What on a regular basis life was like within the Soviet Union
Varia Bortsova was born in Moscow at the turn of the century and was too young to remember the collapse of the USSR in 1991 after 70 years. Once the largest country in the world, it was quickly replaced by 15 different nations, along with a complex and jumbled jigsaw puzzle of common identities, cultures, and visual artifacts that were left behind.
Bortsova took an interest in her country's recent history after discovering her parents' archive of home videos and tapes, and quickly expanded her research to include everything from friends of friends photo albums to libraries and flea markets.
In 2016, she opened a Twitter account called Soviet Visuals to consolidate these makeshift archives for a small group of friends. The site has since grown into a community of over a million people who contribute their own photos, videos, and personal stories, as well as curious observers from all over the world.
In a new book published by Bloomsbury, Bortsova hopes to give a wider audience a glimpse into life behind the Iron Curtain. It contains over 200 images and contains the founder's own story as well as the personal accounts of the contributors to Soviet Visuals. Here Bortsova tells us some of her favorite artifacts from the book:
Above: Photo courtesy of the Olga Dekhanova Family Archives, 1990s. Above: With the kind permission of the authors' archive
The Soviets loved to predict the future: this 1930s illustration shows a rapid electromagnetic transit through the heart of future Moscow. Many Soviet Visuals social media followers have pointed out that it bears a remarkable resemblance to Elon Musk's Hyperloop project.
In the background you can see an overview of the Palace of the Soviets, the most grandiose of the unrealized projects of the Soviet government. It was conceived in the early 1920s and was intended to be the tallest building in the world and be crowned with a 100 meter tall statue of Lenin. After the outbreak of World War II, the project was suspended, never to be resumed.
Photographer unknown. All images courtesy of the authors' archive
I love this 1980s photo of the space-themed Kosmos cafe in Minsk (now Belarus). According to locals, the cafe was in the depths of the Chizhovka-2 micro-district and it was impossible to come across it by accident. You had to know exactly where to go.
The café was decorated with all sorts of room images on the walls, colored lights all around, and most importantly, a special corridor where every block would light up when you stepped on it – something out of a science fiction movie for a Soviet kid in the 80s. They also served milkshakes and ice cream in small vases.
Poster by P. Bekhmetyev, 1930
This 1930 health poster is headlined, “Do You Take Care of Your Breasts? Temper your nipples daily with cold water. “Tempering or strengthening the body by exposure to hot and cold temperatures was a common practice in the USSR, but this particular version raises some questions.
When a social media follower saw this poster on Twitter, he asked if the Soviet women's nipples were made of steel – I can publicly confirm that they weren't.
Bold 80s fashion experiments in action: the young man on the right combines a traditional Soviet fur hat with a Rambo shirt, while his friend complements his jeans look with a Komsomol (All-Union Leninist Young Communist League) badge. The Soviet alternative fashion culture of this decade was a real mix of influences and representative of the changing times.
Reproduction of a Soviet anti-religion poster by V. I. Govorkov, Soviet artist publisher
This anti-religion poster from 1965 is titled "Grandma said strictly: Don't go anywhere without God." But the bright light of science has proven that there is no God! "
Atheism was an element of state ideology in the Soviet Union, and the propaganda materials used to promote it were spectacularly resourceful. This one manages to celebrate the glory of the space race at the same time while highlighting the importance of matching your headscarf to your dress.
Advertising poster by S. S. Prokoptsev, 1938
This Soviet poster from 1938 reads: “Mayonnaise sauce. An excellent spice for all cold cuts, fish and vegetable dishes ”. There was no variety on the shelves of Soviet grocery stores. Print advertising has typically focused on promoting the product itself rather than branded variations.
In this case, it's mayonnaise, but there are tons of posters out there covering everything from sausages to winter hats to canned fish. It's an unusual concept compared to what the modern consumer is used to in 2020, where it looks like everything and everyone has a brand.
Soviet Visuals is published by Bloomsbury; @sovietvisuals