---------------------------- Original Message ---------------------------- Subject: Artinfo Digest, Vol 62, Issue 4 From: [email protected] Date: Sat, February 8, 2014 1:00 pm To: [email protected] --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1 Date: Fri, 7 Feb 2014 11:24:20 +0100 From: czegledy <[email protected]> (by way of Janos Sugar) Subject: [artinfo] Solzenistzyn, Gulag and the split of Pussy Riot To: [email protected] >Date: Fri, 7 Feb 2014 00:13:19 -0500 >From: Boryana Rossa <[email protected]> >Subject: [faces-l] Solzenistzyn, Gulag and the split of Pussy Riot > >Hi all, > >Just wanted to direct your attention to the recent statement of Pussy Riot >who split from Nadezda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alehina - the two girls who >are now in NYC celebrated as Pussy Riot. I think this is a real feminist >statement, actually embodying lots of my concerns I shared in discussion in >this list in 2011, and which some of you considered unjust and annoying. >Quoting Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and is not feminist, hanging out with >oligarch >Mikhail Khodorkovsky and using the "Gulag" stereotype is not left-wing, it >is right wing, so please next time pay a bit more attention to what local >people not CNN or Madona or even Yoko Ono thinks about Eastern European >politics and political figures (Zizek, who I still respect, is a careerist >and womanizer:) > >Finally, just want to remind you that Yekaterina Samutsevic, who was >released from prison, but is held in Russia, under the court sentence never >got an amnesty. She is not able to leave the country and also NOBODY talks >about her at all. But her statement in the court >http://nplusonemag.com/pussy-riot-closing-statementswas the most feminist, >the strongest political statement and the only right one: > >So here is the Pussy Riot letter in English: > >http://creativetimereports.org/2014/02/06/open-letter-pussy-riot/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=utm_content%3DADDutm_campaign%3DCTRsocial#russian > >The following letter by anonymous members of Pussy Riot was circulated this >morning, by email and via the collective's livejournal, shortly after >recently imprisoned Pussy Riot members Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda >Tolokonnikova performed at an Amnesty International benefit concert at >Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Referring to their two former >colleagues, the authors write, "We are no longer Nadia and Masha. They are >no longer Pussy Riot." Their letter is presented in full, unedited, below. >Pussy Riot will contribute a piece to Creative Time Reports shortly. > >To read Pussy Riot's open letter in Russian, click >here<http://creativetimereports.org/2014/02/06/open-letter-pussy-riot/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=utm_content%3DADDutm_campaign%3DCTRsocial#russian> >. > >- > >Dear friends and our supporters! > >In view of the current situation at the moment, we consider it our duty to >inform you our position: > >We, the anonymous members of Pussy Riot, would like to say many thanks to >all the people who have supported us all this time, those who demanded the >release of our members, those who sympathized with us and sympathized with >our ideology. We are very grateful to all of you, we deeply appreciate and >respect everyone who has contributed to the overall Pussy Riot campaign at >this difficult for us time. > >Our joint efforts were not in vain: Putin had to bend under the pressure of >the international community and let Nadia and Masha free. > >Thus, December 23rd was a real celebration for us - the Liberation Day of >prisoners of conscience and the real victory of the liberation of the >entire Pussy Riot. > >But the amnesty is certainly not the end of our dreams. We demand real >justice: the complete abolition of the verdict and the recognition of the >entire criminal case against Pussy Riot, illegitimate. > >We do hope that the justice will be restored on February 21 - the >anniversary of our teasing performance in the Christ the Savior Cathedral, >with the song "Mother of God, put Putin away!" > >We are very pleased with Masha's and Nadia's release. We are proud of their >resistance against harsh trials that fell to their lot, and their >determination by all means to continue the struggle that they had started >during their stay in the colonies. > >Unfortunately for us, they are being so carried away with the problems in >Russian prisons, that they completely forgot about the aspirations and >ideals of our group - feminism, separatist resistance, fight against >authoritarianism and personality cult, all of which, as a matter of fact, >was the cause for their unjust punishment. > >Now it is no secret that Masha and Nadia are no longer members of the >group, and they will no longer take part in radical actionism. Now they are >engaged in a new project. Now they are institutionalised advocates of >prisoners' rights. > >And as you know, such advocacy is hardly compatible with radical political >statements and provocative works of art, that raise controversial topics in >modern society. Just as gender-conformity is not compatible with radical >feminism. > >Institutionalised advocacy can hardly afford the critique of fundamental >norms and rules that underline the very mechanics of modern patriarchal >society. Being an institutional part of this society, such advocacy, can >hardly go beyond the rules set forth by this society. > >Yes, we lost two friends, two ideological fellow member, but the world has >acquired two brave, interesting, controversial human rights defenders - >fighters for the rights of the Russian prisoners. > >Unfortunately, we can not congratulate them with this in person, because >they refuse to have any contact with us. But we appreciate their choice and >sincerely wish them well in their new career. > >At the moment, we are witnessing an outrageous collision: > >While Nadia Masha are being the focus of media and the international >community, they gather crowds of journalists and people heed to their every >word, so far no one hears them. > >In almost every interview they repeat what they left the group, that they >are no longer Pussy Riot, that they act in their own names, that they will >no longer engage in radical art activities. However, the headlines are >still full of the group's name, all their public appearances are declared >as performances of Pussy Riot, and their personal withdrawal from Pussy >Riot is treated as termination of the entire collective, thus ignoring the >fact that at the pulpit and solea of Christ the Savior Church, there were >not two, but five women in balaclavas and the Red Square performance had >eight participants. > >The apotheosis of this misunderstanding was the public announcement by >Amnesty International of Masha's and Nadia's speech at a concert in >Barclays Center in New York, as the first legal performance of Pussy Riot. > >Moreover, instead of the names of Nadia and Masha, the poster of the event >showed a man in a balaclava with electric guitar, under the name of Pussy >Riot, while the organizers smartly called for people to buy expensive >tickets. > >All this is an extreme contradiction to the very principles of Pussy Riot >collective: > >We are all-female separatist collective - no man can represent us either on >a poster or in reality. > >We belong to leftist anti-capitalist ideology - we charge no fees for >viewing our art-work, all our videos are distributed freely on the web, the >spectators to our performances are always spontaneous passers by, and we >never sell tickets to our "shows." > >Our performances are always 'illegal,' staged only in unpredictable >locations and public places not designed for traditional entertainment. The >distribution of our clips is always through free and unrestricted media >channels. > >We are anonymous, because we act against any personality cult, against >hierarchies implied by appearance, age and other visible social attributes. >We cover our heads, because we oppose the very idea of using female face as >a trademark for promoting any sort of goods or services. > >The mixing of the rebel feminist punk image with the image of >institutionalised defenders of prisoners' rights, is harmful for us as >collective, as well as it is harmful for the new role that Nadia and Masha >have taken on. > >Hear them finally! > >Since it happened that Nadia and Masha chose not to be with us, please, >respect their choice. Remember, we are no longer Nadia and Masha. They are >no longer Pussy Riot. > >The campaign "Free Pussy Riot" is over. We, as art collective, have an >ethical right to preserve our art practice, our name and our visual >identity, distinct from other organisations. > >Anonymous members of Pussy Riot: >Garadja, Fara, Shaiba, Cat, Seraphima and Schumacher > > > >Boryana Rossa > >http://boryanarossa.com End of Artinfo Digest, Vol 62, Issue 4 ************************************** -- Oberliht, Young Artists Association http://oberliht.com . . . . . . . . . . . https://lists.idash.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/oberlist portal informational pentru arta si cultura din Moldova information gateway for arts and culture from Moldova _______________________________________________ oberlist mailing list [email protected] https://lists.idash.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/oberlist
