Solomon Volkov, culturologist, interlocutor of Brodsky and Shostakovich, wrote his «History» for foreigners. And since the Russian reader is imperceptibly becoming more and more a foreigner in his own culture, the translation of this book into Russian is perfectly appropriate.
Solomon Volkov, culturologist, interlocutor of Brodsky and Shostakovich, wrote his «History» for foreigners. And since the Russian reader is imperceptibly becoming more and more a foreigner in his own culture, the translation of this book into Russian is perfectly appropriate. Moreover, Volkov considers the 300-year-old Russian culture of the Romanov era from an unexpected perspective — through the prism of political history. By the end of the book, it turns out that none of those who were engaged in art in Russia could avoid relations with the authorities. The «underground» did not exist during the time of the Romanovs, even the texts distributed in the lists, «samizdat», became part of the mainstream. This, however, is only one of the conclusions to which this free work, full of little-known information, sharp observations and rather bold comparisons, pushes — in the final chapter, for example, the attitude to art of Nicholas II and Lenin is compared.
EKSMO, 320 p.