Far and Away: Reporting From the Brink of Change

by Solomon, Andrew

  97 Sergei Stankevich’s political career, and the graft charges that led him to flee to Poland, are described in Andrew Higgins, “Putin and Orthodox church cement power in Russia,” Wall Street Journal, December 18, 2007; and Sergey Strokan and Vladimir Mikheev, “EU-Russia sanctions war to continue,” Russia Beyond the Headlines, June 26, 2015.

  98 Pravda touts the Russian club scene in Marcelo de Vivo, “Experience the best of Russian nightlife,” Pravda, October 10, 2013.

  98 Avdotja Alexandrova’s description of the aesthetic philosophy underpinning her innovative modeling agency appears in Maeve Shearlaw, “30 under 30: Moscow’s young power list,” Guardian, June 8, 2015.

  98 The quote from independent publisher Sergey Kostromin comes from Sasha Pershakova, “Zine scene: How Russia’s long tradition of self-publishing is still thriving today,” Calvert Journal, October 28, 2014.

  98 Andrey Urodov’s magazine Russia Without Us features in Michael Idov, “No sleep till Brooklyn: How hipster Moscow fell in love with Williamsburg,” Calvert Journal, December 31, 2013; this article is also the source of the quote “Every Moscow restaurant is a theme restaurant . . .”

  98 The censoring of musicians Andrei Makarevich and Noize MC for their expressions of support for the people of Ukraine is reported in Karoun Demirjian, “Russian youths find politics as their pop icons face pressure,” Washington Post, December 2, 2014.

  99 Human Rights Watch has documented the oppression of Russia’s LGBT population and their allies in considerable detail; see Cooper, op. cit.

  99 Official and popular responses to Yelena Klimova’s creative work are described in Alec Luhn, “LGBT website founder fined under Russia’s gay propaganda laws,” Guardian, July 29, 2015.

  99 The quotes from Dmitry Kuzmin come from his essay “On the Moscow metro and being gay,” trans. Alexei Bayer, Words without Borders, 2013.

  99 The role of conservative religious authority figures in the contemporary Russian power structure, and allegations against Patriarch Kirill, are discussed in Peter Pomerantsev, “Putin’s God squad: The Orthodox Church and Russian politics,” Newsweek, September 10, 2012. Churchgoing habits in post-Soviet Russia are documented in Alan Cooperman, Phillip Connor, and Erin O’Connell, “Russians return to religion but not to church,” Pew Research Center, February 10, 2014. Quotes from Patriarch Kirill, Ivan Ostrakovsky, Georgi Mitrofanov, and the Orthodox skinhead gangsters come from the Newsweek piece.

  100 Alleged affiliations between Vladimir Putin and Russian criminal gangs are described in Tom Porter, “Vladmir [sic] Putin allies named as ‘key associates of Russian gangsters’ by Spanish prosecutors,” International Business Times, June 30, 2015; Porter discusses the Russian mafia in depth in “Gangs of Russia: Ruthless mafia networks extending their influence,” International Business Times, April 9, 2015.

  100 Freedom House’s assessment of corruption in Russia appears in Freedom House, “Nations in transit 2015: Russia,” Freedom House, 2015.

  101 Putin’s offer of amnesty to criminals with assets abroad, and the quote from Andrey Makarov, are reported in Rob Garver, “Putin lets criminals bring money back to Russia,” Fiscal Times, June 11, 2015. Capital flight from Russia is put at $150 billion in Stephanie Saul and Louise Story, “At the Time Warner Center, an enclave of powerful Russians,” New York Times, February 11, 2015.

  101 Russian authorities’ crackdown on imports of foreign food is described in Shaun Walker, “Russia swoops on gang importing £19m of banned cheese from abroad,” Guardian, August 18, 2015.

  101 Economic inequality in modern Russia is discussed and the wealthiest oligarchs are listed in Maria Hagan, “The 10 richest Russians in 2014,” Richest, October 10, 2014.

  101 Russia’s schools for aspiring tycoons are described in Alexandra Tyan, “Classes aimed at raising a new generation of Russian businessmen,” Moscow Times, July 27, 2015.

  102 My discussion of the Russian economy relies heavily on Ian Bremmer’s excellent “These 5 facts explain Russia’s economic decline,” Time, August 14, 2015.

  102 Max Katz, Isabelle Magkoeva, Roman Dobrokhotov, and other young movers and shakers are the subject of Shearlaw, op. cit.

  102 The modern Russian protest movement and official retaliation against its leaders are examined in Alexander Korolkov, “Is the protest movement dead?” Russia Beyond the Headlines, January 15, 2015; this article is the source of quotes by Georgy Chizhov, Nikita Denisov, and Yelena Bobrova.

  Their Irony, Humor (and Art) Can Save China

  135 The phenomenal prices realized for the works of contemporary Chinese artists are reported in Nazanin Lankarani, “The many faces of Yue Minjun,” New York Times, December 5, 2012; Ian Johnson, “Some Chinese artists are testing their limits,” Wall Street Journal, October 2, 2009; and Eileen Kinsella, “Who are the top 30 Chinese artists at auction?” Artnet News, September 8, 2014.

  135 The quotes from Lao Li (Li Xianting) come from Jackie Wullschager, “No more Chinese whispers,” Financial Times, October 2, 2004.

  136 Quotes from Cao Fei and Huang Rui come from Christopher Beam, “Beyond Ai Weiwei: How China’s artists handle politics (or avoid them),” New Yorker, March 27, 2015.

  136 The history of Chinese artist villages is explored in Angela Lin Huang, “Leaving the city: Artist villages in Beijing,” Media Culture Journal 14, no. 4 (August 2011). The quote from Li Wenzi comes from Zhu Linyong, “Art on the move,” China Daily, January 25, 2010.

  136 Fang Lijun’s praise for Lao Li occurs in Andrew Cohen, “Off the page: Li Xianting,” Art Asia Pacific 71, November/December 2010.

  136 The shuttering of the Beijing Independent Film Festival was reported in Jonathan Kaiman, “Beijing independent film festival shut down by Chinese authorities,” Guardian, August 24, 2014.

  137 The ongoing ordeals of Yuanmingyuan “mayor” Yan Zhengxue are described in William Wan, “Chinese artist recounts his life, including the one time he painted ‘X’ on Mao’s face,” Washington Post, June 2, 2014.

  137 Ma Liuming’s 1994 arrest and incarceration is noted in the artist’s biography, “Ma Liuming,” Chinese Contemporary, 2002, at http://chinesecontemporary.com.

  137 The uproar over Zhu Yu’s video in the Fuck Off exhibition is described in Wullschager, op. cit.

  137 The quote from Wang Peng comes from William Wan, “China tried to erase memories of Tiananmen. But it lives on in the work of dissident artists,” Washington Post, May 31, 2014.

  137 Chen Guang’s work and the official reaction to it are described in Mallika Rao, “Five Chinese dissident artists who aren’t Ai Weiwei,” Huffington Post, June 10, 2014.

  137 Dai Jianyong’s arrest is reported in Jamie Fullerton, “Chinese artist who posted funny image of President Xi Jinping facing five years in prison as authorities crackdown [sic] on dissent in the arts,” Independent, May 28, 2015.

  137 The story of and quote from Zhao Zhao comes from Ulrike Knöpfel, “Risky business: China cracks down on Ai Wei Wei protégé Zhao Zhao,” Der Spiegel, August 28, 2012.

  138 Wu Yuren is the subject of Arvind Dilawar, “Teatime with Big Brother: Chinese artist Wu Yuren on life under surveillance,” Vice, June 15, 2015. Wu’s exchange with his arresting officers relies on a November 4, 2015, personal communication via Ysabelle Cheung, Klein Sun Gallery, New York.

  138 The description of the arrest and torture of Wang Zang and the quote from his wife come from Wan, op. cit. Tan Jianying’s observation on the limits to freedom of speech in modern China comes from Jack Chang, “Chinese art colony’s free-speech illusion shatters,” Asahi Shumbun, October 17, 2014.

  139 Quotes from Xi Jinping and other PRC officials on the role of art and artists in society come from Fullerton, op. cit.

  139 My discussion of Ai Weiwei’s work and Chinese officials’ response to it relies on Emily Rauhala, “Complete freedom, always just eluding the grasp of Chinese artist Ai Weiwei,” Washington Post, July 30, 2015. The quote “Chinese art is merely a product . . .” com
es from Ai Weiwei, “Ai Weiwei: China’s art world does not exist,” Guardian, September 10, 2012; “They always stand on the side of power” comes from Beam, op. cit. The comment from the Beijing curator critical of Ai Weiwei comes from Wan, op. cit.

  140 The anonymous Chinese curator’s and Ouyang Jianghe’s words come from Lankarani, op. cit.

  The Artists of South Africa: Separate, and Equal

  175 Observations on the South African art scene by National Gallery director Riason Naidoo come from Jason Edward Kaufman, “South Africa’s art scene is poised for a breakthrough—at home and abroad,” Huffington Post, February 19, 2013.

  175 For full text of the ANC’s objections to The Spear, see Jackson Mthembu, “ANC outraged by Brett Murray’s depiction of President Jacob Zuma,” African National Congress, May 17, 2012. Protesters’ vandalization of the painting is described in Alex Perry, “South Africa: Over-exposing the President,” Time, May 23, 2012. The Shembe Church leader’s call to stone Brett Murray to death, and quotes from Steven Friedman, Aubrey Masango, and Jonathan Jansen, come from Karen MacGregor, “A spear to the heart of South Africa,” New York Times, June 5, 2012. For the withdrawal of the classification of the painting as “harmful,” see South African Press Association, “Appeal tribunal declassifies ‘The Spear,’” City Press, October 10, 2012.

  176 The withdrawal and reinstatement of Ayanda Mabulu’s painting of Zuma is the subject of “Zuma, Marikana painting pulled from Jo’burg Art Fair,” Mail & Guardian, September 27, 2013; and the quote from Avanda Mabulu (“It’s not the first time I’ve been censored . . .”) comes from Matthew Krouse, “Art Fair forced to reinstate Mabulu painting after Goldblatt threat,” Mail & Guardian, September 28, 2013.

  176 The controversy over South Africa’s choice of curators and exhibitors for the 2015 Venice Biennale is chronicled in Stefanie Jason’s reports, “Venice Biennale: SA Pavilion finally announces artists,” Mail & Guardian, April 16, 2015; and “SA trips as Joburg lands on the steps of the Venice Biennale,” Mail & Guardian, April 30, 2015 (source of the “reputation of butchering foreigners” quote); see also Jeremy Kuper, “Venice Biennale: View from the ground,” Mail & Guardian, May 20, 2015.

  Vlady’s Conquests

  177 The BBC’s assessment of Vladimir Zhirinovsky appears in British Broadcasting Corporation, “Profiles of Russia’s 2012 presidential election candidates,” BBC News, March 1, 2012; Howard Amos’s characterization comes from Howard Amos, “Russian publisher prints books about Putin under names of western authors,” Guardian, August 11, 2015.

  “Don’t Mess with Our Cultural Patrimony!”

  203 The renovation and reopening of Taiwan’s National Palace Museum was reported in Keith Bradsher, “Rare glimpses of China’s long-hidden treasures,” New York Times, December 28, 2006. Attendance figures come from “Blackout hits Taipei’s Palace Museum Thursday afternoon,” Want China Times, July 10, 2015. The opening of the Chiayi branch is the subject of “NPM southern branch to open with jadeite cabbage display,” Want China Times, September 18, 2015.

  203 The National Palace Museum’s refusal to exhibit sculptures allegedly looted from the Summer Palace is described in British Broadcasting Corporation, “Taiwan rejects ‘looted’ China art,” BBC News, October 7, 2009. The loan by the PRC of Qing dynasty relics and Taiwan’s restrictions on loans to other countries are discussed in Tania Branigan, “Chinese treasures to be reunited in Taiwan,” Guardian, February 19, 2009. For more information on cooperation between the two museums, see Yin Pumin, “Probing ancient mysteries,” Beijing Review, December 7, 2009.

  203 Quotes from White Shirt Army founder Liulin Wei come from William Wan, “Taiwan’s ‘white shirt army,’ spurred by Facebook, takes on political parties,” Washington Post, November 11, 2013.

  203 The Sunflower movement is described in “ ‘Sunflower’ protesters break on to political scene,” Economist Intelligence Unit, April 2, 2014.

  On Each Palette, a Choice of Political Colors

  210 I reported on Cai Guo-Qiang’s “Golden Missile” project in Andrew Solomon, “As Asia regroups, art has a new urgency,” New York Times, August 23, 1998.

  Enchanting Zambia

  227 Recent developments favorable to the Zambian tourism industry are discussed in Matthew Hill, “Yellow fever relaxation by South Africa helps Zambia tourism,” Bloomberg, February 5, 2015.

  Phaly Nuon’s Three Steps

  229 The horrors of the Khmer Rouge are extensively documented. For a vivid if slightly fictionalized reenactment of the atrocities, I would commend the 1984 film The Killing Fields.

  235 The death of Phaly Nuon was announced in Rob Hail, “Madame Nuon Phaly is gone,” Out of the Blog, November 27, 2012; her funeral observance is described in Sophanna Ma, “Funeral of our beloved Mum Phaly Nuon,” Ezra Vogel Special Skills School, December 2012.

  235 For in-depth analyses of the impact of human trafficking and forced displacement on the mental health of Cambodians, see Ligia Kiss et al., “Health of men, women, and children in post-trafficking services in Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam,” Lancet Global Health 3 (March 2015); and Jayson Richardson et al., “Mental health impacts of forced land evictions on women in Cambodia,” Journal of International Development, September 27, 2014.

  235 Figures on Cambodia’s suicide rate come from World Health Organization, “Mental health atlas 2011: Cambodia,” Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, World Health Organization, 2011.

  235 Figures on the proportion of mentally ill Cambodians who are permanently restrained, and on the country’s mental health budget, rely on Daniel McLaughlin and Elisabeth Wickeri, “Mental health and human rights in Cambodia,” Leitner Center for International Law and Justice, July 31, 2012.

  235 Figures on the number of psychiatrists in Cambodia come from Tanja Schunert et al., “Cambodian mental health survey,” Royal University of Phnom Penh, Department of Psychology, 2012.

  235 Proposals to relocate mentally ill citizens to pagodas are described in Radio Free Asia Khmer Service, “Cambodian province plans campaign for monks to care for mentally ill,” Radio Free Asia, April 20, 2015.

  The Open Spaces of Mongolia

  247 The decline of nomadism in Mongolia is described in World Health Organization, “WHO country cooperation strategy for Mongolia 2010–2015,” World Health Organization, 2010.

  247 Figures on the Mongolian economy rely on the World Bank press release “Poverty continued to decline, falling from 27.4 percent in 2012 to 21.6 percent in 2014,” World Bank, July 1, 2015.

  247 Riots over purported election fraud in Mongolia were reported in Tania Branigan, “Mongolia declares state of emergency as riots kill five,” Guardian, July 2, 2008; the conviction of former president Nambar Enkhbaya, in Xinhua News Agency, “Former Mongolian president jailed for four years,” CRI English, August 3, 2012.

  247 The effects of overgrazing on the environment are analyzed in Sarah Wachter, “Pastoralism unraveling in Mongolia,” New York Times, December 8, 2009; see also Troy Sternberg et al., “Tracking desertification on the Mongolian steppe through NDVI and field-survey data,” International Journal of Digital Earth 4, no. 1 (2011).

  247 The decline of many overharvested Mongolian species is discussed in Jeffrey Reeves, “Mongolia’s environmental security,” Asian Survey 51, no. 3 (2011).

  247 For more information on the impact of modern technology on daily life in Mongolia, see Jim Yong Kim, “How Mongolia brought nomads TV and mobile phones,” Bloomberg View, October 14, 2013; and Mark Hay, “Nomads on the grid,” Slate, December 5, 2014.

  247 UNESCO’s designation of Naadam as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity is documented in “Naadam, Mongolian traditional festival,” United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 2010.

  247 The repurposing of the former Lenin Museum in Ulaanbaatar is the subject of Tania Branigan, “It’s goodbye Lenin, hello dinosaur as fossils head to Mongolia museum,” Guardian, January 27, 2013. />
  Inventing the Conversation

  250 The suicide rate in Greenland at the time of my original research there had been most recently published in Tine Curtis and Peter Bjerregaard’s Health Research in Greenland (1995), page 31.

  255 The descriptions of polar hysteria, mountain wanderer syndrome, and kayak anxiety come from Inge Lynge, “Mental disorders in Greenland,” Man & Society 21 (1997). I must thank John Hart for providing the parallel to “running amok.”

  256 Malaurie’s quote (“There is an often dramatic contradiction . . .”) is from Jean Malaurie, The Last Kings of Thule (1982), page 109.

  258 The high incidence of suicide in Greenland is explored in Jason George, “The suicide capital of the world,” Slate, October 9, 2009; and Lene Bech Sillesen, “Another word for suicide,” Al Jazeera, November 21, 2015. Sillesen’s report is the source of Greenland’s current suicide rates, and the quote from Astrid Olsen. For a scholarly discussion of the subject, see Peter Bjerregaard and Christina Viskum Lytken Larsen, “Time trend by region of suicides and suicidal thoughts among Greenland Inuit,” International Journal of Circumpolar Health 74 (2015).

  259 Greenland’s vote for independence from Denmark is reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, “Self-rule introduced in Greenland,” BBC News, June 21, 2009.

  259 Expansion of hydroelectric power in Greenland is discussed in “Greenland powers up fifth hydroelectric plant,” Arctic Journal, September 6, 2013.

  259 The dramatic calving of a Manhattan-size chunk from a Greenland glacier is reported in British Broadcasting Corporation, “Greenland’s Jakobshavn Glacier sheds big ice chunk,” BBC News, August 24, 2015.

  Naked, Covered in Ram’s Blood, Drinking a Coke, and Feeling Pretty Good

  262 For a discussion of the tradition of communicating with spirits among the Senegalese, see William Simmons, Eyes of the Night: Witchcraft among a Senegalese People (1971).