Leningrad Region



Leningrad Region

Name: Alexander Solo

Age: 39

Profession: Photographer

City: Leningrad Region. I live in Pikalyova.

How long have you been doing photography? What style or genre most interests you? Since childhood. In general, I studied to be an artist, but photography won out. I was too restless to be an artist. But for a photographer restlessness is a virtue.

Can you give us a short description of your city? Where is it located? What is it famous for? Pikalyova is located not far from the St. Petersburg-Vologda road. City-forming enterprises produce alumina and cement.

What is something about your city that only locals would know? In 2008, the cement factory was almost shut down; for a few months people did not receive their salaries. The local union did its job well and organized protest actions. The strikers closed the federal highway that passes near the city, and Putin came and sorted everything out. He is our benefactor. Now everyone in the city is staying put, do not want to leave, and believe that if something happens, Putin will come to their aid. But it's better to live without hope – it forces you to stir, to do something. Now the tendency is to act like this: as soon as there is a production downturn and people start to grumble, they send some people with briefcases, suddenly payrolls are paid and the factory has a state order. In order that there not be an uprising. But what comes of this? Does life get any better? If the factory is making things that no one wants to buy and the goverment forces someone to buy it? Does our life improve as a result?

Which places or sites are a must for someone to see if they visit your city? The ski path that runs along the city's edge. Despite the fact that smoke from smokestacks is visible from there, the air is clean.

The Firebird graffiti. Gleb Tyurin, a businessman and public figure who is committed to the city's development, brought in a famous graffiti artist and he did several paintings throughout the city. They promoted it all nicely; locals scratched their heads for a long time, grumbled and said it was money wasted; in short, they didn't have a clue why they needed it. But soon enough the entire city began to be covered with wall murals by local artists. These are definitely worth checking out.

Anything else you would like to add? I and some other photographers travel the country, and Leningrad Region in particular, in order to tell others about something that is interesting, alive, entertaining and Russian. We want to bring it to life, in order to prove that, first of all, there is something good in our country. Our project "Invisible Cities",  is a documentary project dedicated to Russian industrial towns. There are hundreds of cities in Russia, where life depends on the "city-forming" enterprise. There is a special word for these towns in Russian: моногород (monogorod), combining the words "single" and "town," meaning a single company town.

Personal photo website

Invisible Cities website

Invisible Cities Instagram: @monogoroda

 



Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
The Best of Russian Life

The Best of Russian Life

We culled through 15 years of Russian Life to select readers’ and editors’ favorite stories and biographies for inclusion in a special two-volume collection. Totalling over 1100 pages, these two volumes encompass some of the best writing we have published over the last two decades, and include the most timeless stories and biographies – those that can be read again and again.
Russia Rules

Russia Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Steppe / Степь

Steppe / Степь

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
PO Box 567
Montpelier VT 05601-0567

802-223-4955