Kommissia
Modern art scene is pretty rough. You have to be a Finnish lesbian amputee or a 16-year old nazi in a pink bunny suit (I'm not making this up) to attract attention of other artistic minds. On top of that every lazy ass is either an artist or a writer. A small number of Russians believe they can handle both.
Now, the whole idea of drawing comics in Russia is pretty ridiculous; Russians hate American culture, making fun of hamburgers and Hollywood movie clichés while enjoying the new Mikhalkov or Bondarchuk masterpiece and reading Casual in Shokoladnica, saved from deadly clutches of soulless mainstream. Needless to say, they are completely ignorant of the fact that in less hamburger-driven countries like France or Belgium graphic novels are widely considered art and our generally accepted stereotypes would appear nothing short of a laughing matter. There is no market for comics in Russia and I'm pretty sure I won't live long enough to witness its painful birth.
Yet, Moscow is lucky enough to have its own local annual Comicon rip-off, dedicated exclusively to comics unlike American conventions that incorporate movies, videogames and basically all species of dork entertainment. Makes alot of sense, doesn't it? This annual event, proudly called Kommissia festival is being held almost since the beginning of the 21st century, yet the progress is hardly noticeable. How about that - to have your print hanging on the wall you have to pay 1500 rubles. That's right, once you're invited to participate in an art show, you're supposed to pay for that fateful opportunity.
The whole miserable charade is led by an eccentric fellow known as Hihus. Always noted for being Russian's main comic artist by respectful media like Moskovskii Komsomolets, Hihus art strangely resemble that of a 9-year old which must be the reason why this years main art prize of the festival went to an actual 9-year old, who was brave enough to challenge Hihus and the gang. Somehow, the gang was rather disappointed by that decision. Seeing how an insolent brat got their deserved anime figurine or whatever fabulous prize was assigned this year, they starting filling their shitty blogs with eternal hatred for the kid in the best traditions of Throbbing Gristle's early poetry.
Every Spring you can find Hihus' interviews in every other paper and each and every year they are more and more similar. Basically, the godfather of Russian comics expresses his pain for the ignorant masses, blindingly refusing to accept the new form of art. Indeed, it's easier to publish a magazine with hardcore child pornography than a comic book in Russia, but quite frankly, the presented scene doesn't have much to offer. Here's a lovely example of what might be called "a typical Russian comic" - Amen Comics. Lots of countries have their ridiculous little religious comics no one cares about, but here it's taken to the extreme. Drawn by an ex-porn collector turned to God, Amen Comics are amazingly painful to look at. The author is absolutely unrivalled in depicting innocent children in the most grotesque and horrifying fashion. If the art itself being a rather awful Christian reproduction of 90s Alien posters wasn't enough, the stories will blow every wretched atheist shithead to the wall. How about that - a boy steals some alien shoes, the aliens come chasing him, the boy prays to God and God KILLS the aliens. Apparently, the author has his own interpretation of the holy book, since the theme of praying to God to avoid punishment comes back in a pseudo-historical comic. The only diffence is that instead of aliens a couple of innocent dogs get shot. Imagining kids reading this kind of stuff makes me shiver. Frank Miller and Junji Ito have alot to learn from a certain Russian religious artist.
To be completely honest, there is quite a number of truly gifted and worthy artist, but as you look at the scene it's more like a handful of diamonds lost in a pond of shit. Also, it's all about party and that's where Kommissia is so much superior to boring-ass American dorkfests. Don't expect any artshow hipsters patiently sipping on their fucking whiskey-ginger ale and talking about the utmost significance of a screw as a symbol in American art of 1982. Seeing a bunch of childrens book artists getting wasted on a kiddy playground, swearing like cunts and accidently beating the hell out of each other is a remarkable sight, just as much as a true Russian wedding or any other celebration bearing the weight of mysterious Slavic soul.
For the eXile magazine.