Forbidden art & forbidden ways of life

• St. Petersburg

  For a project called «Pas de Deux», three illustrators from Russia and four from Switzerland were invited to meet for an intercultural exchange. It is a cooperation of Fumetto Comix-Festival, Strapazin and Boomfest and is sponsored by Pro Helvetia. The first stage takes place at the Boom Comic-Festival in St. Petersburg. It is about getting to know one another and settling on a mutual topic. The results are presented as an exhibition at Fumetto in March 2015 and in September at Boomfest in St. Petersburg. In addition, Strapazin publishes two issues, one as an exhibition catalogue and a second one in Russian for Boomfest.My partner is Viktoria Lomasko from Moscow. She works as a court sketch artist. She has accompanied the court proceedings "Forbidden art" and "Pussy Riot" with her drawings and has thus carried them out into the world. If you attentively watched Milo Rau’s movie about the Moscow court proceedings at Kinok you might have seen her with pencil and sketchbook. Our first meeting in the basement breakfast room is not all that easy. First of all, she does not speak much English and second, I sense her stubborn nature that seems to me an adaption to the living conditions here. She has come to St. Petersburg with a specific goal. She wants to visit the Queer-Festival that is also on at the moment to collect research material on the LGBT movement. I hardly have any choice but to join in on this topic, and to be honest, I would not have been so deeply interested in anything else. Through Vika, I get in touch with Gulya Sultanova, activist in the LGBT movement and organiser of Side by Side film festival. Vika quickly eats more fried potatoes and vanishes with a curt greeting.

  Together with Jana Jakoubek, Fumetto’s art director, I go to Gulya’s office. We are only there for a short time. Phones ring incessantly and people come in for short messages. The Queer-Festival has been disrupted and attacked by rightists right from the start. Ever since the new law against gay propaganda that wants to ban homosexuality from the public sphere was passed in 2013, Witaly Milonov’s people and clerical groups make no pretence of their violent action. The festival’s opening was interrupted by a fictional bomb scare. Security and police pushed peaceful visitors into rooms and sprayed gas. Many had to throw up. From now on, people only get information about the time and place of future events via text messages. Still, it is a very openhearted meeting with Gulya, who is an unbelievably optimistic fighter. It is still uncertain whether her own queer film festival called Bok o Bok in Russian, Hip to Hip in English, will take place in November.

• Fuck religion! Fuck the police! Fuck everything!

  For a start, I visit comic exhibitions where I find myself back in my world. I get footsore in this huge city. I also make it to Manifesta, a European biennale for contemporary art. I am a little disappointed about the cordoning off of Maria Lassnig’s exhibition. I am not surprised, though, the provocative paintings of the Viennese artist must have fallen victim to the censors. I get a text message and go the place where where a queer reading takes place. There is a police task force in front of the building and nasty guys in black suits flank the entrance. I take courage and go in. There is an exited and happy atmosphere in the hall. The colourful crowd is contagious with their spirit of optimism. An author holds a one-hour speech, in Russian! Of course, I do not understand a word, but her intensity and expressive way of speaking get me. Luckily, I have my sketchbook with me. Vika is not there. I only meet her again the next morning at breakfast. I have tried for a few words in Russian and she is glad I went to the reading. The ice seems broken. That evening, I go to a discussion about art and censorship. Manifesta-organisers, queer people, artists and Vika are part of the group. Coincidentally, there is a German translator behind me, so this time, I understand more. In the end, a young woman enters the stage: “I have an update. Our friends are waiting outside; we have to clarify what is going on. Please only leave the building in groups, it is a survival strategy.” She says this with a smile on her face.

  That evening, I go to dinner with Vika and her friends at one of the many canteens. More activists from Moscow have arrived. They tell me about conflicts within leftist groups at the peace demonstration for Ukraine in Moscow. There are so many things here I do not understand. I am happy and ashamed to live in Switzerland. Later, we go to Infinity Club. It is the Queer Festival’s climax with concerts and DJs. „W zhopu religiju! W zhopu poliziu! W zhopu wsjo! Fuck religion! Fuck the police! Fuck everything!“ That is how the second band opens their gig. Of course, there are unpleasant watchdogs in every corner. Just now, we do not let them bother us. On the dance floor, Vika and I draw in our sketchbooks what happens around us. I have never done that before. Spasibo Vika.

  I do go to Boom once more. Several interesting comic readings are on the agenda. I immediately book Aisha Franz for Wortlaut festival. I talk to Dima, Dimitry Yakolev, Boom-Festival’s curator, about the exhibition next year. He says he does not want to bow to censorship. If necessary, they will put “18+”-stickers everywhere (it is prohibited for people under 18 to visit the event). Obviously, his work and Boom-Festival are also threatened.

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