Exhibition 'Joseph Brodsky. Still Life. With audio guide'

About exhibition

The exhibition tells the story of the life and work of the leading Russian poet of the second half of the 20th century. Joseph Brodsky did not live in the Fountain House, yet the largest collection of his belongings was formed here. The exhibition includes several hundred items that furnished Brodsky's apartments in Leningrad (the famous 'One and a Half Rooms') and in the USA. The conceptual basis of the exhibition is the poem 'Still Life' (1971), in which Brodsky articulated his attitude to the problems of posthumous existence ('non-existence') and to the material world (the objects around you). Furniture, typewriters, clothing, keepsakes, and books are arranged into a huge still life in the center of the room, inviting each visitor to interpret it individually. The hall on the third floor of the Fountain House, where 'Still Life' is installed, was specially equipped for the exhibition. The interior architecture, which creates a space of 'unfindability', is complemented by the staircase finishes. The poem of the same name, written in a single line, literally leads the visitor into a composition of objects that belonged to Brodsky and allows reflection on poetic categories important to him. A one-hour audio guide accompanying the visit helps the visitor learn how particular objects were woven into the poet's biography.