In Amsterdam, a major event linked to uncensored Russian-language culture has taken place for the second time in just over a month. Earlier, on September 4, the exhibition Artists against the Kremlin: Virus closed in the city, and now Vidim Fest has been held there.
The organizers said they chose the Dutch capital for two reasons. On the one hand, it is one of the main European hubs for Russian speakers. On the other, Amsterdam is easy to reach from different countries across Europe.
The festival was prepared by a team of nine people. Over two days, the program included 20 events that, according to the organizers, attracted more than 4,000 visitors.
The main venue was Podium Mozaiek, a theater located in a former church building. The space is known for hosting multicultural events, which matched the festival’s concept.
Two independent book projects were invited to participate: the Berlin author-run bookstore Babel and the Amsterdam children’s and family bookstore Lampeshka. Both are known for their careful selection of titles and prepared special collections of adult and children’s books for the festival.
The program deliberately brought together books published both inside Russia and through the so-called new tamizdat. At the Babel stand, for example, Fairy Tale by Vladimir Sorokin, published by Freedom Letters, stood alongside the album This Is Navalny by Yevgeny Feldman, released by BAbook, as well as selected titles from Russian publishers Ad Marginem, Seans, and Eksmo-AST.