Drawing inspiration from the last days of the Soviet Union, graffiti artists in St. Petersburg welcomed Vladimir Putin’s inauguration to his fourth presidential term on Monday with a “Swan Lake” mural.
Scenes from the “Swan Lake” ballet interrupted television programs across the country on Aug. 19, 1991, when Communist coup plotters attempted to wrest control from reformers and reverse the USSR’s advancing collapse.
The sentiment was reflected in the image of four cross-armed ballerinas jumping sideways that appeared overnight in St. Petersburg, its creators explained Monday.
“All we have to say is that it would be better if they showed ‘Swan Lake now',” the Yav Zone art collective wrote on social media.
Citing possible legal repercussions, the group said it opted against its traditionally comprehensive explanations for their works.
Elsewhere, a Russian-Italian luxury brand marked Putin’s return to the presidency with a limited release of inauguration-themed iPhones and gold-plated keypad phones as part of its “Tsar-Telephone” line.
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