CIRCUS 17 presents a new take on what happened in the Russian Empire in 1917 during the February
and the October Revolutions, as well as on the politics in general and revolution as social fact.
Using the techniques of the classical Greek tragedy, retrospective and visionary art, artist Uldus Bakhtiozina
approaches the revolution as a circus performance typical for early 20th century. Uldus warns the
spectators against indifference and herd mentality. Transferring her images to monochrome, the artist
emphasises four powers: the red one that represents revolutionaries, the white one that personifies the
white movement, the golden one that stands for religion, and the beige one, almost colorless, incarnating
indifference of the major part of the society. Every color takes up its faith and truth, and none of the
shades can’t be removed from this palette.