Wake Up Day 2018
Design, illustration, calligraphy and graphics fiends, December 2 will be your lucky day, all thanks to the Wake Up Day festival which will gather St. Petersburg’s top art schools and creatives who will host lectures and workshops on all things paint-and-paper, and more: prepare for some serious broadening-of-horizons in botanical illustration, watercolor sketching, doodling, zentangle, and other funky kinds of drawing.
You’ll be also able to experiment with alcohol inks, epoxy resin (both for drawing purposes, just so that we’re on the same page), and a next-generation graphics tablet Wacom. The event will be held in the Tkachi creative space. Tickets cost 500 rubles for one person and 900 rubles for two; a bargain of the century that will maybe allow you to buy one pencil for a change if you manage to wheedle a friend into participating.
EcoCup international festival of green cinema
Anticipating a global consumerism fest that is about to begin in December, the international eco-friendly festival EcoCup will screen the crème de la crème of green cinema on December 1-4 in St. Petersburg.
This weekend’s program includes: The Chocolate Case, a featurette depicting ‘three playful and cheeky journalists’ uncovering unsightly practices in the chocolate production industry in a bid to change it for the better, Wasted: The story of food waste, the documentary aimed at changing how people buy, cook and eat food, both screened on December 1, and on December 2, Into the Okavango, a passionate conservation biologist’s epic four-month expedition along the Okavango Delta, In the Same Boat, an artistic analysis of the effects of globalisation, which presents an optimistic argument for the future of the planet (such originality much wow), and Yasuni Man, a story of the conflict centering on Yasuni (a wilderness forest in the depths of South America) that has pitted biodiversity and human rights against extractive industries and human consumption.
All the films come hand in hand with additional events aimed at enhancing their message: discussions, lectures, and a dinner from the food rational consumption activists managed to ‘save’ (take from that what you will), cooked by a restaurant chef Ilya Shapiro. Admission is free, you just need to register here for each individual event you want to attend, and here if you feel adventurous enough to drop by said dinner.
Gold Turtle exhibition and ‘adopt don’t shop’ pets fest
Where are our nature lovers at? Loft Project Etagi is the place for you to attend over the weekend. Firstly, because of the XII Wildlife Festival ‘Golden Turtle’, which will open on November 30 under the inspiring banner of ‘Freedom. Creativity. Scope’, showcasing the second-to-none works that made it into the final of a prestigious wildlife photo competition The Golden Turtle 2018. These are not your typical wildlife snaps: the exhibition includes photographs, paintings, and eco-posters, with an artist’s integrity and ethical treatment of animals at the heart of the selection process. There will also be workshops by photography pros, documentary screenings and lectures on this very topical topic, as well as a display of works by Dutch wildlife photographer Jan Vermeer. Tickets cost 350 rubles.
Secondly, because of the ‘Festive Miracle’, an ‘adopt don’t shop’ event breathing some sense into the phrase of ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’, and into the heads of people thinking of buying a pet to brighten up their long winter evenings. It’s hosted by a local animal shelter ‘Abandoned Angels’ in a hope to find their 400 feline and 20 canine chargés a loving home. All cats and dogs have been vaccinated and will attend the event with all the necessary documents and their personal belongings packed and ready for the big move.
The organizers also promise to fill the event, which is to take place on December 1-2 between 11 am and 9 pm, with festive miracles and a rich cultural program. Tickets cost 100 rubles, kids up to seven years old have free admission. Take your passport and a pet carrier if you’re feelin’ serious (and if you’re a student living in a dorm, ask whether you’re allowed to keep a pet), and make sure to spread the word.
Artisanal Things fair
Dreading the imminent hunt for Christmas and New Year presents for your friends and family? Here’s an event to help you out. Held on December 1-2, the Artisanal Things fair will be chock-a-block with (skillfully) handmade coats, hats, bags, toys, jewelry, vases, rugs, interior decorations and other present material provided by over 350 local artisans. There will also be workshops and contests with prizes.
The whole hubbub will take place on Inzhenernaya St. 13 starting from 11 am; admission is free. Swing by to get your holiday shopping sorted once and for all, you’ll thank yourself later (take it from the biggest present-buying slowpoke that ever existed).
Have a nice weekend! Yours truly, ITMO.NEWS
