Depicting the Convicts: The Museumification of Varlam Shalamov’s and Joseph Jugashvili’s Residences in Vologda

ABSTRACT

The article analyzes two regional museumified residences as well as the representation of the Stalinist era in these spaces. In today’s Russia, museums do not always present an obvious line of confrontation between pro-Stalinist and anti-Stalinist positions. The two analyzed museums, despite many differences, do not conflict with each other, but rather exist in different genres. The article offers an explanation for these differences and demonstrates how the exposition of one museum (Jugashvili’s residence) is embedded in a colorful, nationwide historical collage, while the other (Shalamov’s residence) has a much more distinct message and relies on the actions of enthusiasts.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation under Grant №19-78-10076.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. The official Internet page of the museum: vologda-gallery.ru.

2. Stalin stayed in the building between December 1911 and February 1912 (Esipov 2008, 10–11).

3. The official Internet page of the museum: vologdamuseum.ru.

4. The focus of this article is only on the exposition dedicated to the writer, not to the art display.

5. See an excellent article by Daniel and Flige (2013), about the nature of Russian expositions about the Gulag.

6. This article uses information provided by several participants in the museums’ development. They were all informed that the interviews were intended for a research article and that the conversation was being recorded. Nevertheless, I have decided to anonymize the four respondents whose statements I quote in the text. Instead of their names, I will use the following notation to identify them: (1) the “second director” [of the Exile in Vologda Museum]. It is worth saying that he is also a specialist in the oeuvre of Shalamov and a co-creator of exhibitions in the Shalamov House; (2) the “third director” [of the Exile in Vologda Museum]; (3) the “festival organizer”; and (4) the “founder of the website” on Shalamov. More precisely, he is one of the website’s creators. All interviews were conducted from August 2019 to March 2020.

7. See, for example, Sherlock (2007).

8. On the one hand, there is the creation in Moscow of a large-scale monument “The Wall of Sorrow,” with the participation of senior officials in its opening in 2017, and a significant expansion of the Gulag History Museum as well as its state subsidies. On the other hand, there is the conflict around the museumification of Perm-36, and the assignment of the status of a “foreign agent” to Memorial, the oldest and most influential non-governmental organization that preserves the memory of political repression. In general, we can agree with Daria Khlevnyuk that “while the state seems to be more interested in the glorification of the past, it doesn’t consistently follow the pro-Stalinist ideology” (Khlevnyuk 2019, 5). There are no clear manifestations of the will of the central government to museumify traces of Stalin’s life. Both Stalinism and anti-Stalinist positions are expressed in Russian society. But one can hardly speak of two close-knit groups with common agendas and ideas. Khlevnyuk’s (2019) analysis of the online activity of Russian pro-Stalinist groups clearly demonstrates that there are at least several communities that differ significantly in terms of ideas and problems, with little overlap with each other.

9. The general picture of the spread of correctional labor camps can be drawn by looking at the map on the website: gulagmap.ru/. On the Gulag system on the territory of the contemporary Vologda region, see Upadyshev (2007).

10. Mass migrations and the functioning of the Gulag system did not play as significant a role in the life of this region as they did, say, in the history of the Magadan region (still firmly associated with labor camps) or Kalmykia, where the majority of the population was deported on ethnic grounds. But the number of people whose lives were in one or another way affected by the repressions was still large enough. On dekulakization in the region, see Dobronozhenko (2008).

11. In Russian it is usually called “domik Stalina” (not “dom”), with “domik” denoting a kind of small house, or even a hut.

12. Its holdings were transferred into the local history museum named after Maria Ilyinichna Ulianova (Lenin’s sister), whereas the building was given to the regional Society for the Preservation of Historical and Cultural Monuments (Tarunin 1995, 8).

13. However, the restoration work was probably not completed.

14. “J.V. Stalin resided in exile in this house from December 1911 to February 1912” (V Vologde uvekovechat 2005, 17).

15. Including: Nikolai Berdiaev, Anatolii Lunacharskii, Aleksandr Bogdanov, Vladimir Korolenko, Viacheslav Molotov, Boris Savinkov.

16. “In the summer of 1989, I again visited Vologda, worked in the Vologda archives in order to understand a little about V[arlam] T[ihonovich]” (Sirotinskaia 2006).

17. The author of the film is Valerii Esipov, a journalist and active researcher of Shalamov’s legacy.

18. Sirotinskaia was an employee of the TsGALI (Central State Archive of Literature and Art).

19. In any case, this is exactly what the museum’s second director stated in an interview with the author of this article: “She herself found Sirotinskaia.”

20. Vorono’s personal interest in Shalamov was probably formed in the pre-Perestroika period. (Sazonov and Filatov 1999).

21. He is also the author of the monument to Varlam Shalamov at the Kuntsevo cemetery in Moscow, as well as sculptural portraits of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Andrei Platonov, Yurii Dombrovskii.

22. Today, it takes up more rooms than before: three.

23. The Shalamov display resulted from a collaboration between Marina Vorono and the Vologda journalist and Shalamov’s creative legacy researcher Valerii Esipov. The artist Oleg Pakhomov was involved in the decoration, as was the photo artist Sergei Donin.

24. A lot of detailed materials about the exposition (as well as on other exhibitions about Shalamov) and a few photographs can be found on the website shalamov.ru.

25. It was carried out by the museum’s research fellow R.A. Rozhina and designer A.V. Rozhina.

26. The authors were Liubov Kerbut, head of the Shalamov House at that time, the journalist and researcher of the writer’s work Valerii Esipov, the artist Sergei Evlev. Sergei Solovev and Anna Gavrilova, both based in Moscow, also took part in the creation of the new exposition. On these persons see: shalamov.ru.

27. As much as possible to judge based on the surviving photos and memories.

28. Shalamov described his childhood impressions of contemplating these murals in the Fourth Vologda.

29. The second museum director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

30. As opposed to the second museum director, who is older.

31. The founder of the website about Shalamov (2020, January 27, personal communication).

32. Analogies with the writer’s memories are possible here, but probably not obvious to most viewers. For example, with a copy of a realistic painting of Christ, which the writer’s father used for prayer.

33. The authorship of the picture, from which the reproduction was made, is unknown today.

34. From Shalamov’s poem “Raised by a Million Hands.”

35. A very thoughtfully put together biographical part of the display touches upon the lack of religiosity Shalamov frequently declared. The author claimed to have lost religious faith in his childhood.

36. One of the key recurring visual elements of the exhibition are the grids.

37. A similar fate befell the museumified house where Stalin lived in Solevychegodsk (present-day Arkhangelsk region; in the pre-revolutionary period, part of the Vologda province). In 1962, the house lost the name of the Soviet leader and was transformed into a Solevychegodsk Museum-Monument of Political Exile. It continues to function today as a museum of political exile.

38. The museum’s third director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

39. Here, as before, I do not touch upon the activities of the actual fine art part of the Shalamov House exposition and related events.

40. Usually tied to the anniversaries of the writer’s death and birth—January 17 and June 18, respectively.

41. The second director of the museum (2019, October 15, personal communication).

42. Only a long while later did it grow to take up three rooms, but even now it does not occupy all the rooms that the family of the priest Tikhon Shalamov used to have before the revolution (four).

43. The expedition had no funds, only a donation for the airfare of one person. Even though the original purpose of the trip was to make a documentary, there was no money for a cameraman. Nevertheless, the journalist (the second director) managed to make this trip by relying on people’s goodwill and certain “barter” mechanisms. See Shalamov.ru (2020b).

44. Apart from academic events, the festivals included movie screenings, photo shows, theater performances, and similar.

45. The festival organizer (2020, March 10, personal interview).

46. On Stalin’s birthday on December 21 and on the anniversary of his death on March 5.

47. “Sut’ vremeni” (Essence of Time) is a movement based on a mixture of Russian patriotic and socialist/communist ideas.

48. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

49. The museum’s third director (2019, October 15, personal communication).

50. This article was written is the first half of 2020.

51. The museum’s third director (2019, October 15, personal communication).

52. You can watch the video of the performance here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5318HoFG2c&t=524s.

53. A traditional symbol of great princely power in the Muscovite state.

54. The question arises from the commentary to Pushkin’s line: “and in my eyes are children dripping with blood.”

55. He is the author of a number of songs to poems by Shalamov and a participant in the evenings in the Shalamov house.

56. The earlier script does not have this phrase. The final choice was probably made in favor of a more distinct didactic version.

57. The original script contains more songs, including “Comrade Stalin, you are a great scientist” by Yuz Aleshkovskii.

58. From the script of the play, stored in the archive of its author.

59. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

60. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

61. The museum’s third director (2019, October 15, personal communication).

62. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

63. The museum’s third director (2019, October 15, personal communication).

64. Interview with the museum’s third director (2019, October 15, personal communication).

65. Interview with the museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

66. Interview with the museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

67. 04.26.2014, signed by Olga Sergeeva.

68. 03.01.2014, signed by T.N. Ovchinnikova.

69. 01.03.2010, signed by Tatiana Riabtseva.

70. 10.01.2010, signed by Yurii Andreevich Ryzhov.

71. “It is good that there was an opportunity for people with different points of view to express themselves on the personality of J.V. Stalin, on his role in history.” 03.01.2014, signed by a team of the veteran organization “Friendship.”

72. That is, supporters of one of the leaders of the Russian opposition, Aleksei Navalny.

73. The festival organizer (2020, March 10, personal interview).

74. He spoke about the high-profile political case of the “Network,” mentioned “the cynicism of Russian history repeating itself,” and said that “what is happening now is similar to the ’20s, but still not the same” (the festival organizer [2020, March 10, personal interview]).

75. A quotation from a song by Vladimir Vysotskii.

76. The founder of the website about Shalamov (2020, January 27, personal communication).

77. If we talk about politicians from a recent past.

78. These formulae exist only in the Russian translation of the text—there is no published English version of the paper.

79. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).

80. The festival organizer (2020, March 10, personal communication).

81. The museum’s second director (2019, October 13, personal communication).