"British Petersburg" photo exhibition

"British Petersburg" photo exhibition will open at the Sovereign's Bastion of the Petropavlovsk Fortress (the State History Museum, St. Petersburg) on Thursday. The exhibition is devoted to the development of cultural ties between Great Britain and St. Petersburg from Peter the Great's times till the present day.

A competitive selection preceded the exhibition, Olga Gavrilova, the director of the history museum foundation, told RIA Novosti. The selection board, which included representatives of the British General Consulate, the British Council in St. Petersburg and some cultural figures, chose 50 out of 450 photos by 30 Russian photographers.

These photos vividly reflect the influence of English culture on the architecture, sculpture and landscape design in St. Petersburg. The photographers took pictures of architectural monuments, created by English masters in St. Petersburg - bridges, designed by British engineers, creations of famous architect Charles Cameron in St. Petersburg and its surroundings, etc. The photos also reflect contemporary presence of Great Britain in St. Petersburgs - visits by high-ranked persons or the British fleet. Some photographers tried to find common features in St. Petersburg and London's architecture.

"British Petersburg" is the third exhibition of the series "Foreigners in Petersburg". Two previous exhibitions were devoted to Dutchmen and Frenchmen in the city on the Neva river. Photo exhibitions "Swiss Petersburg" and "Italian Petersburg" will be held soon. All in all, eight exhibitions will be arranged as part of the project in 2002-2003. The project "Foreigners in Petersburg" will end with the edition of a catalogue of the best photos of all the exhibitions.