- Hardcover: 240 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd; 1987 Edition edition (5 Jan 1988)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0002179695
- ISBN-13: 978-0002179690
- Product Dimensions: 35.8 x 26.2 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 630,147 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Synopsis
More than three hundred photographs visually survey the diversity of Russian landscapes and cityscapes and depict routine daily life throughout the Soviet Union.
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Mariva Gerasimenko herds her geese at Poltava's Druzhba (Friendship) Horse Farm in Ukraine. Read the first page
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Format:Hardcover
It was more than 20 years ago when 100 photographers, 50 from the West, 50 from the then "Eastern bloc" were permitted to capture the everyday life of an empire that in a very few years would no longer exist. The day chosen was May 15, 1987, certainly judicious in terms of the time of year, when much of the country, though not all, as the pictures clearly showed, has finally shed its blankets of snow. "One day in the life of..." is a highly successful format, which seems to capture the essence of a particular country, in its time and place. The project was conceived, and executed by Rick Smolan. Although he does not mention any restrictions placed on the photographers- and I'm sure there must have been some, including taking pictures of the vast military installations- they seemed to have had unprecedented freedom, no doubt part of the "glasnost" era, Gorbachev's efforts at opening up a very closed society, in an unsuccessful effort to save it. He is in one of the photographs.
Portraits of Lenin in the background abound, and smiles on the people are rare. All the photographs have a fine technical quality to them, and the selections seems to be quite representative. Numerous ones were taken in places that are now a country separate from Russia. Particularly arresting is the one taken in the Ferghana Valley of what is now Kirghizstan, where a 61-year old man holds a white goshawk, used in hunting, while seated on a horse, with a backdrop of white birch trees. Likewise, there is an impressive farm landscape, with the black earth, and the birch trees with their early lime-green leaves, in an area near the Chinese border. Along with pastoral beauty, demonstrators advocating various social issues, from Jewish emigration, stopping alcohol production, to peace demonstrators are shown. The range of the 12-time zones of the empire is shown captured by the vivaciousness of showgirls in a Vilnius nightclub to the Eskimo children skipping stones on the Bering Straits. The continuing power of religion in this officially atheist country is captured in the grim, bearded countenances of Orthodox bishops, through a woman enveloped in black, who would appear to be Muslim but is actually a sister in the Orthodox faith. There are also very real Muslims praying in Samarkand, and a Jew praying in Tbilisi, Georgia. Collages of men and woman also punctuate the book, the most arresting are the survivors of the "Great Patriotic War" as the Soviet Union's fight against Germany during World War II was known. Each is bedecked, and quite proud of his/her medals.
My family and I were able to drive through the Soviet Union for 30 days only a bit more than three years after these photos were taken. The selection of these for the book looks most authentic to us, compared with our own experience. We had no idea how soon the empire would be dissolved, and most likely neither did these photographers.
(Note: Review first published at Amazon, USA, on April 30, 2009)
Portraits of Lenin in the background abound, and smiles on the people are rare. All the photographs have a fine technical quality to them, and the selections seems to be quite representative. Numerous ones were taken in places that are now a country separate from Russia. Particularly arresting is the one taken in the Ferghana Valley of what is now Kirghizstan, where a 61-year old man holds a white goshawk, used in hunting, while seated on a horse, with a backdrop of white birch trees. Likewise, there is an impressive farm landscape, with the black earth, and the birch trees with their early lime-green leaves, in an area near the Chinese border. Along with pastoral beauty, demonstrators advocating various social issues, from Jewish emigration, stopping alcohol production, to peace demonstrators are shown. The range of the 12-time zones of the empire is shown captured by the vivaciousness of showgirls in a Vilnius nightclub to the Eskimo children skipping stones on the Bering Straits. The continuing power of religion in this officially atheist country is captured in the grim, bearded countenances of Orthodox bishops, through a woman enveloped in black, who would appear to be Muslim but is actually a sister in the Orthodox faith. There are also very real Muslims praying in Samarkand, and a Jew praying in Tbilisi, Georgia. Collages of men and woman also punctuate the book, the most arresting are the survivors of the "Great Patriotic War" as the Soviet Union's fight against Germany during World War II was known. Each is bedecked, and quite proud of his/her medals.
My family and I were able to drive through the Soviet Union for 30 days only a bit more than three years after these photos were taken. The selection of these for the book looks most authentic to us, compared with our own experience. We had no idea how soon the empire would be dissolved, and most likely neither did these photographers.
(Note: Review first published at Amazon, USA, on April 30, 2009)
Format:Hardcover
An excellent insight into the old Soviet Union. Quite fascinating to see what it was really like in those days when they were just entering glasnost/perestroika (hence one might say this book was even allowed). Recommended for the Russophile without hesitation (although I expect many have already seen).
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
When somebody told me about this book, I wanted to buy it immediately, as I was interested to see what the Soviet country looked like years ago. And when I bought it I was really surprised that such a friendly album was published here in the West! This is also an excellent present for your friends who is interested in the Soviet Union.
If you look at the massive numbers of books about the Soviet Union, published since the country appeared, you will notice how unfriendly these books are. Soviet people in them are always portrayed as victims or slaves, who didn't see normal life, weren't happy, creative or humorous. This album is full of very good quality photographs showing the Soviet Union and its people as you would see them in the end of 80's, just 10 years before the Soviet Union disappeared, so you would have a very true picture of the country that is now vanished.
One has to understand that this sort of album wouldn't be allowed to appear now, when the Soviet Union supposed to be again shown to us as an eternally dark and awful place. It was a very brief period when during Gorbachev's time the West was allowed to portray the Soviet Union in a different light - for the first time its people were shown smiling, working and generally enjoying their lives. This album shows you a true Soviet face - great book, apart from a very few antisoviet remarks. They were I suppose a necessary addition for the book to be allowed to appear in the US...
Julia Hawkins, UK
If you look at the massive numbers of books about the Soviet Union, published since the country appeared, you will notice how unfriendly these books are. Soviet people in them are always portrayed as victims or slaves, who didn't see normal life, weren't happy, creative or humorous. This album is full of very good quality photographs showing the Soviet Union and its people as you would see them in the end of 80's, just 10 years before the Soviet Union disappeared, so you would have a very true picture of the country that is now vanished.
One has to understand that this sort of album wouldn't be allowed to appear now, when the Soviet Union supposed to be again shown to us as an eternally dark and awful place. It was a very brief period when during Gorbachev's time the West was allowed to portray the Soviet Union in a different light - for the first time its people were shown smiling, working and generally enjoying their lives. This album shows you a true Soviet face - great book, apart from a very few antisoviet remarks. They were I suppose a necessary addition for the book to be allowed to appear in the US...
Julia Hawkins, UK
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