To mark the 150th anniversary of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime & Punishment, the inaugural Dostoevsky Day UK (DDUK) presents a programme of activities exploring the life and legacy of the beloved and universal author. The 2016 DDUK is supported by University College London’s School of Slavonic and East European Studies (UCL-SSEES), Barbican Centre, Bloomsbury Theatre and the Likhachev Foundation in Saint Petersburg
The inaugural Dostoevsky Day UK is dedicated to UCL-SSEES late colleagues and friends, Professor Emeritus Isabel de Madariaga and the Poet Cameron Bain / the logo & poster were designed by Zuzana Pinčíková.
The opening event will take place on 11th November 2016 (on Dostoevsky’s birthday) at the UCL Bloomsbury Studio. It will start at 10 am, free-admission. The morning programme of the DDUK consists of a screening of the documentary Fyodor Dostoevsky (2006 Video), from the series Great Russian Writers, by Kultur International Films. This screening will be folllowed by the premiere of a theatrical monologue Raskolnikov, which was especially created for our event, by the English actor Jonathan Curry. The afternoon session will be at UCL-SSEES from 3.00-5 00 pm. It consists of a presentation about materials regarding Dostoevsky in UK libraries, focusing on Crime & Punishment by three main members of COSEELIS (Council for Slavonic and East European Library Services).
In December 2016, to complement the Inaugural Dostoevsky Day UK, Barbican cinema has created a special programme: Dostoevsky in Film, with the following screenings:
Sat 3 Dec 2.00pm Crime & Punishment (15) USSR 1970 Dir. Lev Kulidzhanov 200 min.
Sun 11 Dec 4.00pm The Gambler (PG) USSR 1973 Dir. Alexei Batalov 99 min.
Sun 18 Dec 2.00pm The Brothers Karamazov (15) USSR 1968 Dir. Ivan Pyrev 220 min.
As the curator of the Inaugural Dostoevsky Day UK (DDUK), I feel honoured to have been chosen for the prestigious Likhachev Fellowship in Sant Petersburg, Russia. In 2016, the Likhachev Foundation of St. Petersburg, Russia, announced its ninth open competition for the Fellowships in Russia program. When founded, this was the first Russian program of this kind, supporting cultural visits by foreign intellectuals (and remains the only such program). Participants of the program work on important cultural initiatives, with the ultimate aim of increasing knowledge of and interest in Russian history and culture among non-Russians. The Program has several partners including; Open World Leadership Center at the Library of Congress, the Trust for Mutual Understanding, CEC ArtsLink. Additionally Fellowship alumni from the years 2008-2015 helped disseminate information about the Program and raise interest. This program is designed for foreign professionals in the field of arts and culture who currently work on creative projects on (or related to) Russian culture or history; such projects are designed to help spread information about Russian culture among a broader foreign audience.
The 2016 Likhachev Fellows meet the Foundation. The 2016 Fellows -on Russian art projects – were selected from a pool of over 170 applicants from 50 countries, who participated in an open competition. The group of fellows includes 9 professionals from Italy, South Korea, the UK, and the USA. I am pleased, honoured and humbled, I still cannot believe that my project is one of them: “lo real maravilloso” I may say – The Likhachev Foundation-Cultural Fellowships in Russia http://www.ambassador-hotel.ru/ — with Anna Shulgat, Arielle Alexandra, Miriam Bader, Nancy Jo Snider, Spara Jurij and Nick Winter
The 2016 Likhachev Fellows meet the Foundation. The 2016 Fellows -on Russian art projects – were selected from a pool of over 170 applicants from 50 countries, who participated in an open competition. The group of fellows includes 9 professionals from Italy, South Korea, the UK, and the USA. I am pleased, honoured and humbled, I still cannot believe that my project is one of them: “lo real maravilloso” I may say – The Likhachev Foundation-Cultural Fellowships in Russia http://www.ambassador-hotel.ru/ — with Anna Shulgat, Arielle Alexandra, Miriam Bader, Nancy Jo Snider, Spara Jurij and Nick Winter
The 2016 Fellows were selected from a pool of over 170 applicants from 50 countries who participated in an open competition. The group of fellows includes 9 professionals from Italy, South Korea, the UK, and the USA. Each fellow had his/her program individually tailored according to the project and professional interests. The organizers of the program are the Likhachev Foundation and the Presidential Center of Boris N. Yeltsin, acting with the support of the Committee for External Relations of St. Petersburg, who organized and provided the main financing for the program, with additional, significant financial support from the U.S. Consulate in St. Petersburg.
The Likhachev Fellowship is the only one dedicated to the arts and culture in Russia. The name of the Academician D. S. Likhachev (1906-1999) is symbolic for the 20th century Russian culture. A Russian intellectual, survivor of the Soviet Gulag, a great scientist and thinker, a popular figure, he managed to preserve under the totalitarian regime his integrity, honor, and fealty to Russia. In the 90s he became a moral gold standard for many Russians. During his late years D. S. Likhachev conceived the idea of a humanitarian charitable foundation. The idea was implemented after his death. The D. S. Likhachev International Charitable Foundation was founded in St. Petersburg at the end of 2001. The mission for the Foundation had been stated by D. S. Likhachev himself as promotion of the Russian culture, education, humanities as well as affirmation of democratic and humanistic values in the society. The foundation supports both regional and international programs, awards grants, promotes seminars and conferences, publishes books, etc.
I am very grateful for the Fellowship because it allowed me to focus completely on my research while I was in St. Petersburg. By bringing me to this city, by organizing a practical program of activities and providing me with access to experts, centres, and collections on Dostoevsky, the Likhachev Foundation enabled me to immerse myself completely in the world of Dostoevsky’s Saint-Petersburg, to literally walk in his and his literary characters’ footsteps, and gain a proper knowledge and understanding of the historic conditions of Dostoevsky’s creative process, when he wrote Crime and Punishment.
The F.M.Dostoevsky Literary-Memorial Museum
The writer’s last study in his apartment on Kuznechny Lane, while preserving the simplicity and modesty of the previous ones, was, however, more roomy and comfortable. The Dostoevskys’ financial position had become more stable, Dostoevsky’s popularity had grown, and in the course of the day he would receive a wide variety of guests. With some he spent time in the sitting-room, while close friends came into his study. His family remembered that he didn’t like things to be disturbed in his study – for manuscripts or books to be moved, or a chair moved from the place where he had left it. This was his creative workshop, and no one was to disturb its special atmosphere. “On his writing desk, – wrote Dostoevsky’s daughter Liuba, – the greatest order reigned. Newspapers, pack of cigarettes, letters he received, books he was consulting, – everything had to be in its own place. The slightest disorder irritated my father”.
Renting apartments in inexpensive parts of town, he would move frequently and never stayed at one address for more than three years. Friends who visited him in various apartments noticed the ascetism of their décor, the simplicity and restraint of the interiors. The main room in Dostoevsky’s apartment was always his study. A desk, often placed in the middle of the room always occupied the principal place there: “Fyodor Mikhailovich’s study was a large room with two windows. In the back of the room stood a soft couch covered with a brown, fairly worn material; in front of it was a round table with a red cloth napkin. On the table were a lamp and two or three albums; all around stood soft chairs and armchairs. The windows were decorated with two large Chinese vases of a beautiful shape. Along the wall stood a large couch made of green morocco leather, and near it was a little table with a decanter of water. On the opposite side, across the length of the room, a writing desk had been pulled out”. Thus Anna Dostoevskaya, the writer’s second wife, described the study in the apartment where Dostoevsky created his novel Crime and Punishment.
The F.M.Dostoevsky Literary-Memorial Museum
At the F.M.Dostoevsky Literary-Memorial Museum with Natalia Ashimbaeva (Director) Vera Biron (Curator) and Vera’s granddaughter
We arrived in St. Petersburg on May 9 for two weeks. We visited (according to each individual projects and schedules) the city’s cultural organizations, archives, libraries, and museums, as well as meet and consult with experts and cultural figures of St. Petersburg. Other winners of the Likhachev Fellowship – from this year and previous years – contributed to the Dostoevsky Day UK by sharing their own experiences and projects. They suggested names and ideas and created a real supportive environment. I could not have asked for more.
The 2016 Likhachev Fellows meet the Foundation. The 2016 Fellows -on Russian art projects – were selected from a pool of over 170 applicants from 50 countries, who participated in an open competition. The group of fellows includes 9 professionals from Italy, South Korea, the UK, and the USA. I am pleased, honoured and humbled, I still cannot believe that my project is one of them: “lo real maravilloso” I may say – The Likhachev Foundation-Cultural Fellowships in Russia http://www.ambassador-hotel.ru/ — with Anna Shulgat, Arielle Alexandra, Miriam Bader, Nancy Jo Snider, Spara Jurij and Nick Winter
Our last meeting as Fellows The Likhachev Foundation-Cultural Fellowships in Russia 2016 what an experience ! — with Nancy Jo Snider, Kattia Gatilizeni, Vladimir Von Tsurikov, Nadine Meisner, Nick Winter, Spara Jurij, Likhachev, Anna Shulgat, Miriam Bader
At the F.M.Dostoevsky Literary-Memorial Museum with Natalia Ashimbaeva (Director) Vera Biron (Curator) and Vera’s granddaughter
The F.M.Dostoevsky Literary-Memorial Museum
The National Library of Russia in St Petersburg (known as the Imperial Public Library from 1795 to 1917; Russian Public Library from 1917 to 1925; State Public Library from 1925 to 1992 (since 1932 named after M.Saltykov-Shchedrin); NLR), is not only the oldest public library in the nation, but also the first national library in the country. The NLR is currently ranked among the world’s major libraries.
Renting apartments in inexpensive parts of town, he would move frequently and never stayed at one address for more than three years. Friends who visited him in various apartments noticed the ascetism of their décor, the simplicity and restraint of the interiors. The main room in Dostoevsky’s apartment was always his study. A desk, often placed in the middle of the room always occupied the principal place there: “Fyodor Mikhailovich’s study was a large room with two windows. In the back of the room stood a soft couch covered with a brown, fairly worn material; in front of it was a round table with a red cloth napkin. On the table were a lamp and two or three albums; all around stood soft chairs and armchairs. The windows were decorated with two large Chinese vases of a beautiful shape. Along the wall stood a large couch made of green morocco leather, and near it was a little table with a decanter of water. On the opposite side, across the length of the room, a writing desk had been pulled out”. Thus Anna Dostoevskaya, the writer’s second wife, described the study in the apartment where Dostoevsky created his novel Crime and Punishment.
The National Library of Russia in St Petersburg (known as the Imperial Public Library from 1795 to 1917; Russian Public Library from 1917 to 1925; State Public Library from 1925 to 1992 (since 1932 named after M.Saltykov-Shchedrin); NLR), is not only the oldest public library in the nation, but also the first national library in the country. The NLR is currently ranked among the world’s major libraries.
The Inaugural Dostoevsky Day UK 