American Embassy In Moscow Uses Art For Message Against Russia-Ukraine War

On December 28th, the U.S. Embassy Moscow displayed three posters from their Posters for Peace contest, according to a press release shared on the U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Russia website.

The winning artworks displayed are “Imagine Peace” by Michael Braley (USA) and “Peace Will Prevail” by Enkel Dika (North Macedonia), and “Imagining Peace” by Elza (Russia). The Russian artists’ last names were intended to be retracted for their protection. All winning artists were then offered the chance to visit New York and D.C. to “discuss their work with U.S. cultural leaders.”

Continued conflict in the region during the Russia-Ukraine war has damaged arts and culture in tandem with the lives and safety of thousands of people. Sophia Kishkovsky is a Moscow correspondent for both The New York Times and The Art Newspaper, describing the way atrocities are impacting cultural figures and monuments in real time.

Curators are fleeing; sites are being damaged; mysterious disappearances are numerous against those who express dissent. There is even a resurgence of Soviet art and Lenin statues, toppled at the end of the cold war, as they have come to symbolize a return to what made the USSR great and powerful. That the U.S. Embassy is still present at all in Russia is a testament to the ongoing, if fragile, Russia-American relations amidst death and uncertainty.

Posters for Peace was launched alongside the United Nations International Day of Peace in September, encouraging any artist, Russian, Ukrainian, or otherwise to visually represent “a culture of peace.”

Chargé d’Affaires Elizabeth Rood acknowledged a perspective that “democracy [has] been under threat,” and a “hunger” to end “senseless death and destruction.”

The power of these images created by internationally diverse artists is far more than their visuals. People around the world speak out against bloodshed more than the dispute itself, calling for an agreement that benefits all parties rather than waving a single flag.

The September competition was judged and curated by Angelina Lippert, Chief Curator of Poster House in New York City, has a Master of Arts in the art of the Russian Avant-Garde from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London (and a BA in art history and theology from Smith College). Immediately prior to the competition, Poster House held “The Utopian Avant-Garde: Soviet Film Posters of the 1920s” from February 25–August 21, 2022, underscoring the creative Renaissance immediately following the Bolshevik revolution.

“The intent was always to share the images in a public forum, but having the posters printed, shipped, and hung took some time,” Lippert said in a statement. “I hope there are more opportunities for these designs promoting peace to be shown around the world, but am very pleased to see them on the US Embassy in Moscow as a symbol of solidarity for all those wanting peace.”

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