Oxford exhibition and book presentation
An exhibition of photographs by Natasha Vassilieva-Hull

12 May 2007

Photos: Miron Fyodorov

PER ASPERA AD ASTRA: Back to the Future
A talk and exhibition by Natasha Vassilieva-Hull

Saturday, 12th of May, 18:00
Lecture Room 23
Balliol College, Broad Street, Oxford

Born in St. Petersburg, Natasha started photographing the underground Russian rock music scene in the early 70-s. From 1994 onwards, she continued her career in London, and was the first Russian photographer who got accreditation to take pictures of the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and other rock legends. She is now a director of Seagull Publishing House, promoting contemporary Russian literature in the English-speaking world.

The subjects of Natasha's early photos included the legendary Russian bands Kino, Aquarium, Nautilus Pompilius, Alisa, Zvuki Mu, Zoopark and many others. Yet her works reach far beyond the boundaries of the music scene: they are a socio-political chronicle of the late decaying USSR and its futile attempts to censor the young rock subculture. The title of the collection, "PER ASPERA AD ASTRA" ("Through the Thorns to the Stars"), sums up the struggle and victory of a generation reflected in Natasha's works.

This is a chance to see some of these photos which have already been exhibited in London, Birmingham, Edinburgh and St.Petersburg, and to listen to Natasha's story about the struggle of rock against communism. The talk will be in Russian.