What’s it like to attend a Pussy Riot show at Jeffrey Deitch

Nadya Tolokonnikova, one of the founders of the Russian protest art group called Pussy Riot, had her debut solo performance in Los Angeles. The exhibit opened at the beginning of the year.

At the age of 33, Tolokonnikova, an activist and artist, persists to express her resistance to the authoritarian rule of Russian President Putin. Her latest video show called "Putin's Ashes," is a provoking piece that showcases her constant dissent. In this emphatic interpretation, Tolokonnikova is the leader of a group of women clothed in black slips, fishnet hosiery, red balaclavas, and opera gloves in a ceremonial ritual. They burn a large painted picture of Putin, suggesting their opposition, and collect the ashes. The performance, which draws inspiration from the Russian attack on Ukraine, features the women launching words against Putin, symbolically predicting his eventual expulsion from office and even his death. Among the players were refugees who had been pushed to flee Ukraine due to the endless war.

According to Tolokonnikova, all people who participated in the show had to possess a psychic vibrant association with Putin. The week-long exhibition started with a Pussy Riot performance, and all visitors were provided with balaclavas upon entry, emphasizing the idea that anyone can be part of Pussy Riot, as Tolokonnikova expressed. In preparation for the performance, the previous months have been filled with training for Tolokonnikova, and interestingly, she was not interested in the inaugural Pussy Riot survey show curated by Masha Alyokhina at Kling & Bang Gallery in Reykjavík, Iceland.

Alyokhina and Tolokonnikova, two of the three Pussy Riot members who were sentenced and imprisoned for hooliganism following the group's 2012 Punk Prayer performance demonstration at Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior, are both actively continuing the work of Pussy Riot. As a loosely systematized and non-hierarchical web, Pussy Riot allows anyone to assume its name for political protest. While Alyokhina was focused on preparing the exhibition in Iceland, Tolokonnikova delved into the world of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) as a co-founder of Unicorn DAO, a cryptocurrency fund that accepts artwork by female and LGBTQ artists. To date, the fund has received over 1,000 pieces worth almost $5 million. In March 2022, she sold an NFT featuring the Ukrainian flag for the equivalent of $6 million through UkraineDAO, a decentralized independent association dedicated to helping the country's military. Tolokonnikova firmly thinks of the transformative potential of crypto art as a catalyst for societal transformation.

In significant growth, Tolokonnikova has launched a new NFT project titled "Matriarchy Now" in collaboration with Rolling Stone. The project showcases photographs of the artist captured by celebrated photographer Ellen von Unwerth. The profits from this endeavor are directed towards Tolokonnikova and John Caldwell's reproductive rights charity venue, LegalAbortion.Eth. During numerous interviews, Tolokonnikova emphasized the value of this project, stating that it's a crucial project for her and the photographer, as they come from Russia and have first-hand experience with the challenges met in the reproductive rights movement. Plus, in addition to her involvement in the NFT project, Tolokonnikova is the co-founder of Mediazona, an independent news outlet in Russia that aims to provide alternative views. Notably, she also holds an OnlyFans page, using her platform to entangle activism and feminism within the realm of sex work.

Finally, despite her persistent efforts, the Russian government continues to view Tolokonnikova as a threat and designated her as a foreign agent in December 2021. As a vocal dissident, Tolokonnikova now lives in a state of official geo-anonymity, unable to openly disclose her place of residence due to the risk of facing reprisals for her ongoing activism.