There are many interesting sculptures and art objects in the Peter and Paul Fortress. One of them I have long wanted to photograph, but it was not the easiest task. Choosing a moment when there aren't too many tourists in the area seemed unrealistic. Well, unless it's pouring rain... But a clear, sunny weather was also a prerequisite. On a cloudy day the art object loses much of its expressiveness.
The genre sculpture The Twelve Chairs was created by masters of the Peter Forge Guild in 2007. The name of the composition alludes to the popular novel by Ilya Ilf and Evgeny Petrov, the plot of this novel is constructed around the search for diamonds, hidden in one of the twelve chairs. Some viewers believe that the composition's twelve chairs are numbers on a dial, and that the entire composition works like a sundial.
Others suggest that it is a kind of compass which lacks a magnetic hand. This interpretation is supported by the orientation of the chairs to the cardinal points and the figure of a globe-tree in the centre. The authors of the composition are not giving interviews on "what we wanted to tell and show you", they believe that some kind of reticence and possibility of free interpretation is important for perception of the art object.
Transparent glass plates are inserted in the backs of the chairs, resembling lollipops. It was for the sake of these multicoloured glass pieces that I had to wait for sunny weather for the photo shoot. I had hoped that the multicoloured highlights would be visible in the snow, but I was wrong about that, only the quirky shadows contrasted against the white snow. Normally people would crowd around these chairs, wanting to sit in the fairy-tale surroundings for a bit and take a picture. That's why it's hard to get the shots from different angles - all the time someone's ear or sleeve gets caught in the frame... but it turns out that if you get there early enough, you can catch the sun come up and there are no visitors yet. I was also lucky with the photogenic weather on this day - the early April snowfall added the perfect white backdrop to my photos.
The side streets were still sparsely populated, while the central square of the fortress had already started to draw visitors. Organised groups were gathering near the entrance to the Peter and Paul Cathedral and on the square in front of the bell tower. But I turned off in the direction of Anninsky Cavalier and found myself in a sparsely populated area again.
In the comments of one of your previous posts you wrote that you were using my stories to prepare a tourist itinerary. I remembered that, and purposely lingered outside the Money History Museum to take the following photos. Next to the museum is a courtyard with a small cafeteria.
The Peter and Paul Fortress is a very popular tourist spot, and you'll have no trouble finding cafés and restaurants along the main street. But if you want to relax in a quiet place and have tea with a very tasty pastry, all for a cheap price, this cafeteria is the best choice. It's a favourite of mine. An advertisement in the cafeteria also advertises lunches - I can't say anything about lunches, I haven't tried them, but I really like the pastries.
A little further along I came to another gate. Through this gate you can enter a meadow to the north of the fortress. The snow is melting fast on the stone paths of the fortress, but this meadow is still covered with a white blanket of snow... I don't think it will be for long. Right now, as I write these words, it's already +10°C on the thermometer.
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| Smartphone | Google Pixel 3a |
| Location | Saint Petersburg, Russia |