ILLUSTRATIONS

These photographs are taken from my field materials. Field research was supported by Open Society Institute grant RSS No.: 1460/1997.

Pictures are wordless, in principle. They should speak themselves. However, some of them will require brief comments for those who never have seen communal apartments in Russia.

Pics. 1, 5, 6, and 8 are made by Nikolay Turkin, the rest of them, by Ilia Utekhin. Colour and black-and-white prints by Nikolay Turkin.

Picture 1 : (pic1.jpg   78 kb)
On Pic.1 you can see lines traces around the sinks with so called "chalk against cockroaches" (eventually containing insecticide).

Picture 2 : (pic2.jpg   35kb)

Picture 3 : (pic3.jpg     69kb)
On Pic. 3, an improvised refrigerator between windowframes in the kitchen; each family has a shelf there.

Picture 4 : (pic4.jpg   85kb)

Picture 5 : (pic5.jpg   50kb)
On Pic.5, an empty socket where no bulb is put since ten years ago.

Picture 6 : (pic6.jpg     71kb)

Picture 7 : (pic7.jpg   94kb)

Picture 8 : (pic8.jpg   80kb)
Pic.8 opens the door of so called "empty room", that is, lumber room which is by no means empty. The dwellers have corners of their own in this room.

Picture 9 : (pic9.jpg   44kb)

Picture 10 : (pic10.jpg   45kb)

Picture 11 : (pic11.jpg   39kb)
Pic.11 is representing what once was widely used, but practically gone today. Each neighbour had his own bulb in the toilet, connected to an individual switch in order to avoid other neighbours to use electric power on his account. I've seen (but could not take a photo) eight bulbs on the same wall.

Picture 12 : (pic12.jpg   41kb)
On Pic.12, a room where you see piano, refrigerator and the bed put together within a very small space.