January 14, 2022

The Art of the Fall


The Art of the Fall
St. Petersburg needs some of these signs. Wikimedia Commons user Lu Brito.

St. Petersburg artist Ruben Monakhov (born 1970) has become famous for painting one very specific subject: people falling on ice.

After spinal surgery following a major fall, the handlebar-mustachioed Monakhov was very afraid of slipping on St. Petersburg's ridiculously icy sidewalks. He found comfort in taking pictures of real Pitertsy who fell in front of him and then painting them at home.

Monakhov is aware that taking pictures of strangers who had just fallen must have looked bad.

In St. Petersburg in winter, it is typical to see people falling or almost falling on the ice every day. Only some prominent sidewalks are cleared of snow, and after a few snowfalls followed by temperatures fluctuating above and below freezing, many sidewalks have uneven rolling hills of ice. Older residents are basically homebound for the duration of winter.

One hospital saw 40-47 trippers daily toward the end of 2021.

At a quick glance, Monakhov's paintings may appear to be of ice skaters taking a spill. But they are just regular city residents walking in shoes.

St. Petersburg mayor Alexander Beglov was recently called out for his inattention to the streets, with a video from Africa urging him to move there, where the streets do not have to be cleaned of snow.

In addition, whenever the thermometer creeps slightly above 0° Celsius (32° Fahrenheit; freezing), walkers in the center of St. Petersburg must watch their heads lest falling blocks of ice land on them.

Whether it comes from above their heads or below their feet, the snow and ice of St. Petersburg are a real threat to Pitertsy.

Monakhov painted the series of 10 oil paintings called "Oops" as a way of dealing with his fear of walking but also to draw attention to an issue that affects the daily lives of virtually all Pitertsy for a good portion of the year. City officials have yet to respond to the falling art, however.

Check out Monakhov's work on Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, Erarta Museum in St. Petersburg, and his own website.

You Might Also Like

Bunkers, Beglov, and Bad Weather
  • December 23, 2021

Bunkers, Beglov, and Bad Weather

In this week's Odder News, next year will be better, St. Petersburg's mayor should move to Africa, and bunkers are hip.
Magic in St. Petersburg
  • December 14, 2021

Magic in St. Petersburg

King's Cross station has nothing on the city of St. Petersburg, which is now complete with its own Platform 9 3/4, too. 
The Kingdom of Eternal Permafrost
  • January 25, 2021

The Kingdom of Eternal Permafrost

With abnormally cold weather in Yakutsk, Russian TV news channels have been promoting the city's Kingdom of Permafrost and annual ice sculpture competition.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

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. 
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
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.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
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.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
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.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

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