Ruth Maclennan's 2022 FVU-commissioned film A Forest Tale features as part of the Pushkin House Book Prize Festival on Saturday 26 September, 11—12:30 PM. The film screens as part of the panel-event 'Russia's Forests: Life and Culture Among the Trees'.
About the event
What does the forest mean in Russia? This panel discussion will explore the centrality of the forest in Russian culture, from the starting point of Sophie Pinkham’s shortlisted book The Oak and the Larch: A Forest History of Russia and its Empires.
The Oak and the Larch tells a multifaceted history that moves from Stone Age Siberia to today’s Russia. One thread running through the book is the forest’s place in culture – from folklore to film, from Tolstoy to Shalamov. The forest is a prism through which to explore questions about society and power; it is a symbol of tradition, identity, and life itself.
Pinkham will be joined by Director of Pushkin House, Elena Sudakova, who will reflect on the forest in contemporary art – particularly the concept of the “inner forest” (внутренний лес) – and artist Ruth Maclennan, whose most recent short film, A Forest Tale, depicts a small community in the taiga forests around Arkhangelsk. The panel will be moderated by poet, translator and judge of this year’s Book Prize Sasha Dugdale, and will also include a screening of A Forest Tale.
--
Co-commissioned by Film and Video Umbrella and Arctic Art Institute. FVU is supported using public funding by Arts Council England.
