Dr Rosalind Blakesley awarded 2017 Pushkin Prize

Dr Rosalind Blakesley has been awarded the 2017 Pushkin House Prize for her book 'Russian Canvas'.

The Pushkin House Russian Book Prize, now in its fifth year, aims to showcase Russia's complex culture, politics and history.  To Dr Blakesley, this makes it a particularly meaningful achievement, as she told us that she is passionate about the promotion of nuanced writing on the culture and history of Russia, and was shortlisted alongside some of the greatest political writers and historians in the field.

Professor Simon Franklin, chairman of the judges, said: "Rosalind Blakesley’s The Russian Canvas is a magnificent achievement. It weaves a wonderfully subtle and compelling story of the emergence of a national school of Russian painting. In its range, depth and accessibility it has no parallel in any language. Beautifully produced, with over 250 illustrations, it will surely remain not only the authoritative scholarly account of its subject for many years, but also a much-browsed presence on the shelves of anybody interested in the history of Russian art and culture.”

Marc Polonsky of the Polonsky Foundation, one of the funders of the prize, said: "Rosalind Blakesley's magnificent history of Russian painting is an outstanding winner of the Pushkin House Prize, which has again demonstrated the high calibre and diversity of contemporary writing about Russia."

More information is available on the Pushkin House website