August 02, 2023

Street Artist Detained at Moscow Airport


Street Artist Detained at Moscow Airport
Street artist Philippenzo standing in front of his oeuvre. Philippenzo, Instagram.

Street artist Philipp "Philippenzo" Kolzov was arrested at Moscow's Domodedovo airport for "disobedience" and sentenced to 15 days in prison by a local court. The painter is known for his anti-war murals.

The artist has expressed opposition to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in his work and has been persecuted for it. After painting the mural "Our Zinc," which features paintings of coffins, and posting the image to Instagram on Victory Day, he was fined. Volgograd courts also sentenced him three times for "discrediting the army" for his reposts of anti-war images.

On June 12, Russia Day, Philippenzo published a painting of a coat of arms and an inscription that read "Изроссилование" ("Exfoliation," which is uncomfortably close to the words россилованье - Russification, and изнасилование – rape) located under the Elektrozavodsky Bridge in Moscow. Shortly afterward, the police knocked on his door, and he soon decided to leave Russia.

Kolzov was returning from Georgia when FSB officers pulled him aside for questioning in the airport's passport control zone. The authorities asked him why he had left Russia and demanded access to his belongings. Kolzov refused, as he is allowed to do so by law. The FSB handed him over to the police, who took him to a detention center.

In an interview with Meduza before his arrest, the artist said that "Actual street art is always illegal."

 

 

You Might Also Like

Flagpole Ripper
  • April 13, 2023

Flagpole Ripper

A man was arrested for tearing down a Russian flag at a police department.
A Sanctioned Flight
  • April 10, 2023

A Sanctioned Flight

Journalists discovered a scheme in which a Russian entrepreneur bought planes in the EU, bypassing sanctions.
Don't Wear a White Coat
  • March 19, 2023

Don't Wear a White Coat

An art group in St. Petersburg put up a sculpture criticizing Russian society's blind-sightedness on the war.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

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 Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Russian Rules

Russian 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.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
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.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.

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
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955