Installation view at The artists Residence Herzliya 2016
Installation view at The artists Residence Herzliya 2016
Ilya Budraitskis
The historian and activist discusses how history is written and how it shapes the present. The interview considers his role as a historian under the Russian regime and the responsibilities of historical museums.
Dr Dina Zisserman-Brodsky
A lecturer in politics and government at Ben-Gurion University and vice-chair of Our Heritage – the Charter of Democracy, Zisserman-Brodsky brings together experience of Soviet dissident activism and political activism in Israel.
I invited her to discuss the connections between Russian and Israeli political cultures, the influence of immigration, and threats to democracy. Her perspective helped develop the project’s central question: can the Soviet past suggest a possible future for Israel?
Tatyana Kursina
The former director of the Perm-36 museum recounts its founding, its aims, and changes in its activities. Her interview examines the controversy surrounding the museum and attempts to reshape the memory of the Soviet past in the interests of Putin’s regime.
Irina Fligel
As director of the Memorial Society in St Petersburg, Fligel discusses how the political climate affects the organisation’s work. The interview considers history as something that can repeat itself, and how a regime may use lessons from the past to serve its own interests.
Boris Mirkin
A political prisoner under Brezhnev, Mirkin was sent to a labour camp after writing a poem critical of the government.
Elizaveta Delibash
Delibash was a child when both her parents were sent to labour camps under Stalin, where they were killed. She recounts her life story and the lasting effect of this loss.
Part 1
Part 3
Part 2
Part 4
Rabbi Michael Rivkin
A former Soviet dissident and political prisoner, and one of the founders of B’Tselem, Rivkin describes his political activism in Israel as a continuation of his earlier dissident work. His experience falls outside the “Prisoner of Zion” narrative. Through his life story, the interview explores the experiences that shaped his worldview and the relationship between his Soviet past and his activism in Israel.