Dreamer

Arseny Zhilyaev became interested in early Soviet museology after moving from Voronezh to Moscow in 2008. The artist felt the echoes of the historical avant‑garde in the still unreconstructed halls of the former Museum of the Revolution (since 1998, the Museum of Contemporary History of Russia). The display was a spatial collage that immersed the viewer in a playful environment where the same event was presented from different perspectives. Marxist museum practices, especially the experimental activities of Aleksei Fedorov‑Davydov, a representative of the social‑formalist approach to art who headed the New Russian Art Department at the Tretyakov Gallery from 1929 to 1934, formed the basis of Zhilyaev's creative method. His participatory projects and immersive installations address an imagined future, allowing a critical look at the contemporary socio‑political context. The artist also uses the conceptual method, where ideas prevail over aesthetics, turning the works into philosophical statements.

Art as production, the analysis of labor relations, and the exploration of modes of representation are the main themes in Zhilyaev's creative practice. The sculptural installation Dreamer is part of an imaginary museum of the revolution where exhibits narrating the history of the liberation movement of the future are presented. The naturalistically presented image of a man lying on his side is meant to depict an iconic moment in the “story,” a fainting spell that happened to Ivan Shchegolev (one of Zhilyaev's characters) after a 15-hour work shift. According to legend, this episode served as an impulse for the “worker of the image processing shop” to recognise the urgent need for social change. Subsequently, Shchegolev became one of the leaders of the coming uprising of the new proletariat. Dreamer is therefore a kind of play with alternative versions of the future presented through the familiar form of a sculpture, familiar to many viewers from the displays at local history museums.

The installation was shown at the New Tretyakov on Krymsky Val as part of Documents and Monuments, a project to renew the permanent exhibition of the Department of New Trends. Intruding into the usual museum context, the hyperrealistic Dreamer problematizes the boundary between art and life: the viewer feels anxiety and discomfort, facing the moral choice of lending a helping hand or passing by. The moment of decision sharpens the awareness of social responsibility, making us think about how often we ignore the suffering of others in our daily lives. Art becomes not just an object of aesthetic pleasure but also a catalyst for social change, encouraging viewers to take action and empathize.