Press Release, 01.02.2023

Photo: Yelena Osipova at the opening of her exhibition in the office of the St.Petersburg branch of Yabloko / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

An exhibition of anti-war paintings and posters by the famous artist and activist Yelena Andreyevna Osipova opened at the office of the St. Petersburg branch of the Yabloko party on Tuesday, 31 January. In addition, on this day visitors also participated in the monthly action of writing letters to Russian political prisoners.

Yelena Osipova told journalists that she had been very upset and worried since the beginning of the special military operation in Ukraine, she regularly took to the streets of St. Petersburg with her anti-war art posters.

“I didn’t count how many works I had done since the beginning of last year, but a lot of them were taken away from me by the police. They took them away, and never returned them,” Osipova said to journalists. “My protest is for the cessation of hostilities, as every day of hostilities brings new victims. But all this was clear in 2014, everything was being prepared then. I have posters from that time too.”

Alexander Shishlov, Coordinator of the Federal Political Committee of Yabloko and head of the regional branch of the Yabloko party, opening the exhibition, also noted that some of Osipova’s works originally planned for the exhibition had to be removed due to concerns about possible fines for “discrediting”.

“We are very grateful to Yelena Andreyevna Osipova that she gave us her works in order to draw the attention of society, in such an artistic way, to the tragedy that is happening now,” Shishlov said.

Boris Vishnevsky, Deputy Chairman of the Yabloko party, shared that he had known Yeena Andreyevna Osipova for many years. She participates with her paintings  in every major political action in St. Petersburg in any weather.

“Her paintings appeal to our conscience, our sense of justice. They do not allow to calm down!”, Vishnevsky noted.

Photo: Olga Tsepilova, Chair of the Green Faction of Yabloko, (left), and Olga Shtannikova, a member of the Federal Arbitration of Yabloko, (right), writing postcards to political prisoners / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

Anyone who wished could also write letters to Russian political prisoners deprived by the state of their freedom for their stance. Dozens of postcards with warm words will be sent by the Yabloko party to Vladimir Kara-Murza, Alexei Gorinov, defendants in the “Network case”, the “Palace case”, and others.