Introduction: low budget theory and philosophy of art in post-soviet Russia

• Published in: Third text no. 65; pp. 301 - 304
• Main Author: Tupitsyn, Victor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.12.2003
• ISSN: 0952-8822

Introduces this issue of Third Text exploring the art of post-Soviet Russia. The author notes the uneasiness provoked in the contributors by the original title proposed for the issue, `Low budget theory and philosophy of art in post-Soviet Russia , argues the appropriateness of the term `low budget and its application to theoretical and philosophical production, and considers the problem of the intellectual in mass culture. He emphasizes the `centauric positive-negative construction of intellectual identity, explains how the selection of authors work together to form a similar `centauric unity, and outlines how the notion of `low budget theory' applies to post-Soviet Russian intellectuals and artists. He examines the differences between Soviet and post-Soviet society and how they affect the lives of artists and intellectuals, and concludes by commenting on the phenomenon of low budget intellectual magazines with small circulations and their influence in contemporary Russia.