DOI: 10.25136/2409-8744.2020.4.33547

Abstract: This article is dedicated to specificity of using mannequins in the museum exhibitions. Emphasis is made on the nuances of selection and preparation of a museum mannequin from the perspective of anthropology, and primarily such aspects as anthropological correspondence and symbolic component that allow turning the mannequin from a technical element into a constituent part of exhibition, which would translate the elements of intangible cultural heritage. The goal this research consists in the analysis of potential risks associated with neglecting the specificity of mannequin as a constituent part of museum exhibition. Field materials acquired from modern exhibitions in Russian and foreign museums served as the source material for this work. The main research methods became he case study and comparative analysis. It is concluded that the choice of mannequins for exhibitions should be conducted with consideration of actual anthropometry of the historical and cultural groups; if the mannequin is not impersonalized, its phenotype should be close to its ethnic group. If the listed above is impossible, the best option lies in deanthropologization of the mannequin; otherwise, they devalue the artistic level of exhibition and worth of the originals. Static mannequins with evident anthropomorphic features are perceived rather negatively, especially in a direct visual contact. Mannequins are capable of retranslating multiple body techniques as the elements of intangible cultural heritage, and this aspect should not be neglected. Mannequins can also be used in exhibition scenography.

DOI: 10.25136/2409-8744.2019.2.28444

Abstract: The interest of researchers towards the museum visitor has heightened over the recent years. However, the understanding of the current situation requires a retrospective culturological analysis of the role of museum in everyday life of a Soviet citizen. To answer this question, the authors referred to the nontraditional for museologists source – the Soviet caricature.  The subject of this research is the image of museum in satire and mass consciousness. Special attention is given to such concepts as the image of museum community, museum as a metaphor, and culturetreger function of museum. Based on the content analysis of the visual and descriptive materials of Soviet era, as well as the visual-comparative study of iconographic plots, the article is first to trace the image of Soviet museum and museum visitor in mass consciousness. In majority of cases, an emotional degree of the image of national museum and museum visitor in Soviet caricature is not a harsh satire, but a relatively soft and ideologically moderate humor, aimed at propaganda of the success of Soviet cultural building, although museums are not a frequent visitor on the pages of the Soviet satirical magazine “Krokodil”. A slight burst of museum and near-museum caricature can be traced only in the 1970’s. Quite likely it is related to the development of domestic tourism and new requirements to museums as a part of tourism sphere.

DOI: 10.7256/2454-0617.2018.2.26626

Abstract: During the recent years the topic of racism became somewhat topical for the Russian Federation, which calls for analyzing this phenomenon in historical retrospective. This article attempts to trace the representation of racism as a phenomenon, basing in the visiotypes of Soviet caricature of 1950s-1980s. The analysis of a visual narrative chiefly involves the three major groups of questions: a) the topic of racism and colonialism being examined from the then-popular "their morals" ideological prism; b) source-established racial and ethnic clichés for the representatives of foreign countries; c) racial and ethnic clichés established for Soviet citizens. The illustrations of the "Krokodil" magazine serve as the main source, along with other works by the leaders of Soviet caricature of this period. The methodology of this research is the decomposition of the visual narrative and the comparative analysis of visual sources. The main conclusion of this article is that, despite the formal opposition to racism on the government level, Soviet caricature went on cultivating racist prejudice regarding the nations of the world, including the USSR, sometimes following the instrumental tasks of authorities, and sometimes continuing the traditions of visualizing non-European peoples.  

DOI: 10.7256/2454-0617.2016.3.21994

Abstract: The object of this research is the portrayal of ethnic conflicts in Soviet caricature. The subject of this work is the national policies and inter-ethnic relations during late USSR. Based on the illustrations of leading satirical magazine of the USSR the authors show that caricature was used as a tool of national policies, and attempt to examine the mechanism of this work in the 1980-1991s. The source material are the illustrations of one of the leading Soviet magazines that existed since 1922 - the "Krokodil" satirical magazine that reached 6.5 million circulations. Due to its potential, "Krokodil" not only allowed to successfully form ethnic stereotypes in the minds of Soviet citizens, many of which exist today, it also set the tone for Soviet satire as a whole. Based on content analysis and visual comparative research of iconographic scenes the article traces the dynamics of the "national issue" becoming relevant in Soviet satirical discourse during the period of study. The understatement of ethnic problems by "Krokodil" created the illusion of the "national issue" being resolved. However if during earlier decades the images with ethnic content constituted a narrative of harmony, late 80s demonstrate a different trend. The visual humour and satire were used to stop and prevent ethnic conflicts in Soviet Union, but on a limited scale and with a considerable delay.