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In Brief
Man Casually Steals Painting from Moscow Gallery in Broad Daylight [UPDATED]
Unsuspecting visitors apparently mistook the thief for a gallery employee.
Russia
In Brief
Russia Strengthens Saudi Ties with Offer of a Kandinsky Exhibition, while Prominent Architects Bow Out of $500B Saudi Megacity
Saudi Arabia's financial prominence in the arts has been under active evaluation in the weeks following journalist Jamal Khashoggi's disappearance.
In Brief
As US Rules for Asbestos Are Sidestepped, a Russian Manufacturer Emblazons Trump's Face on Their Shipments
There were at least two things Americans should have banned outright in the 1970s when they had the chance: asbestos and Donald Trump.
Books
The Dynamic Soviet Film Posters of the 1920s and '30s
Susan Pack's Film Posters of the Russian Avant-Garde celebrates the experimental film posters from the pre-Stalin Soviet Union.
Art
Aesthetic Interference: On Those Photos from Ankara
I don’t just see the images as documents of atrocity. I also see them as aesthetic, and that doesn’t sit easily. Indeed, it feels immoral. It feels wrong.
In Brief
Russian Ambassador to Turkey Assassinated at Art Opening in Ankara
Ambassador Andrey Karlov was killed by an off-duty police officer who, after firing the fatal shots, shouted, "Don’t forget Aleppo. Don’t forget Syria."
In Brief
Russians Vote to Dress Up “David” Replica to Appease Local Prudes
St. Petersburg residents will vote on how to dress a replica statue of Michelangelo's "David" that came to the city in May, following a complaint from a woman who said his nudity "spoils the city's historic appearance and warps children's souls."
Film
An Artist's Quest to Confirm a Chernobyl Conspiracy Theory
The Russian Woodpecker is a documentary about zombies.
News
Discovery in a Cathedral Attic Suggests Birds Are the Best Archivists
Archaeologists restoring a cathedral in Zvenigorod, an old town 40 miles west of Moscow, recently stumbled upon stacks of centuries-old documents hoarded by an unexpected breed of collectors: birds.
News
Major Russian Gallery Forced to Close After Supporting Political Prisoners
A legendary Russian gallery is being evicted after holding a charity event supporting political prisoners.
In Brief
Dissident Artist Convinces Russian Detective to Quit His Job
A Russian police investigator interrogates a detained political artist, with the end result being that the detective — his eyes opened to the state’s abuses of power — renounces his badge.
News
Soviet Symbols Going Up and Coming Down
It’s been nearly a quarter century since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, but the physical reminders of Central and Eastern Europe’s communist past are still provoking controversy.