Art for a wintry day

The city’s museums and galleries have started 2012 with a bang.

By Tatyana Sochiva

The St. Petersburg Times

Published: January 25, 2012 (Issue # 1692)

FOR SPT One of the photos on show at National Geographic’s ‘One Hundred Wonders of the World’ exhibit.

As the mercury finally plummets to more usual St. Petersburg winter temperatures, the city’s museums and galleries have come up with plenty of indoor entertainment.

Back at the end of last year, the city’s Artillery Museum unveiled an exhibition titled “Weapons of the East in the 16th to 19th Centuries.”

Despite the fact that the museum is home to the largest collection in Russia of eastern weapons from the 18th century, the last time a similar exhibition was held — devoted to the traditional weapons of Turkey, Iran, the Caucasus, China and Japan — was in the 1930s, some 70 years ago.

The current exhibit consists of the most interesting and typical examples of weapons, firearms and armor used in Eastern countries. Most of the objects in the exhibition are on display for the first time. The collection details many different cultural aspects of North Africa, Turkey, the Balkans, Iran, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Afghanistan, India, Nepal, Indonesia, China, Tibet and Japan.

While some may already have an idea of the shape of a saber blade, dagger, or samurai sword, the Artillery Museum offers visitors the opportunity to learn far more. The items on show include a kris, famous for its distinctive wavy blade, a zulfiqar, a sword with a blade that splits into two parts that was reportedly once given by the Prophet Muhammad to the Islamic leader Ali, and a sword with large teeth on the blade, used more to scare the enemy than to kill them.

The exhibit has also brought together weapons used as ritual or ceremonial objects and as indicators of high social status. A large number of showpieces belonged to royal families or were created by renowned craftsmen.

The weapons are decorated with silver, turquoise, and coral and are impressive not only for their deadly power, but also for their beautiful, complex and exotic patterns. The exhibition is therefore not only historically informative, but also highlights the craftsmanship put into each piece.

Over on the other side of the Neva is a photography exhibit that offers just as much insight into other lands. “One Hundred Wonders of the World” showcases National Geographic USA’s Gold Collection: Unusual, exotic and consistently spectacular images from all over the planet. One hundred pictures from the 35,000 photos included in the magazine’s gold collection were selected to be part of the exhibit at the Perinnie Ryadi art center, which last year hosted a National Geographic photography exhibition entitled “The Wildlife of Botswana.”

The organizers’ main goal is to capture all of the Earth’s amazing phenomena, encompassing people and animals, the underwater and terrestrial world, and natural and urban landscapes. These elements are often photographed together, creating a harmonious whole. The exhibit strives to show that mankind and its creations exist as an integral part of nature.

The photos selected were judged by organizers to be the most beautiful and the ones that depict the most exciting stories.

The Sigmund Freud Museum of Dreams, in the meantime, is hosting a photo exhibit that is in sharp contrast to that above in terms of its artistic features and concept. Yelena Elbe’s fourth exhibit to be held at the Freud museum is entitled “Ghosts” and focuses on exploring memory, personal feelings and loss through photo.

Eastern armor and weapons.

“With pain come ghosts. Ghosts are not only the people that we lost; they are also lost feelings, pain from our childhood that returns to us when we are adults,” said Yekaterina Sintsova, the exhibit’s curator.

The photographer, who appears in her own works, believes that we create ghosts through sorrow.

Elbe does not use Photoshop or any other photography programs, and all of the colors captured in the pictures are natural. She often uses mirrors for layering and transparency effects.

“I am interested in reflections, because self-awareness begins from the moment we look at ourselves,” said Elbe. “My work is a kind of therapy. As for the ghosts, it looks like they were circling around me and I could not help but take photos of them,” she added.

Elbe was born in St. Petersburg, but has exhibited her work in the U.S. and Europe. In Russia, her work can also be seen at St. Petersburg’s Marina Gisich gallery, as well as at the Winzavod Center for Contemporary Art in Moscow.

“Weapons of the East in the 16th to 19th Centuries” runs through Oct. 30 at the Artillery Museum, 7 Alexandrovsky Park. Tel. 232 0296. M. Gorkovskaya.

“One Hundred Wonders of the World from National Geographic USA’s Gold Collection” runs through Feb. 26 at Perinnie Ryadi art center, 4 Dumskaya Ulitsa. Tel. 8 904 601 0000. M. Gostiny Dvor / Nevsky Prospekt.

“Ghosts” runs through Feb. 17 at the Sigmund Freud Museum of Dreams, 18a Bolshoi Prospekt, Petrograd Side. Tel. 456 2290. M. Sportivnaya.