ARTDOCFEST RIGA
Young actionist artists Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Ekaterina Samutsevich decide to separate from the well-known actionist group Voina. They feel pressure of male participants of the group. They decide to create their own group that would express their ideas of female independence and liberty. That’s how the Pussy Riot is born, combining actionism, feminism, media activism and punk rock.
The film shows that the phenomenon of actionism is situated at the intersection of the art, the history and the politics. The action of Pussy Riot could be interpreted as the continuation of the old Russian tradition of ‘holy fools’, those who were not afraid of speaking disagreeable truths even to Tsars. Revolutionary art of Russian avant-garde took its inspiration in Russian icons, and bright attire of Pussy Riot is inspired by suprematist images of Kazimir Malevich.
