Architecture at the end of the earth: photographing the Russian North

256 Pages·2015·16.488 MB·English

by  Brumfield, William Craft

Architecture
At the end of the eArth

Architecture
At the end of the eArth
Photographing the Russian North

text And PhotogrAPhs by
William Craft Brumfield
duke university Press | durhAm And London | 2015
© 2015 Duke University Press
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America on acid- free paper ♾
Designed by Heather Hensley
Typeset in Garamond Premier Pro by Tseng Information Systems, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Brumfield, William Craft, 1944–
Architecture at the end of the earth : photographing the Russian North /
text and photographs by William Craft Brumfield.
pages cm
isbn 978-0-8223-5906-7 (hardcover : alk. paper)
isbn 978-0-8223-7543-2 (e-book)
1. Architecture—Russia, Northern. 2. Architecture—Russia, Northern—
Pictorial works. 3. Russia, Northern—Description and travel. 4. Russia,
Northern—Pictorial works. i. Title.
nA1195.n57b78 2015
720.947′1—dc23 2014046255
Frontispiece: Varzuga. Church of the Dormition of the Virgin (1674),
northwest view above right bank of Varzuga River. Photograph: July 21, 2001.
Cover: Kimzha. Church of the Hodegetria Icon of the Virgin, southwest view.
Duke University Press gratefully acknowledges the generous support of
Richard Hedreen, who provided funds toward the publication of this book.
in memory of Tamara Kholkina
(September 30, 1955– August 1, 2009)
Blessed are the pure in heart . . .

contents
ix AcknowLedgments
1 introduction
Exploring the Russian North
21 into the forest
A Note on the Architectural Heritage of the Russian North
29 one The Western Shore of the White Sea
73 two From the Vytegra Region to the Mologa River
115 three Kargopol and Its Surrounding Villages
151 four From Vologda to Veliky Ustiug
207 five Along the Northern Dvina and Beyond to the Arctic Circle
243 PostscriPt
What Will Remain of the Heritage of the Russian North?

AcknowLedgments
The journey through the Russian North that I present in this book has unfolded
over many years. During that period I have experienced the generosity of many
individuals and organizations, both in the United States and in Russia. I will not
attempt to place order on my memory; rather, the names are listed as they come to
me: Dr. James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress, for many years of interest in
my work and for providing the support that sent me to so many remote corners of
Russia; Dr. Dan E. Davidson, president of American Councils for International
Education, who has done so much to keep me in the field; Dr. Blair A. Ruble, for-
merly director of the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies in Wash-
ington, who supported many publications of my fieldwork. Tulane University
has over the years provided the essential base for my work. Specific projects and
periods in the Russian North have been supported by the John Simon Guggen-
heim Memorial Foundation, the National Humanities Center, the National En-
dowment for the Humanities (with their excellent magazine Humanities), the
National Council for East European and Eurasian Research, and the American
Councils for International Education. Special thanks are due to the Photographic
Archives (now Image Collections) at the National Gallery of Art, which has
housed the basic collection of my photographic work since 1985 with the steady
guidance of curator Andrea Gibbs.
In Russia I am daunted by the challenge of acknowledging the generosity of so
many people, a number of whom are no longer with us: Dr. Aleksei I. Komech, di-