A glass of wine was raised during the centennial celebration of a decorated WWII veteran, Semyon Krasilschikov, in the Orange Grill Restaurant. Though the collapse of the USSR in 1991 changed Russia significantly and stimulated rapid modernization, the neighborhood of Brighton Beach savors the past and is a living museum of Soviet nostalgia. A life ensconced in traditions, values and the iconology of old world beliefs, this close-knit insular world of Soviet migrants lives a cloistered existence in the shadow of New York City. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
“Silka”, which means exile in Russian, is a photographic exploration of Brighton Beach, NY; the most densely populated Russian-speaking community in the Western Hemisphere.
Though the collapse of the USSR in 1991 changed Russia significantly and stimulated rapid modernization, Brighton Beach savors the past and is a living museum of Soviet nostalgia. A life ensconced in traditions, values and the iconology of the old world beliefs; this close-knit insular world of Soviet émigrés lives a cloistered existence in the shadow of New York City.
Father Nikodim, sanctifying the chapel built by recovering addicts and current residents of House of Labor and Love. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Photographer’s note
In 2002, at the age of 16, I emigrated from Moscow to New York. Settling with my family in Westchester County, and already fluent in English, I quickly assimilated into the fabric of American life. Whatever homesickness I felt, I cured by visiting Brighton Beach. There, I stepped off the train into a historical period piece, а wax museum of Soviet nostalgia, full of WWII vets, grandmas in bright lipstick, and shady-looking men in tracksuits. Remnants of another epoch, these Russian-speaking Americans, had created a comfortable mold for future generations of post-Soviet émigrés to settle: a community that insulated itself with a language that had now adopted words like “fun,” “slice,” “train”, and “bye.”
For a young émigré from Moscow, everything was oddly familiar, yet slightly distorted, pickled in the memories of yesteryear.
Soup kitchen and prayer services on the boardwalk at Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
In 2018, which marked half my life lived in the United States, I moved to Brighton Beach to explore the meaning of this post-Soviet enclave, with its lifestyle and traditions that Russian immigrants were once so eager to leave behind, as well as my own dual identity. I made it my purpose to define this neighborhood, which resembled neither the Russia I left, nor the America I was living in. Indeed Brighton Beach, although popularized by tourists as an extension of the Coney Island sideshow, is its own country.
Photo essay
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A glass of wine was raised during the centennial celebration of a decorated WWII veteran, Semyon Krasilschikov, in the Orange Grill Restaurant. Though the collapse of the USSR in 1991 changed Russia significantly and stimulated rapid modernization, the neighborhood of Brighton Beach savors the past and is a living museum of Soviet nostalgia. A life ensconced in traditions, values and the iconology of old world beliefs, this close-knit insular world of Soviet migrants lives a cloistered existence in the shadow of New York City. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Intersection of Brighton Beach ave and Coney Island ave. Following the detente of 1972, quarter million jews were allowed to leave USSR. Cheap and abandoned, Brighton Beach became an ideal place for the emigres to settle in. Locals often say its proximity to the beach reminds them of Odessa, the point of exodus of many of the original emigres. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Salvaging parts. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Isaac Moroz, 93, in his apartment. Moroz is a WWII vet who fought in the Siege of Leningrad. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
A woman walked a dog along Brighton Beach Ave.“Silka,” which means exile in Russian, often street signs feature the Cyrillic alphabet catering to the Russian diaspora. Brighton Beach section of New York is the most densely populated Russian-speaking community in the Western Hemisphere. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Independence Day celebration in Volna restaurant. Organized by the Bay Democrats Club. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Faina Konusova, Fanya Verets and Lina Sapelnikova waiting backstage to be called to perform at the 17th annual “Your Grandmother Highness Beauty Pageant”, at the National restaurant and Nightclub. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Tanners on Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
An athlete works out on Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
A man with his pet bird. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
“Garden of Joy” adult day care center and its patrons. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Lyoka Tyagnereva, a fashion model and ballroom dancer from Saint Petersburg, Russia (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Boris Nayfeld, 70, also known as “Biba”, came to New York in 1979 from Belarus, USSR. Nayfeld is a former Brighton Beach mob boss who has been recently released from prison. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
A man enjoying a cigarette out of his apartment window. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Performers getting ready for a show at the Romanoff restaurant. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Volna Restaurant. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Vera Hatsernova (left) and Anna Malkina (right), in Hatsernova’s living room. Hatsernova is known for her salons and Malkina volunteers with veterans. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Marty, posing for a portrait on Brighton Beach ave. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Kot, a member of a motorcycle club “Bratva, Russian Motorcyclists.” Originating in Brighton Beach, Bratva has chapters around America. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Trump Village apartment complex on the border of Coney Island and Brighton Beach. This housing project was developed by Fred C. Trump, father of the current US President Donald J. Trump. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
American Association of Veterans and Invalids, honoring a Veteran and Holocaust survivor Anastasia Guildina (Center), on her 93rd birthday at the Sorefront “Y” during the meeting with the local youth. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Yugola Kishori Dasi, a Krishna follower. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
A Christian Orthodox icon of Jesus and Mary, Mother of God, in The House Of Love And Labor, which is a non profit organized by Vadim Arefiev, for rehabilitating Russian alcoholics and drug addicts. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Father Nikodim, sanctifying the chapel built by recovering addicts and current residents of House of Labor and Love. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Late night on the boardwalk. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Vera, aka “Electrica”, performs at the National restaurant and Nightclub. National restaurant is a fixture of Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
An acrobatic performance at the Romanoff restaurant. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Dance rehearsal at the Kaleidoscope dance school. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
A patron of Romanoff restaurant. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Birthday celebration at the National Restaurant and Nightclub. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Super moon over Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Soup kitchen and prayer services on the boardwalk at Brighton Beach. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)
Funeral of a WWII veteran Efim Fliterman, who fought in the battle of Stalingrad. (Photo by Alexey Yurenev/GroundTruth)