Ayvazovsky painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
G. I. Semiradsky painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
Ivan Repin painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, December 28, 2005
Ivanov(?) painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 1, 2005
Looking at C. Brullov(?) painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
I. Repin paintings in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
Repin painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, July 15, 2016
Ilya Repin painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 8, 2009
A hall in Russian Museum, with A. E. Yakovlev and V. I. Shukhaev painting "Harlequin and Piero" to the left. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
I. Repin s paintings in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, February 9, 2018
C. Brullov s paintings in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, February 9, 2018
Staring at Malevich "Black Square" painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 2, 2004
Repin painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, January 8, 2016
G. I. Semiradsky painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 11, 2012
Painting of pine forest in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 11, 2012
C. Brullov(?) painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 11, 2012
Paintings of C. Brullov in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, February 9, 2018
A. E. Yakovlev and V. I. Shukhaev painting "Harlequin and Piero" in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 8, 2009
Kandinsky s paintings in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 11, 2012
Visitors of Russian Museum in front of Vasnetsov(?) painting. Saint Petersburg, Russia, May 26, 2011
Paintings of Malevich in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 13, 2007
A gate of Christian Orthodox monastery on Konevets Island in Ladozhskoe Lake, with a Russian inscription "Close gate firmly. Draught destroys the painting". North from Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 8, 2002
Painting by Vyacheslav Mikhailov "Leapfrog, from the Russian Game Series" (1989) in Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art. Saint Petersburg, Russia, May 29, 2019
Sculpture "Flesh of the Flesh" by Alexander Rukavishnikov and a painting "Russians are coming II" by Anatoliy Gankevich in Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art. Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 8, 2024
A detail from "The Last Day of Pompeii" by Karl Brullov (1833) showing the central tragedy of the painting in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 24, 2025
A close-up detail from the left-middle section of a huge painting "Phryne at the Festival of Poseidon in Eleusis" (1889) by Henryk Siemiradzki (Polish/Russian, 1843-1902) in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 24, 2025
Detail from a painting "The Brazen Serpent" (1841) by Fyodor Bruni (1799-1875) showing the head of a bearded man in agony in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 24, 2025
Painting Bayan (1910) by Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926) showing a legendary Slavic bard (a "Bayan") playing the gusli (a traditional string instrument) to a group of warriors on a hilltop, in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 24, 2025
Painting "Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery" (1888) by Vasily Polenov (1844-1927) (the right side of the canvas, where the angry crowd, bearded men in robes, is dragging or presenting the frightened woman) in Russian Museum. Saint Petersburg, Russia, September 24, 2025
Glacial erratic (a large granite boulder) left behind by the retreating Scandinavian Ice Sheet over 11,000 years ago. The inscription ":041d:0415:0422 :0412:041e:0419:041d:0415" (pronounced Net Voyne), meaning "NO TO THE WAR," is a direct political protest against the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Activists often paint this slogan in forests, on snow, on frozen rivers, or in elevators to avoid CCTV cameras and police patrols found in city centers. This stone serves as a quiet but firm artifact of internal resistance, standing in the silent forest just kilometers from the station and the dacha community. Kannelyarvi, north from Saint Petersburg, Russia, October 1, 2025
This view of the protest installation outside the Russian Embassy on Pikk Street highlights several direct appeals and condemnations aimed at the Russian government. "STOP KILLING PEOPLE": A large, hand-painted sign on the right bluntly demands an end to the violence. This slogan has become a staple of anti-war protests worldwide. "STOP WAR CRIMINALS": The banner on the bottom left features a missile marked with the Russian flag and the demand to stop "war criminals." This reflects the widespread accusation that Russian leadership is committing war crimes in Ukraine. The large white sheet in the center is covered with drawings of cats in blue and yellow bowties, likely representing innocent lives or perhaps a specific children s art project. The text on the right translates from Estonian: "TO THE VICTIMS OF WARS STARTED BY RUSSIA" (Venemaa poolt alustatud so~dade ohvritele). This frames the current conflict as part of a longer history of Russian aggression. The central drawing includes poignant handwritten messages like "NOBODY LOVES YOU!" and "WE DON T WANT WAR!", expressing a mix of personal disdain for the aggressors and a universal plea for peace. Tallinn, Estonia, October 16, 2025
Rataskaevu Street (Rataskaevu ta"nav) in Tallinn s Old Town. The focal point in the small square is the famous Cat s Well (Rataskaevu), which gave the street its name. According to local legend, a water spirit lived in the well, and the townspeople would sacrifice stray cats into it to prevent the wells from running dry. The yellow building on the left (Rataskaevu 7) houses the St. Petersbourg Hotel. It is the oldest operating hotel in Tallinn, originally opened in 1850 and located in a 15th-century building that was once a Russian merchant s home. Opposite the well (out of frame to the right, but significant to the street s lore) is the building at Rataskaevu 16, famously known as the site of "The Devil s Wedding." Legend says the devil held a party in the upper room of this house, and to this day, there is a painted "false window" on the facade to block the view into that haunted room. The building now houses a very popular restaurant of the same name. Tallinn, Estonia, October 16, 2025
