Exploring visual and verbal figurations of the Lenin line in light of Vladimir Vernadsky’s theoretical formulation of the “biosphere,” Porter shows how the ur-queue of Soviet Communism spawned surprisingly heterodox answers to the questions of how time moves and how cultures shape and are shaped by natural forces.
Impact of Discrimination on Integration of Emigrants From the Aggressor Country (with Ivetta Sergeeva)
Using results from a large scale panel survey of Russian migrants, this talk will discuss the effect of discrimination on the assimilation intentions of Russian migrants, focusing on language learning as a key indicator.
‘My Own Atlantis’ and the Anthropocene in Russian Comics (with Jose Alaniz)
St. Petersburg artist Olga Lavrenteva’s sprawling 2023 graphic novel My Own Atlantis is many things — rollicking treasure hunt, tragicomic reflection on classic Russian literature/history — all anchored by the work’s setting: the Karelian Isthmus.
Jumping the Line: Family Self-welfare and the Waning of Communism (with Małgorzata Mazurek)
This talk discusses the moralities of consumption in late communism to understand how practices of “jumping the line,” which people understood as a form of family-centered self-care clashed with official norms of social justice and the communist welfare state.
