to take the hydrofoil leaving from the Palace Embankment at convenient intervals. The journey each way will take about 40 minutes. Don’t forget that in case of a storm or strong wind 💨 , hydrofoils usually stop being operated. Need more details? Don’t hesitate and ask me ⤵️
⠀

23/03/2020

My top 3 recommendations for those who have some free time while quarantined! Stay strong, get inspired!
😘

WAR AND PEACE, 2016, BBC's adaptation of the classic Russian novel (a bit lengthy as some school children can say), written by Leo Tolstoy. It gives us the essence of the 19th-century life and fashion. It was filmed in Saint Petersburg mostly, so you'll see lavish interiors of former Imperial palaces and palaces of nobelity: the Winter Palace, Catherine's palace in Tsar's Village, Yusupov Palace and nowadays Russian Museum. P.S. There's also War and Peace shot in 1972 starring Anthony Hopkins as Pierre Bezukhov.

THE AMERICANS (2013-2018), it's an American 6 season tv series. It is about a family of the Soviet spies who were moved to America and pretended to be a normal American family while spying on the FBI, CIA and the US government. Definetely, it's a binge-worthy series with great writing, characters and acting.

The Barber of Siberia (1998)
Screened at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival, The Barber of Siberia is a co-production of award-winning director Nikita Mikhalkov and Michel Seydoux. Set against a backdrop of Tsarist Russia, the story follows a flashback of an American woman’s travels to Moscow. Ultimately, this is a great costume drama about the tragedy of romance and the determination of the human condition in spite of individual transgressions and the ferocity of the surrounding Siberian landscape.

17/03/2020

Here are some Soviet posters showing how to live during the epidemic of flu.
Rule #1 wash your hands with soap!
Rule #2 fresh air !
Rule #3 clean your apartment

And top rule right now - less crowded places, less panic! Eat well, do some yoga 🧘‍♀️

Sending love and support to people out there!

13/03/2020