The Western Artist in Stalin’s Moscow: The Case of Albin Amelin

Abstract

This article is a reconstruction of travel experiences of Swedish artist Albin Amelin in Moscow in 1937–1938, based on archival materials. It focuses on the exchange between the Soviet Union and Western artists in the interwar period and shows international Soviet art contacts as part of the state’s diplomatic work. This case study enables a detailed observation of the elements of the Soviet hospitality industry, and a description of various practical aspects of the artist’s stay in Moscow.

Keywords

• art diplomacy
• Sweden
• Soviet Union
• 1930s
• industry of hospitality
• the Great Terror