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Suppressed By The Saviour - Hester den Boer - Exhibition, online visual stories and nonfiction book |
During the thirty year rule of Stalin millions of innocent citizens were imprisoned in the forced labour camps of the Gulag, exiled or excuted. Russia has never fully confronted this dark history.
Today, Putin’s regime glorifies the idea of a strong leader. Stalin is praised for leading the Soviet Union to victory over Nazi Germany. The fact that he was the architect of the Gulag is silenced or downplayed, and many Russians believe that the repression was necessary to maintain order in the country. Even the victims of Stalin’s 1924-1953 regime sometimes share this view on history.
For six months, photographer and journalist Hester den Boer travelled Siberia. She visited former Gulag campsites, interviewed victims of the Stalinist terror, met with historians- some under prosecution themselves – and talked to people who think Russia is in need of a strong leader like Stalin. In her project, she brings these opposing views together.
Suppressed by the Saviour provides insight into Russia’s past and the current climate of growing repression by means of an exhibition, a series of online visual stories and a nonfiction book.
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Online visual stories in 8 episodes |
Hester Den Boer approaches her subject both as a photographer and a writer/journalist. In a series of online visual stories, she connects her encounters with people in the former Gulags of Siberia to the overarching narrative of Russia’s Stalinist history. The result is a personal report on daily life under the shadow of history.
The series will eventually consist of 8 episodes in total, in Dutch, English and Russian. The visual stories connect the content of Den Boer’s nonfiction book with her photography and will make it accessible to the international and Russian speaking community. New episodes will be published in the course of the coming months.
The visual stories can be embedded within online content as an additonal and in-depth layer to an article, essay or book review. To a certain extent such as font style and colour, the visual stories can be adapted to the publishing platform’s identity.
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Dear Brothers! At last I've found you! |
In 1979, a mass grave from the Stalinist era was discoverd in Kolpashevo. Galina Lesniak remembers how her father cried when he finally felt reunited with his murdered brothers. But the promised monument for the victims never materialised, and when Alexej Berezin started blogging about the event that he learned nothing about in school, people accused him of lying. In Kolpashevo. A Forgotten Mass Grave in Siberia, we see how decades of silence still devide the people of Kolpashevo.
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Hester den Boer |
Hester den Boer (1981) is an independent photographer and journalist. Since 2009 she regularly travelled to Russia, often staying for longer periods in remote places in Siberia. This enabled her to produce in-depth stories on Russian society. In 2015 Den Boer was shortlisted for the European Press Prize.
Her stories have been published in media like NRC, De Groene Amsterdammer, Trouw and Investico. Her photographs have been exhibited internationally in places including Photoville (US), FoamLab (NL) and Kaunas Photo Festival (LT).
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Note for editors |
You can request a selection of Hester den Boer’s photographs for publicity purposes by sending an email to Manon Bovenkerk at mb@paradox.nl. The online visual stories can be embedded as an additional layer to your journalistic online content. Contact us to discuss the options.
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Events
Melkweg: opening exhibition and book launch |
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Friday 11 January 17:30 - 20:30 |
Join us for the opening of the exhibition which also marks the launch of the nonfiction book Onderdrukt door de verlosser, published by Atlas Contact, and a new online episode.
Exhibition:
12 January - 3 February 2019
Mon-Sun 11:00-01:00
Fri-Sat until 03:00
Melkweg Expo
Marnixstraat 409, Amsterdam
Entrance via MILK
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Atlas Contact: nonfiction book (Dutch only) |
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The 272-page nonfiction book Onderdrukt door de verlosser. Een zoektocht naar Stalins erfenis in het Rusland van nu can be purchased through the website of Atlas Contact and is available at selected bookstores at €21.99.
‘Hester den Boer combineert in haar boek de grote geschiedenis van het stalinisme in Rusland met de kleine, intieme verhalen van Russen zelf. Het is een meeslepend boek over een verbijsterend verleden’ (Xandra Schutte, chief editor De Groene Amsterdammer).
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Save the Date |
Wednesday January 16 |
Debate in the evening at Melkweg with Nikita Petrov (Memorial), Nanci Adler (NIOD), Sana Valiulina and Hester den Boer, moderated by Xandra Schutte (De Groene Amsterdammer). With introduction by Jessica Gorter (De Rode Ziel). Film programme t.b.a.
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Support |
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Suppressed by the Saviour is supported by Mondriaand Fund and W.E. Jansenfonds read more |
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