Yampolskaya Elena Alexandrovna biography. Elena Yampolskaya: “We must believe in God and in the ability of a person to change for the better. On patriotism and censorship
On the mission of culture in modern society, patriotism, moral education, Russian-Armenian cultural ties are told by Elena Yampolskaya, editor-in-chief of the Kultura newspaper, member of the Presidium of the Council for Culture and Art under the President of the Russian Federation.
- Elena Alexandrovna, you headed the newspaper "Culture" in 2011, with your arrival, the revival of the publication began. What are the main results of the formation of the new "Culture" you could note?
– Main result, probably, the fact that "Culture" is back on the agenda. If at first they asked me with surprise: “Does such a newspaper still exist?”, Now some want to become the heroes of our publications, others, on the contrary, are afraid of this, readers call, write, thank, argue, in general, there are fewer and fewer indifferent. Compared to the previous "Culture", which died in Bose a couple of months before the arrival of our team, we increased the circulation by 12 times. And this is just the bare minimum. We simply can’t afford to run circulations, a paper edition, especially a beautiful one, is an expensive business. But I know, for example, that in Sapsany, where the issue is distributed along with the monthly supplement - Nikita Mikhalkov's magazine "Own", passengers are extremely unhappy if they do not have enough of our printed materials. And the cleaners who pass through the cars at the end of the journey report that people do not leave Kultura - they take it with them. It is by such "trifles" that one can judge the demand. There is, of course, another way: he caught up with a million copies, filled the pages with all kinds of chewing gum, a person read, chewed, spat out, threw away, forgot. We strive to make a newspaper of great style, prolonged action, a newspaper that would provide quality food for the mind and soul.
– The topics that you raise on the pages of the newspaper go beyond culture and art, they are religion, politics, and social problems, and much more. Questions of culture are extrapolated to these areas?
– In my opinion, absolutely everything that surrounds us is part of the culture. Or it indicates its absence. Culture does not begin with an evening trip to the theater, but with how friendly you greet your neighbor in the elevator in the early morning. Culture is not only a concert at the Philharmonic, but also a series on TV. The series is even more important, because philharmonics are not available everywhere, but they watch TV and willy-nilly tune the thoughts and feelings of most of our fellow citizens according to what they see. It is impossible to implement the state cultural policy without changing the information policy. I come to different regions, and simple, naturally intelligent people ask me: “Why do participants shout and interrupt each other at different talk shows? Our parents taught us that it was indecent…” It seems to them that as the editor-in-chief of the Kultura newspaper, I know the answer. And I can only refuse invitations to such shows myself, because I consider the manner of communication implanted there disgusting, humiliating, plebeian. Thanks to Vladimir Solovyov, who in his "Sunday Evening ...", although also not free from this format, however, brings together brawlers in one story, calm and thoughtful people in another, so that everyone leaves the filming generally satisfied.
Since culture is all-encompassing, I really hope that the year of ecology declared in 2017 will become a true year of culture for us. It's time to get rid of garbage - both material and mental. And the whole world needs to take it on. I am convinced that by cleaning out yards, parks, forests, banks of water bodies, we are cleaning out the nooks and crannies of our own souls. Real love for the native land, loving care for it - that's what can really unite us.
– In the preface to your recently published book “On Culture and Beyond”, you say that the cultural baggage of each of us – a precious collection of everything we love – allows us to keep in touch with our native land. Do you think the mission of culture is so high?
I don't think it can be overestimated. Culture is the education of the senses. The lower the level of culture, the more mentally undeveloped, spiritually blind and deaf people. Hence - the shameless violation of all moral norms, disregard for the land and people, past and future.
– How do you assess the Russian-Armenian relations in the field of culture? What joint cultural projects would you like to highlight?
– In my opinion, given the excellent interstate relations that bind Russia and Armenia today, the cooperation between our cultures should be richer and more diverse. I judge this at least by the fact that I rarely receive invitations to cultural events from the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Moscow. Many of our CIS partners are much more active in this respect. I understand that there are objective financial difficulties, but saving on culture is more expensive for yourself. Culture gives people a sense of belonging to each other. It creates a common language of communication. After all, music, theater, literature, art, cinema is the most obvious and effective way to win mutual sympathy. I think that the possibilities of Armenian business in Russia have not yet been used in this field. Entrepreneurs from Armenia should invest in strengthening the friendly and charming image of their people in the minds of Russians.
– Have you been to Armenia? If yes, what are your impressions?
- Yes, I have been to Armenia twice - with the Theater under the direction of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan. Armen Borisovich and I have been friends for terribly many years. While still a student of GITIS, I came to him for the first interviews - by the way, it was for the Kultura newspaper. The genre of the interview is, in principle, very close to me as a journalist, I return to many of my heroes again and again, but Dzhigarkhanyan is probably the record holder in terms of the number of conversations we recorded. There are people who, like good cognac, are brewed from year to year, becoming deeper and more interesting with age. Communicating with them is a real pleasure ... So, Armen Borisovich made sure that, accompanying his team on tour, I saw not only Yerevan. I was taken to Sevan, to Etchmiadzin, Garni Geghart. They even arranged such exotic entertainment as swimming in sulfur springs. True, all this was quite a long time ago. So I am waiting for the opportunity to return to Armenia again. Now with a special feeling, since a year and a half ago I married beautiful person- Armenian by nationality. I was very touched that people like me - "foreign" wives - are called by Armenians "our daughter-in-law." That is, the daughter-in-law of the whole people. Acquiring so many relatives at once is troublesome, of course, but on the whole it is pleasant.
- So what's the problem?
- So far - in the banal lack of leisure. The pre-election race was added to the worries about the newspaper - the primaries of United Russia, the preliminary voting for future candidates for deputies of the State Duma of the seventh convocation, have just ended. I participated in this procedure in the Chelyabinsk region.
– We have been exploiting, as you put it, the Soviet cultural heritage for almost a quarter of a century. Are new shoots emerging?
- There are always sprouts - such is the property of life. However, they are often ruined by an illiterate and irresponsible attitude. Somewhere there is a lack of selection: alas, in all spheres of our life, not only in culture, the role of apprenticeship, the long and painstaking increase in skill is almost completely leveled. In most cases, a barely hatched sprout is not allowed to rise - they require immediate fruit. Producers need another "star" for a month or a year. They are not interested in the longer term. The fate of such precocious, as a rule, is ruined - having become accustomed to "shine" on the screen, they lose interest in self-improvement, and the producers, meanwhile, are already looking for a new victim. If the "star" is artificial, it gets boring very quickly. That is why I, with perseverance, worthy, perhaps, best use, I keep saying that we need a system of all-Russian creative competitions aimed at finding and supporting young talents, and not at personal PR for members of various television juries.
As for the Soviet cultural heritage, it's priceless. In fact, this is the cement that still holds the peoples of the former Soviet republics together - sometimes against the wishes of politicians. But we must understand that generations change. Young people do not want to live our nostalgia. They need a new artistic language, an image modern hero, a close and exciting issue. Here before the creators of now independent states stands difficult task- not to let us finally disperse, to close the doors in front of each other.
- IN Lately the topic of patriotism is often exaggerated in the press. The President of Russia devotes to this topic great attention. Is patriotism our new ideology or is it the mission of culture through which love for the motherland needs to be cultivated?
- "Patriotism" is a very good one, but it's just a word. It is necessary not to work as an echo of the president, repeating the same thing in every way, but - to each in his place - to fill this concept with content. Love for the motherland is acquired with early childhood, gradually, consists of trifles. To raise a patriot, you need good children's books, films, songs, computer games- their own, domestic. How does the average person spend their weekend today? Russian family in more or less major city? He goes to a mega mall, stares at the windows, watches this or that American movie, buys toys for children, made God knows where and depicting other people's heroes, and then eats at this or that fast food - again under an American sign. And what kind of homeland, tell me, will a child brought up in this way love? Will he even have a home?
– Development of culture – state task?
Moreover, it is a factor national security. It is necessary to systematically deal with cultural issues if we want Russia - strong and independent - to continue to exist on the world map. In addition, it is cheaper to maintain music schools and libraries than prisons and colonies.
– At the same time, the residual principle of financing culture continues to operate?
– It is very fashionable for years and even decades to complain about this principle. However, two things must be clearly understood. First, today we are in a difficult economic situation, this will not last a year or two, in the foreseeable future there will be no extra money. There are top-priority tasks that cannot be avoided: we need to support children, the elderly, the poor, develop production, ensure import substitution, and strengthen the country's defense. It is unlikely that culture in such a situation makes sense to expect special preferences. But - and this is the second important thing - it is in the sphere of culture that efficiency is ensured not so much by the volume of investments, but by the taste and love of those who distribute and invest funds. You can get a stunning result for a ruble, or you can get a complete bullshit for a hundred. The main capital of culture is not money, but talents. Guess the talent, attract him, give him the opportunity to realize his calling - and the efficiency of the funds spent will exceed one hundred percent. It happens in culture, really.
- Why has interest and love for books been falling over the past 20 years, queues at the box office disappear, there is no total interest in museums and exhibitions? Is culture in crisis?
- Partly - because of an overabundance of information. We suddenly found ourselves in a world not of cultures, but of subcultures - niche, limited, "party". In a world where the spiritual hierarchy seems to have been lost, everything does not develop vertically, but spreads horizontally. Tolstoy wrote a novel, and I wrote it - posted it on the net, got a hundred likes. Why am I worse than Tolstoy? Such an amount of slag is produced - screen, book, music, that people look for pleasure in other areas. Mainly in consumption. This is also one of the reasons for indifference to culture. A person with a consumer psychology does not stop, does not think - he buys, uses one way or another and runs further: what else to grab?
At the same time, mind you, as soon as a really talented work of art appears, those queues immediately return. And what about the hype around the Valentin Serov exhibition at the Tretyakov Gallery on Krymsky Val? This is not purely aesthetic, but a deep human interest. People, it seems to me, went to see amazing faces. Real, significant, behind each of which is character and destiny, and not three pounds of falsehood and a couple of plastic surgery. Art that deals with authentic, not feigned, is doomed to success at any time. Including cash register.
– Is religion able to “compensate” for the lack of culture?
- In a multinational and multi-confessional society - even in the presence of a state-forming people and a main religion - religious issues must be approached very delicately. Faith and culture are not meant to “compensate”, but to complement each other. genuine culture, in my opinion, is always related to conscience. And this concept is divine. And equally accessible to a person of any nationality, any religion. No wonder we find so many truly Christian motifs in art. Soviet period- that is, in what is generated by a formally atheistic state.
- There is an opinion that many TV programs have a negative impact on young people, corrupt them, such as the notorious Dom-2 program. As a member of the Council for Culture and Art under the President of the Russian Federation, are you struggling with this?
- We have already discussed the fact that cultural and information policy in our country, unfortunately, is still practically divorced. I agree that to encourage vulgarity in the highest degree dangerous. If a young man sees that you can not study, not work, lie on the couch all day, languidly quarreling with your own kind, and at the same time be in the center of attention of peers, the damage from such a “ educational work' is difficult to calculate. Maybe you have heard: a baboon now lives in the Gelendzhik zoo, which was kept in one of the Moscow casinos for several years. There he was taught to smoke and drink. Then the gambling establishment was closed, the baboon was taken away, now he leads healthy lifestyle life. The only weakness that he has kept from the old days is the Dom-2 program. Apparently, because he recognizes himself in the participants. I am very fond of animals, but a man willingly taking on the role of a monkey sitting in a cage for the amusement of an idle public is a deplorable sight.
However, I am not a supporter of purely repressive measures. Everything harmful should not be banned, but ousted - benign, talented, interesting. the main task in relation to the new generation, in my opinion, set them a scale. Different than on youth channels and social networks. To dream of getting not the same hundred likes, but the State Prize, the star of the Hero of Labor, a place in the history textbook ... Shrinking the scale, the insignificance of desires and tasks is ruining us every day. Distinguishing the great from the small, the important from the unnecessary, is what culture should teach.
Interviewed by Grigory Anisonyan
A lot has been written about the book of Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov) "Unholy Saints" lately. Still: for the first time a book about the monastery and modern ascetics, the author of which is a clergyman of the Russian Orthodox Church, was in the center reader interest became an absolute bestseller...
The reader, as a rule, never pays attention to the page with the imprint of the book, but I do not skip it due to professional interest. Editor - Elena Yampolskaya ... First thought: "The same one?". Practicing journalists rarely become editors of books, and Yampolskaya is, without exaggeration, a well-known journalist, herself the author of several books (for a conversation with her “If you don’t feel pain, you’re not a professional,” see No. 14 (30) of our magazine). IN currently Elena Alexandrovna is the editor-in-chief of the Kultura newspaper, the first issue of which was published at the end of January 2012. She herself believes that the changes in her life are connected precisely with the work on the book. We are talking about the peculiarities of working on Unholy Saints, about the inner experience that is associated with it, and about the newspaper Kultura, a new publication focused on modern man in search of...
- How did it happen that you, a journalist, at that time the deputy editor-in-chief of Izvestia, became the editor of Father Tikhon's book? Then, probably, she still did not have a name?
And it all turned out like that. Father Tikhon and I have known each other for a long time, we have been together several times on fairly long trips, I wrote in Izvestia about his film The Byzantine Lesson. And then one day I came to him, probably to confess - for what other reason could I be in the Sretensky Monastery? After confession, he asked me: “Do you know, Lena, any good literary editor? And then I'm going to publish a book. I have great amount disparate chapters and materials, it is necessary to assemble a single whole from this, and it is necessary that someone look at everything with an editorial eye. I answered: “I know, father Tikhon, good editor He is sitting in front of you. I have never worked in publishing houses, but among newspaper editors I can recommend myself without false modesty. For some reason, it seemed to me that Father Tikhon asked this question for a reason, but precisely in order to hear: yes, I am ready to do this. At the same time, my employment in Izvestia was so dense that if it were not a book by Father Tikhon, but some other “leftist” work, I would never have taken it up. In general, there was something above all this, which I later realized.
From the very first chapter, it became clear that the book was unusually fascinating. I didn’t rewrite anything globally anywhere: editing consisted in working on separate “burrs”. Father Tikhon, firstly, has a lively style, a wonderful sense of humor, very good dialogues. And secondly, of course, the script education is felt: it perfectly builds a picture - you see visibly what the author is talking about.
Since the book is very interesting (someone told me: “This is the church Conan Doyle!”), And it was difficult to tear myself away from it even in the first printout, I had to re-read the text many times. This is the case when you, being carried away by the plot and in a hurry to find out what will happen next, stop following the correct construction of the phrase. I had to come back all the time. And in the end it so happened that I didn’t just read this book three times - I literally read every word in it three times, and each time it became new job for the soul. The work, which, perhaps, was not even given by Father Tikhon.
Few things have changed my life like this book. Moreover, I do not attribute this solely to the influence of the author, to whom I have great respect and great sympathy. There was something above us. This book was given to him for some reason, and it was given to me - and not by Father Tikhon, but by Someone Who is higher. If we talk about what made the greatest impression on me, this is the chapter about the shegumen Melchizedek, who died and then resurrected. I don't know if it's worth retelling. But, probably, it’s worth it, not everyone has read the book ...
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Father Tikhon tells how, while still a very young novice, he risked turning to the schemer with the question: what then happened to him, what did he see when he was there, from where they do not return? That's what he heard.
…Hegumen Mikhail walks across a green field, comes to some kind of cliff, looks down, sees a moat filled with water, dirt — fragments of some chairs, cabinets, broken legs, doors, and something else are lying around. He looks there in amazement and sees that all this is the things he made for the monastery. With horror, he recognizes his work and suddenly feels someone's presence behind him. He turns around, sees the Mother of God, who looks at him with pity and sorrow and sadly says: “You are a monk, we expected prayers from you, and you brought only this” ...
I can't tell you how much this thing shocked me. We are not monks, but each of us has our own obedience in the world. I considered this endless editing of texts, preparing pages, releasing and so on and so forth as my obedience. It was the first time when I looked at my work from the outside and realized that although they probably expect not only prayers from me, but this is what will then wallow in the mud, by and large. This routine, daily work of mine will then lie around with torn off legs, broken off doors. She lives for one day. Reflection of the news picture of the day does not lead anyone to anything, because it does not create any new meanings. I sit and clean up some dirty texts all the time, because journalists generally write very badly now, and I sit - and I clean, I clean, I clean ... And I thought: “My God, is this really how my life will go ?!”.
This is the biggest experience that I took out of Father Tikhon's book. And I hope that now in the Kultura newspaper, although the texts still need to be cleaned up, it still seems to me that my life has begun to line up in some other way.
— Did you manage to visit the Pskov-Caves Monastery, to which most of the book is devoted?
- I visited Pechory for the first time only after I read the book. I really wanted to go there. last years Father John (Krestyankin) worries me extremely. This is a special person for me. Unfortunately, I didn't see him alive. But I like to read his letters. In the car, I'll put on a CD with his sermons and listen. He somehow lives next to me. And, having edited the book of Father Tikhon, I decided: "That's it, I'm going to Pechory." Unfortunately, mostly this trip brought total disappointment. Maybe, and even for sure, I myself am to blame for this - I was not really ready ... But then a miracle happened there, and I met Father John - absolutely real, absolutely alive.
The story is like this. I arrived as a journalist, I was going to make a report for Izvestia, where I worked at that time. I was assigned to a very important monk who is in charge of press relations. The monk, as far as I understand, does not like people in general, and especially journalists. Apparently, for this he was given such obedience, so that journalists would not return to the monastery anymore. He met me extremely coldly, even arrogantly, showed me what he could, answered questions: “I’m incompetent here”, “I won’t talk about this”, “The viceroy cannot meet with you”, “These are questions of our internal routine " - and so on. He does not look into the eyes, all the time somewhere to the side ... In general, it's terrible. We went briefly into Father John's cell, but our contact with this man, who for some reason immediately showed me such a sharp hostility, everything was poisoned. I was constrained, I could not really perceive, feel anything. They went in and out.
In the evening I returned to my hotel room. I sat down in a shabby chair, longing in my soul, and I think: “The whole horror lies in the fact that I will no longer be able to read Father John’s books the way I read them now, with the same glee. Because now, as soon as I open Krestyankin, I immediately remember this unkind monk - and that's it ... ". I understand that this is selfishness, that a monk is not obliged to love me, but I am alive, normal person, a woman much younger than him, and it’s unpleasant for me when they demonstrate such a clear rejection ... And as soon as I plunged into such thoughts, my mobile phone rings: “Elena, this is Father Filaret, Father John’s cell-attendant. They say you were looking for me today? Apparently, his father Tikhon from Moscow found him, realizing that they cut off all the ends for me there and I was almost in despair. It was already nine o'clock in the evening. Father Filaret says: "Don't you want to return to the monastery right now?" Of course, I immediately ran back. The sun was setting, the domes were going out, it was the month of September. We went to Father John's cell, sat down on the famous green sofa and sat there for two and a half hours. How good it was! Father Philaret is a miracle. He did what he always does for everyone, what Father John is said to have done: he sprinkled me with holy water, poured the rest into my bosom (at the same time he took care to call a taxi so that I would not catch a cold at night in a wet sweater), fed me chocolate, so much told everything about Father John. We prayed. I held the priest's stole in my hands, stained with wax, unusually warm, alive - here she is just lying on the pillow and breathing ... This is amazingly perfect.I was so shocked by the materiality of this miracle! As soon as I sat down and thought that I would not be able to read Father John’s books with a light heart, that this sediment was nasty, some unpleasant doubts about the monastery, they would now be projected onto him too ... And Father John at that very moment simply took me by the scruff of the neck and said: “Come on, come back. Let's start all over now." It was absolute happiness and absolute reality.
After that, I spent another day there, and nothing could break through me - neither sidelong glances, nor cold treatment. I felt sorry for this monk. He spoke with such arrogance about how he had to suppress his own pride in the monastery that he wanted to punch him in the nose. In addition, I realized that I myself arrived there in a not quite prepared state. God be with him, it doesn't matter. I came to the caves, put my hand on the coffin of Father John, said “thank you” to him, asked him for something and went out into the light of God absolutely happy. If I ever return to Pechory, then, I think, only to Father John. But my trip there, of course, was completely connected with the book of Father Tikhon, I really wanted to see with my own eyes everything that is described there.
- If you recall the book - after all, Father Tikhon was first sent to the barn. Maybe this is some kind of experience that is given ...
— … to such ambitious people. And Father Tikhon, I think, is an ambitious person by his nature. This good quality, In my opinion. That it does not allow you to do your job badly in any area. Then other things, more serious and spiritual, take the place of ambition. But initially, I think it is very good when ambition is inherent in a person by nature.
— You were the first reader of many of the stories that were included in the book. The author was interested in your opinion?
- Certainly. The author constantly asked whether it was interesting or not, especially since he knows me quite well. I cannot call Fr. Tikhon my confessor, that is loudly said, but still I confessed to him more than once and took communion at the Sretensky Monastery. Despite the busyness of Father Tikhon, he never refused me such requests and, in addition to confession, he always found time to talk. Moreover, it is very reasonable, practical and even pragmatic, that is, the way one should talk with an ordinary secular person, with a woman. I never spoke from the height of my spiritual experience.
I think it was initially important for him that the book reach a wide range of readers, not only purely church people, so that it would turn consciousness a little ordinary person- and he tested this effect on me, of course. Very correct and professional approach.
We have a permanent page in the newspaper "Culture" dedicated to religion, it is called "Symbol of Faith". All traditional confessions are represented there, but Orthodoxy prevails, this is understandable and natural, from all points of view. And so, the Orthodox journalists whom I involve in the work on this page sometimes start beating their heads against the wall after my remarks and shouting: “No, Orthodoxy and the newspaper are incompatible! We can't do that." I say: “Is Orthodoxy compatible with a fascinating book? Take "Unholy Saints" - that's how to write. Learn."
- For the last twenty years in our country it was believed that the topic of culture is not in demand, that publications completely devoted to it are unprofitable. The cultural institutions themselves, especially in the provinces, were forced to survive, even to some extent giving up themselves, their task of bringing culture to the masses, not consumer goods… Is this period over? What can be considered its result? How much have we lost during this time?
- "We" - as a country? I believe that during this time we have lost almost everything, and gained only one thing - the return of religion to our natural, everyday life. But this only acquisition of the post-Soviet period is so expensive that it gives us hope: we will still get out of the swamp. Basically, Soviet Union I would have survived if it were not for state atheism, I am absolutely sure of this.
Look - Cuba is still holding on, because there has never been militant atheism there. There are many Catholic churches, there are even Orthodox Church. By the way, I flew with Patriarch Kirill, then still a metropolitan, to the opening of this church. And nothing - there is a socialist country. And do not tell me about how bad, hungry and scary it is. There are cheerful, healthy people who dance, sing, kiss in the evenings on the ocean embankment, are not afraid to let their children go outside, love their charismatic Fidel tenderly, although probably not too wisely. Yes, they have a specific life, but to say that it is worse than that of their fellow tribesmen, who fled to Miami on air mattresses? .. It so happened that almost simultaneously, with a difference of a month, I first visited both Cuba and Miami. And when I saw the Cuban colonies there… Cubans are generally inclined to be overweight and quickly turn into some kind of shapeless bags on American fast food. They go shopping, listlessly sorting through jeans - they have nothing else. America doesn't need them. In my opinion, life in Cuba is much better, because it is spiritualized, first of all, by love for the motherland. It is very important.I think that our people now have a need not for culture as such, but for finding meaning. In recent years, any thinking Russian person has really been deprived of them. The cultural product is diverse and intrusive, but basically it does not offer these meanings to it, it does not ask any serious questions. There is such a fear that “oh, if we start shipping now, they switch the button or don’t buy a ticket, word of mouth will spread that it’s too difficult, too gloomy” ...
It seems to me that this is not true. We have normal, thinking, intelligent people. There are still a lot of them in the country, fifty percent for sure. They just don't know where to go to ask a question and start looking for an answer with someone else. They just crave at least some intellectual, not in the sense of a high-browed, but serious conversation ...
— … about some important things.
- Yes. It is quite natural that it is necessary to look for meanings, first of all, in the sphere of faith and the sphere of culture. Moreover, a culture that is nevertheless connected with faith, descended from it, was born, and, in general, true culture never breaks this umbilical cord. This niche interests me.
We need people who are trying to formulate for themselves why they live. IN modern Russia it is very difficult to understand. If you are a deeply religious, truly church-going person, it will probably be easier for you. But if you are an ordinary representative of Russian society and you have actively working brains in your head, and a heart full of doubts in your chest, then it is very difficult for you to understand why you exist every single minute. Unless, of course, you think that you just live to feed your family. But feeding a family is a strange goal of being human. To put it mildly, not too high. It is very strange when it is put at the forefront. To live solely for this, in my opinion, is humiliating for a spiritual being.
- In a conversation about the religious life of a person, "Culture" is still only looking for its own tone, or do you want to achieve something definite?
— For the time being, I urge my Orthodox journalists who deal with this topic “not to frighten people.” Because I remember what I was myself, say, ten or even five years ago. In general, I believe that in life one must believe in two things: in the Lord God and in the ability of a person to change for the better. I know from my own experience that a person is capable of evolving very strongly. Therefore, I can’t stand talking about the so-called “candlesticks”: they say, the head came to the temple with a “flashing light”, stands with a candle, does not understand anything ... No one knows what is happening in the soul of this person, and no one has the right to call him names "candlestick". I do not believe that you can defend the service and at the same time think all the time: what kind of kickback will they bring you tomorrow and have you forgotten the bribe in the left pocket of your sheepskin coat. I am sure that worship “breaks through” anyone, and even a completely unchurched person leaves the church a little changed.
Since our newspaper is called "Culture", we also try to present the topic of religion through cultural events. This is all the more important because once in Russia these spheres were inseparable. All Pushkin is permeated biblical motifs, Gogol, Dostoevsky, even Chekhov... Christianity was a natural fabric that was preserved in absolutely everything - in music, painting, literature. And I think that it is very important for us to get all this out of the chests and remind us: guys, but once it was not like that - not “society is separate, but the Church is separate” or “we are Orthodox, and you are all the rest”, but It was a life of faith.
Again, we are asking for interviews, for comments, not only to priests or those people who are famous for their piety. If a person thinks about what he lives for, he has every right to appear on our "Symbol of Faith" page.
— The concepts of culture and art have also always been inextricably linked. Contemporary art, in your opinion, as it sees pain points modern man?
- The whole question is what you mean by the term "contemporary art". Modern - what is being produced now, in this moment time, or what is commonly called contemporary art. What are the various manifestations of "art" - installations, a naked artist on all fours ...
“Today's art, which is still art.
— There are none general trends, unfortunately, because they have never been so atomized either Russian society, nor Russian art. Contemporary artists are absolutely various people, and although they create at the same time in the same country, they exist in parallel realities and often do not intersect with each other, which means they do not come around and do not give rise to common meanings.
But I think that for those who follow the path of searching for meaning, everything will be quite stable. Maybe they won’t immediately collect such a box office as some Yolki-2 or Rzhevsky against Napoleon, but I hope nothing threatens their existence in this country. I do not believe that people whose soul wants something more will die out here. She often does not even understand what she wants, but her desires are not limited to the material world. It is characteristic of a Russian person to want more. And by no means in the sense that it was broadcast on Prokhorov's election posters.
We, the Kultura newspaper, want to occupy this niche. Judging by the fact that there is a demand for us, the circulation is growing, the number of subscribers is increasing, apparently, people have noticed that the newspaper they were waiting for has appeared. And I hope that Kultura is already beginning to create new meanings: the person who picks up our newspaper, it changes at least for some drop, turns his mind a little. And this is the most valuable quality in anything: in a film, a play, a book. By the way, this certainly applies to the book of Father Tikhon. A newspaper is not a book, but, in my opinion, it is wrong to humiliate it. The newspaper is the word, and the word is everything. No matter what they say about its devaluation lately. Dudki. The word remains of great value if it is real. You just have to look for it. This is what we are trying to do.
Journalist, writer and theater critic Elena Yampolskaya was born on June 20, 1971 in Moscow. After graduating from school, she went to receive higher education at the theater department of GITIS. Also in student years started working for a newspaper Soviet culture". After that, her career began already in a larger publishing house: the Izvestia newspaper. After that, her career began to develop rapidly and a talented journalist has already occupied leadership positions. The husband of Elena Yampolskaya is currently not known to the general public. The woman does not distribute not only his name, but also the type of activity.
In December 2011, Elena Yampolskaya was appointed editor-in-chief of the Kultura newspaper, which had ceased publication two months earlier due to financial difficulties. According to Yuri Belyavsky, the former editor-in-chief of the publication, before his dismissal, the newspaper's shares were bought up by organizations affiliated with N. S. Mikhalkov. The media also wrote that Mikhalkov could become a new investor in the publication. Yampolskaya denied that Mikhalkov owned the newspaper; later admitted that "Culture" is financed from several funds, some of which are related to Mikhalkov.
Having headed the publication, Yampolskaya called Kultura, published under the leadership of Belyavsky, “monstrous”, and the name of the newspaper itself was inert and boring: “a normal person, having seen an unknown newspaper called Kultura in a kiosk, most likely will not buy it.” Yampolskaya said that under her leadership, the newspaper will expand the range of topics, which will include social issues, religion and entertainment. In January 2012, the updated newspaper "Culture" began to appear with a new subtitle "The Spiritual Space of Russian Eurasia". Elena Yampolskaya believes that the updated "Culture" is "the most beautiful newspaper in the country."
After the appointment of Yampolskaya, Irina Kulik, Dmitry Morozov, Daria Borisova, Georgy Osipov and a number of other journalists left the newspaper as a sign of disagreement with her policy; Yampolskaya claims that she herself fired the newspaper's employees for incompetence. Journalists from other publications, mainly from Izvestia, were hired to replace the departed employees. According to Yampolskaya, the newspaper's circulation has grown, which she attributes to Kultura's support for the ban on gay propaganda: “Now they call us a homophobic newspaper. But we continue to bend our line, and these materials are among the most read. As editor-in-chief, Yampolskaya sees the task of making Kultura the legislator of public mores in the country.
The personal life of Elena Yampolskaya remains a secret with seven seals. The woman prefers not to expand on this topic and in every possible way avoids comments. It is not known for certain whether she is married or not. According to some reports, Elena is still officially married, but she herself does not discuss this fact in an interview. We can only guess about her marital status, because she talks much more willingly on the topic of work and gives all sorts of explanations.
The State Duma Committee on Culture may be headed by Elena Yampolskaya. Now her candidacy is being considered. The editor-in-chief of Kultura used to write columns about sex, advocated the development of Russian cinema and stood up for the Russian Orthodox Church. "360" tells what Yampolskaya is known for and how cultural figures speak of her.
Photo source: RIA NovostiCareer Yampolskaya
Elena Yampolskaya was born in Moscow in 1971. She graduated from the theater department of GITIS. During her studies, she worked in the theater department of the newspaper Sovetskaya Kultura, then in Izvestiya, Russkiy Kurier, Novye Izvestiya and the monthly Teatral.
In December 2011, Yampolskaya headed the Kultura newspaper, of which she remains the editor-in-chief to this day. On February 6, 2016, she joined the leadership headquarters of United Russia, after which she became a State Duma deputy from this party. In parliament, Yampolskaya was deputy chairman of the committee on nationalities. She is also a member of the Presidium of the Council under the President of the Russian Federation for Culture and Art, as well as the Public Council under the Ministry of Defense and is the secretary of the Union of Cinematographers of Russia.
Now the deputy can head the State Duma Committee on Culture instead of Stanislav Govorukhin, who died on June 14 after a serious and prolonged illness.
New head of the committee?
Deputy Chairman of the Duma Committee on Culture Alexander Sholokhov told 360 that Yampolskaya's candidacy was only being discussed. In his opinion, this is a man of broad erudition who will cope with the tasks, since for a long time occupies leadership positions in the cultural sphere.
“I really hope that after the appointment we will have even more mutual understanding in all branches of government and the tasks facing the cultural sphere. First of all, this is the development, on behalf of the President, of a new law on culture and other areas of legislative activity,” Sholokhov said.
Before presidential elections and the expected change of government after them, there were rumors in the press about the possible appointment of Yampolskaya to the post of head of the Ministry of Culture. Then the writer and publicist Dmitry Bykov dedicated a poem to her, where there were lines: “I feel some kind of joyful peace in my gut and skin: a minister, even such, cannot manage culture. No need to hit the table with your hands, swallow pills, drink borzhom ... I want Yampolskaya, Yampolskaya! There is only one end, so at least we will laugh.
Now in an interview with 360, he said that he warmly welcomes the nomination of her candidacy for a new position. According to Bykov, culture should be "stylistically integral" and show the trends of the era, so the nomination of Yampolskaya is very obvious. But the changes in the cultural sphere, according to him, are not related to appointments.
“Culture develops according to its internal laws, there is self-movement in it. Anyone can be appointed, it will be an occasion for TV commentary, not a change in culture. The poet is the son of harmony and least of all thinks who heads the committee on culture in the State Duma. He thinks: “The birds are singing! The moon is shining!“, and this leads him to artistic conclusions,” said Bykov.
The artistic director of the Gogol Moscow Drama Theater Sergei Yashin was critical of the possible appointment of Yampolskaya. In an interview with 360, he explained that he had known the deputy and her views for a long time. “It is unlikely that anything will change in the cultural sphere itself. But she is an absolutely alien culture person. It does not reconcile views on culture, but vice versa. I even sued her and won. True, it was about 15 years ago, because of her boorish article about one of my performances, ”said Yashin.
"Hymn to the real bitch"
At the height of the popularity of the series "Sex in big city» Yampolskaya wrote a column in the newspaper about the relationship between men and women. In 2004, the notes took shape in the book "Anthem to a real bitch, or I'm alone at home."
Later, Yampolskaya published books dedicated to theater and actors: “12 stories about love and theater”, “Elena Mayorova and her demons”, “In search of Oleg Tabakov”. But it is the book about sex that has been the main object of attacks on it by critics for 14 years now. At the same time, the author herself does not regret the publication.
“In general, about any stages in own life no regrets, in my opinion. This is how personality develops. Perhaps sterile citizens who have never taken a “step to the right - a step to the left” exist, but I personally have not met those. And if she did, she would be wary. As a rule, this is a sign of well-disguised natural careerists. I have never belonged to this category,” the deputy said.
Mikhalkov support
Photo source: RIA Novosti In 2006, as deputy editor-in-chief of Izvestia, Yampolskaya supported Nikita Mikhalkov and gave his films positive reviews. And the transition to "Culture" came at a time when the newspaper was not published due to lack of funding. There were rumors that Mikhalkov bought the shares of the publication through affiliates. Yampolskaya denied these rumors.
“I really appreciate the work of Nikita Sergeevich, I deeply respect him as a person and consider him one of smartest people in our country. He does not have any shares or positions, but I will listen with gratitude to all the advice that he wants to give me, although, perhaps, I will not accept everything, ”the parliamentarian said.
On patriotism and censorship
Yampolskaya wrote a lot about patriotism. She believes that his upbringing should start from childhood and be comprehensive: from cartoons and songs to films, tourist routes and even fitness centers with national training programs. She emphasized that patriotic education should not be limited to military-patriotic education.
“Before you teach a boy to shoot, you must teach him to love. All that and all those who are supposed to love the boys. Parents and teachers (at least some). Grandma and little sister. Football teammates and a girl from a parallel class. Nature and animals - almost in the first place, ”she explained.
According to Yampolskaya, "real censorship" is a dialogue at the stage of conception, and not a ban a few days or hours before the X-day. Swinging an ax, cutting off both the bad and the good, is the worst option, capable of causing a wave of indignation among Russians, she argued.
Do not ban foreign films, but shoot domestic films in such volumes and of such quality that the priority of foreign films is naturally supplanted. Do not deprive youngsters of fast food, but offer their own democratic restaurant chains
Elena Yampolskaya.
Nevertheless, the deputy believes that Russians, in theory, welcome censorship. “We have a very interesting paradox: when people are asked theoretically whether censorship is necessary, the majority answers: “Yes, it is necessary, for how long.” But as soon as the idea arises of actually banning a particular work of art, as was the case with Matilda, the people rise to the defense. We do not want something banned, and rightly so, ”said Yampolskaya.
Member of the faction of the political party "United Russia".
Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Culture.
Journalist. Writer. Theater critic. Chief editor of the newspaper "Culture".
Member of the Presidium of the Council for Culture under the President of the Russian Federation. Member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture.
Elena Yampolskaya was born on June 20, 1971 in Moscow. After receiving a certificate of secondary education, she entered Russian Institute Theater Arts at the Faculty of Theater Studies. While studying until 1990, she worked as a freelance correspondent for the Commercial Bulletin magazine. Then, from 1992 to 1994, she was a columnist for the theater department of the Kultura newspaper. In 1994 she graduated theater university majoring in Theatre.
Since 1994, Yampolskaya worked as a correspondent for the socio-political editorial office of the Izvestia newspaper. Three years later, she was appointed head of the Izvestia-Culture group. After leaving Izvestia, from 1997 to 2003 she headed the culture department in Igor Golembiovsky's newspaper Novye Izvestia and Russkiy Kurier. For the next couple of years, she acted as the editor of the culture department of the society with limited liability"H.G.S. Publishing House". In 2005, she was the editor-in-chief of Theatrical Novye Izvestia, owned by the closed joint-stock company Newspaper Novye Izvestia.
Elena Alexandrovna returned to the Izvestia newspaper in 2006. For two years she headed the department of culture, and from 2008 to 2011 she held the position of deputy editor-in-chief. In December 2011, she was appointed editor-in-chief of the Kultura newspaper, which had experienced severe financial difficulties two months earlier. After heading the publication, Yampolskaya said that under her leadership, the newspaper will expand the range of topics, which will include social issues, religion and entertainment. In addition, she decided to change the name of the newspaper, which she considered boring and inert. In January 2012, the updated newspaper "Culture" began to appear with a new subtitle "The Spiritual Space of Russian Eurasia". Elena Yampolskaya tried to make "Culture" the legislator of public mores in the country.
Since September 2012, Elena Yampolskaya has been a member of the Presidium of the Council for Culture under the President of Russia. Since February 2016, she has been a member of the Public Council of the Ministry of Defense Russian Federation. She served as Secretary of the Union of Cinematographers of Russia.
In the elections on September 18, 2016, Yampolskaya Elena Aleksandrovna was elected a Deputy of the State Duma of the VII convocation as part of the federal list of candidates put forward by the party " United Russia". Regional group No. 10 - Kurgan region, Chelyabinsk region. Member of the United Russia faction. Date of commencement of office: September 18, 2016.
MPs State Duma July 25, 2018 decided to appoint Elena Yampolskaya as the Chairman of the Committee on Culture. Previously, the post was held by Stanislav Govorukhin.
Awards and Recognition of Elena Yampolskaya
Laureate of the "Seagull" and "Spark" awards
Laureate of the Golden Pushkin Medal
Vasily Shukshin commemorative medal winner
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