Siberia: In the Eyes of Russian Photographers

This book and its corresponding exhibition set out to bring a comprehensive collection of Russian photography to Western viewers, thereby creating a historical portrait of the region as seen through local eyes. The chosen photographs are multilayered depictions of culture and history, ranging from surveying expeditions and the creation of Siberia's famed railways , but the insights of the photographs are hampered by the rambling text. Bendavid-Val, formerly Director of Photography Publishing for National Geographic Books, has assembled a stunning selection of images, ranging from the highly individualistic to historical, but as someone who has only recently begun traveling to Siberia, her writing stumbles over the same problem of voyeurism she sets out to overcome. Each chapter%E2%80%94loosely organized around themes of war, industry, and photographic periods%E2%80%94pieces together a patchwork narrative cobbled from second-person accounts from Siberian photographers, literary excerpts, personal anecdote, and historical summary which, though informative, reads as disjointed and meandering. The photographs are worth a view, but take the text with a grain of salt. (Oct.)