MAYANA NASYBULLOVA

Gods of the home, matryoshka dolls on the shelf and slender rows of robots on a child’s windowsill. Who are these little gods-sculptures, silently guarding our peace in their little souvenir post? They all once carried their own sacred meaning, all were understandable or even obvious, just as Lenin had once been obvious, settled in every city in squares and street names.

Lenin is hardly the most densely imprinted unconscious image of the recent past. It’s remarkable that his symbol of the abolished past is still not removed from the main square of the country. Communism is no longer expected, Marxism has been refuted, but Lenin remains with us, as if he were an old childhood memory of the people.

And our grandfather Lenin was a good leader, and all the others the rest…

Yes, there can be many fathers of the people. They can eventually be but we all have the same grandfather. And this is his image, a simple and recognizable form, once brought by Soviet sculptors to the point of in the project "Lenin for the Soul" acquires a new sound. Now it’s not only Lenin, but like all modern gadgets and applications can change colors, skins, and still be himself. He can come to your house in Darth Maul or Mickey Mouse makeup, and when the time comes, you can repaint him.