August 19, 2023

Ukraine's "War and Art" Database


Ukraine's "War and Art" Database
Painted Ukraine flag. Tim Mossholder, Unsplash.

Ukraine’s National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) has published an online database of art belonging to sanctioned Russians, which seeks to thwart the illegal trade of art and antiquities stolen during Russia’s war on Ukraine.

The “War and Art” database reports that “Russian oligarchs and other sanctioned individuals can still easily hide and launder their funds through art, despite the sanctions imposed on them. Paintings, sculptures, artistic jewelry – this is exactly what they use as a loophole to circumvent sanctions.”

With over 300 items valued at more than $2 billion, the NACP aims to bolster efforts against sanctions evasion, actively seeking artworks linked to sanctioned Russians, so that they can potentially be frozen, seized, and repatriated to Ukraine.

Featured in the database are notable collectors such as ex-Chelsea owner and Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. He reportedly owns Francis Bacon’s Triptych, 1976, Alberto Giacometti's The Venetian Woman I, and a set of eight albums from Ilya Kabakov’s 10 Characters series. The database also lists other figures like Uzbek-Russian businessman Alisher Usmanov, Russian rapper Timati, Russian producer Yana Rudkovskaya, and Russian oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev (who sold Leonardo da Vinci’s Savior of the World for $450.3 million).

You Might Also Like

Frozen Fortunes
  • June 23, 2023

Frozen Fortunes

And oligarch wants to donate funds to the victims of the war on both sides.
War and Beef
  • June 07, 2023

War and Beef

Sculptures of soldiers and tanks made from ground meat are making waves.
Evading Sanctions
  • May 22, 2023

Evading Sanctions

Western sanctions are not preventing Russia from supplying its military from abroad.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas
October 01, 2013

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.

 
A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

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...

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

Driving Down Russia's Spine
June 01, 2016

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

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. 

White Magic
June 01, 2021

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.

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, 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