Echoes of Soviet Identity. Visualising Soviet Heritage in Contemporary Art: Post-Soviet Nostalgia and the Interaction of History, Memory, and Identity.

Abstract

Echoes of Soviet Identity: Visualising Soviet Heritage in Contemporary Art is a doctoral project in the arts by Natalia Drobot that investigates post-Soviet nostalgia—often referred to as Ostalgie—and its influence on the visual culture of former Soviet and socialist countries. The research combines academic inquiry with an extensive body of original artworks, ranging from ceramics and sculpture to photography and installation. Through this artistic research, Drobot examines how contemporary artists—including herself—revisit Soviet symbols, everyday relics, and collective memory. The project engages with themes such as the fate of Lenin monuments, the militarization of daily life, and the aesthetic traces of socialism in domestic objects. Drawing on the writings of Svetlana Boym and other theorists, the work distinguishes between reflective and restorative nostalgia, proposing a visual language to articulate the ongoing tensions between history and identity. The accompanying exhibition offers a personal yet critical interpretation of Soviet heritage, shaped by the artist’s position as a Belarusian emigrant living in Belgium. By combining personal memory, theoretical framing, and artistic experimentation, Echoes of Soviet Identity opens a broader dialogue on how art can mediate historical trauma, longing, and cultural transformation in post-Soviet contexts.