Tuber
Installation / St. Petersburg, 2017
Potatoes* — are the legacy of the colonial expansion, the trophy obtained by the West and the silent evidence of the conquests. Potatoes, as if having a memory and preserving a trauma to the past in their existence, spread throughout Europe and wider, capturing not only new territories, but also the hefty part of our daily diet.
In Russia potatoes were brought in by Peter the Great but now they are perceived as something natural and even national, and its certain colonial dimension is hidden and we are not really aware of it. Similarly, the modern analog of colonialism, which has become a kind of implosion, is not immediately recognized.
What is meant is the Russian capital, which can be considered to be the center of expansion, while other regions and cities are just a colonies maintaining its prosperity. And in this context, you can think about those in St. Petersburg who are Muscovites came here for recreation, claiming their rights to the cultural stocks of the former capital. So who are they: guests in search for entertainment or maybe invaders claiming something else?
*The Russian word "kartofel" came from ger. Kartoffel, which, in turn, originated from it. Tartufo, tartutolo — truffel.
