So, Shepard "Hope Poster" Fairey is still trying to ride that co-opted optimism wave — he's just co-edited the new Art for Obama book. Well, Russia's got a dusty stockpile of old presidential art too. Well, it's not "presidential" anymore/yet (Medvedev's still keeping Putin's seat warm for him until the next election). And it's less art-book and more tacky-thrift-store material, mostly. But let's dig through the pile anyway, because Yes, We Can Too... kind of.

We interrupt your blog to briefly note how excited we are to bring one of Russia's most interesting artists into RUSSIA! Limited Edition Series. Take a look at Masha Krasnova-Shabaeva's prints.

Works by winners and finalists of last year's Kandinsky Prize competition will be exhibited at the Louise Blouin Foundation in London starting October 17, trailing with them last year's politically charged ruckus.

This October, Moscow hosts the 3rd Contemporary Art Biennale. As exaggerated as everything else in Russia, passion for contemporary art reached previously unseen levels, with major exhibitions taking place in 39 locations across the city and thousands of people crowding the openings. Those who did not make it to the galleries still got a glimpse of the art or, rather, of the artists, whose photos, in a truly contemporary-art way, became an art installation in itself. Huge screens with photos of the 20 most celebrated Russian contemporary artists hanged from the underpass near Vinzavod Art Center, a space where Moscow's major art galleries are located.