shashasha

One of the Soviet artist’s defining projects, published in a hard-cover book

The “Crimean Snobbism” series was the first time in Mikhailov’s career that he turned the camera towards himself. Photographing himself, his wife Vita and a group of friends as they relax, play around and amuse themselves during a trip to the holiday destination of Crimea in 1982, Mikhailov captured the merry, carefree bliss of him and his friends while also creating a series that revealed the social unevenness of the Soviet socialist reality.

Mikhailov started to photograph while working as an engineer. He lost his job when it was discovered that he had taken nude photographs, and began to dedicate himself to photography. This book was originally published in conjunction with an exhibition at Rat Hole Gallery in Tokyo.