Barricade on Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street

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1998
action-happening

Performance description – read
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The "Barricade" action, staged on May 23, 1998, was the most massive action in Moscow art activism. Bolshaya Nikitskaya street in Moscow was blocked by empty cardboard boxes which had been specially collected for the action. About 300 people were on the scene of a barricade situation for three hours, just 200 meters away from the Kremlin. 

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The action was dedicated to the memory of the French student revolution of May 1968. Therefore, the slogans of the historical era were unfurled above the barricade: “It is forbidden to forbid,” “All power belongs to the Imagination!", "Be realistic – demand the impossible!" Most slogans were written in French. 

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In addition, the participants of the action set specific demands: a monthly allowance of $1,200 to each participant of the action; drug legalization for each participant; the right to free and visa-free travel around the globe for all of the Barricade participants. 

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In half an hour, about 200 policemen were deployed to the scene. They were completely confused, and for quite a long time couldn’t figure out what exactly they were up against. Now and then, they would send their representatives to find out what exactly the barricade participants were demanding and under which leadership the action was held. Dmitry Pimenov would respond in a laconic manner: “We don’t have any leaders — everyone is a hero!" 

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Three hours later, the protesters moved toward the Kremlin, carrying banners and chanting, “We have won! And now we’d take a stroll in the defeated city!" Ten minutes after the march began, the police, inactive until then, blocked the marchers' path and halted seven participants at the head of the procession. On May 25, Moscow City Court held a hearing and imposed administrative penalties on those arrested for administrative offenses from 200 up to 500 rubles. 

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The protest was the first test of nonviolent political action within the Russian context. The action participants declared their distrust both to existing political power and the potential of parliamentary democracy. The main idea of the action participants was based on the concept that every citizen should have a voice and express their own will, ignoring the ideas of “objectivity” and “realism.” 

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The Barricade Action was initiated by the “Non-Governmental Control Commission,” which famously featured the collaboration between artists and intellectuals spanned by The Radek Magazine. In particular, the concept of the action was sparked by Anatoly Osmolovsky, the editor-in-chief of The Radek Magazine, artist, and philosopher in art theory. The event was organized by the artist Avdey Ter-Oganyan and the social activist Dmitry Model, mass media coverage was provided by the theorist Oleg Kireev and the artist Kirill Preobrazhensky. The writer Dmitry Pimenov, Dmitry Model and Anatoly Osmolovsky were among those who implemented the psychological defense strategies.

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Text from 1998