St. Petersburg is one of the top tourist destinations on Russia tour, visited by millions of tourists from all over the world every year. Many tourists who plan to visit St. Petersburg during their travel to Russia do not have enough time to visit all the attractions inside this beautiful city. The main reason for this is a large number of tourist attractions on the St. Petersburg tour. Because so many of these attractions are so crucial to St. Petersburg tours, many travel agencies cannot afford to add many of the city's lesser-known attractions to their Russia tour programs. However, many tourists would like to know about these attractions before they begin their trip to St. Petersburg to visit some of them if they have extra time during their journey through St. Petersburg. For example, one of the tourist attractions that are usually not included in St. Petersburg tour programs is the Museum of Nonconformist Art in St. Petersburg, which is not very popular among tourists. However, this museum bears an essential part of the St. Petersburg's cultural and artistic history, which is not without merit.
Under Joseph Stalin, especially after World War II until the mid-1970s, Russian art and culture suffered severe repression. Many prominent artists were not allowed to work at the time, and many produced art in secret and underground. For example, one of the most famous Art created underground at that time and was relatively recognized by the Soviet government after much struggle was rock music. Although the main reason behind accepting this form of art even with limitation was to control its outcome and effect on culture better. This historical period in St. Petersburg and Russia, in general, led to the formation of an informal art movement from various sections of the art community that did not function under the government's rule at all. That also led to the formation of an informal culture in Russia, which is now highly regarded by scholars of contemporary culture and art. This historical period in Russian culture is known as the cultural era of Non-Conformist Art. Of course, this was not just about rock music. Most art genres were severely controlled and repressed, and artists who disobeyed strict government laws were punished. For example, one of the ways that people of Leningrad and Russia, in general, had accessed literature was the samizdat. Samizdat was secretly rewriting or producing literary writings in underground printing presses or by hand. Samizdat was only available for each person for a day, and after a day, people who possessed them should have passed them along to the next person. Since news outlets were also tightly controlled by the Soviet government at the time, the Russian people turned to this method to access credible news. Although these activities posed a severe threat to both the producers and those in possession of the writings, samizdat became very popular due to severe repression and censorship by the Soviet government.
The History of the Museum of Nonconformist Art dates back to 1989 when some underground artists decided to create a creative environment for the production of art in one of the demolished buildings near Pushkin Square. After ten years of continuous effort, the Museum of Nonconformist Art was established and recognized by the government. By the end of the Soviet era, Leningrad had become a center of anti-Soviet culture, with many artists producing anti-government content in the city. After the Fall of the Soviet Union and the recognition of the Museum of Nonconformist Art, the museum focused on collecting art and developing the art produced in St. Petersburg at the time. Today, this magnificent museum has become one of St. Petersburg's sights that tourists who want to get acquainted with the development of modern art in Russia should visit during their tour to St. Petersburg. Of course, this museum is part of the important cultural center of "Pushkinskaya 10", which is one of the foremost modern and contemporary cultural centers in St. Petersburg, and many tourists visit it to learn more about current and modern Russian culture during their travel to Russia. Today, the Pushkinskaya 10 Cultural Center is not limited to the Museum of Nonconformist Art. Tourists can visit nearly fourteen art galleries, two music clubs, a concert venue, a children's theater, and almost forty workshops of famous artists and musicians in this cultural center during their travel to Russia. Of course, you have to keep in mind that in addition to the Museum of Nonconformist Art, there are several other museums under the auspices of the Pushkinskaya 10 Cultural Center, including the St. Petersburg Museum of Sound, which you can visit during your tour to Russia.
The collections inside the Museum of Nonconformist Art consist mostly of works donated by artists of those historical periods who collaborated or even continued cooperating with the museum. Although you can find a lot of contemporary art from recent years in the galleries of the Pushkinskaya 10 Cultural Center today, the Museum of Conformist Art has focused more on art produced in the second half of the 20th century. During your trip to Russia, a little tour inside this museum will reveal the criticism within each of the works of art toward the Soviet government and the culture they were promoting in those years. In general, this museum is a symbol of Russian art and culture in the post-World War II era. The Museum of Nonconformist Art has nearly 1,400 works of art, of which paintings and graphs by artists from the 1950s to the 1990s are the most popular among visitors from Russia tour. Of course, the modern photography section of the Museum of Nonconformist Art is also of particular importance in visiting the museum during the trip to St. Petersburg. In addition to all this, if you want to get acquainted with contemporary Russian art, especially the current St. Petersburg artists, this museum is one of the best places you can visit during the tour to Russia program. That has been pursued more seriously after the Museum of Nonconformist Art collaborated with the State Russian Museum, one of the main cultural centers of contemporary art in St. Petersburg.
At Star Travel Group, we recommend visiting this museum to all those interested in contemporary Russian art and modern culture during their St. Petersburg tour program. Of course, you should keep in mind that there are many significant tourist attractions in St. Petersburg that prioritize visiting St. Petersburg tour programs. You can visit our weblog to get acquainted with these tourist attractions of St. Petersburg tour and our plans for the tour to Russia and our tips and recommendations for people who want to travel to Russia.
