Untitled Steps from Siberia Series

Anna Shteynshleyger's large-scale photographs present views of the sublime landscape of Siberia. Shteynshleyger traveled to her native Russia specifically to photograph the former location of the Gulags, the notorious labor camps of the former Soviet Union, where numerous people were imprisoned. Shteynshleyger is interested in the paradoxical relationship between the beautiful, wide-open natural spaces and their history as sites of containment and oppression. —Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago


Anna Shteynshleyger's photographs of Siberia examine the sites of Russian labor camps under the former Communist regime. Specifically, the images in her Siberia series are the culmination of three different trips to different regions of Russia: Kolyma, Perm, and Moscow and its surroundings.

The juxtaposition of these visually stunning landscapes with their history of containment and oppression draws an interesting paradox about the character of modern Russia. Issues of place and history are further complicated by the way Shteynshleyger's landscapes reference those of 19th century Russian painter Isaak Levitan. She also counts among her influences the work of 16th century Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder (Hunters on the Snow in particular) and 20th century Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky.—Kendra Greene, Museum of Contemporary Photography