The 1703 St. Petersburg Art Fair is proud to present its partners and a side program

On the eve of the opening, the 1703 St. Petersburg Art Fair announced its partners for the third season. Compared to the previous editions of the 1703 Fair, the list has expanded significantly. The partnership program focuses on creative collaborations between artists and participants of 1703 with iconic brands, projects, and spaces. AURUS, RBI and ALROSA Diamonds, who have become partners of the fair for the first time, can be found at the Manege hall with their own booths. An exhibition in the New Holland Pavilion, temporary expositions in the city, a guide to cultural events and media projects timed to coincide with the 1703 Fair, special partner offers and themed cocktails in fashionable restaurants inspired by the project will become a feature of this year's event.

Themed partner zones at the fair site in the Manege Exhibition Hall

For the first time this year the 1703 Fair will feature partner booths designed in collaboration with artists and art studios. There will be themed partner zones of the first Russian premium car brand, AURUS, the developer of collectible real estate in St. Petersburg, RBI, and the jewelry brand, ALROSA DIAMONDS.

1703 x AURUS

The exhibition "The First to light the way" is a symbiotic product of the technology aesthetics and the energy of leadership delivered thanks to a collaboration between AURUS and G-Drive. Here, innovation, technology, and design merge in an element where success is determined by pioneering spirit and the energy of ambition. The central piece of the booth, a palace chandelier, assembled from the AURUS Senat car components, harbors a metaphor of light that illuminates progress. Attention to detail is integral to the DNA of both brands who believe that each detail matters when striving to reach an ideal.

A premium car has always been believed to be a pinnacle of technology, potential and luxury. But the world is changing, and today’s luxury is the trendsetting freedom, the freedom to choose your own path and make decisions, regardless of judgments. AURUS paves the way for the entire Russian automotive industry by being the first to develop and implement innovative technological and design solutions/

AURUS Senat is the freedom and innovation in every detail. it is not just a luxury car, it is a work of art encompassing innovative tech, a powerful V8 Twin—turbo engine and advanced safety systems.

1703 x RBI

At the RBI booth, a St. Petersburg based developer, visitors will be able to marvel at the "Thunder Stone" - a unique art project that lands the residents of the city in a thick of a forest. This interactive installation comes with a system that voices the life of a huge boulder from Karelia, it was designed by Splaces studio specifically for the new residential project by RBI, the Strings on Shostakovich Street with two Karelian parks laid on the territory.

The central element of the project is a stone boulder that emits natural sounds collected out in the Karelia wild. The art object is operated with the use of neural networks. Interactive mechanics are based on tactile interaction. By touching the stone, you get the opportunity to change its sound in real time. The sounds of nature and a feeling of touching the stone help to relieve stress, creating a positive impact on the viewer. The project not only transforms the bustling city into a more harmonious place to live, but also raises the question of rethinking the importance of nature and culture in the modern world. All visitors of the 1703 Fair will be able to touch the stone and hear its gentle murmur.

1703 x ALROSA Diamonds

The ALROSA Diamonds jewelry company, together with FRESH.GLASS, a team exploring the nature of glass, present "The Stream of Light" as part of the 1703 St. Petersburg Art Fair. Their immersive installation resembles a source of groundwater, filled with soft dashes of light. The glass, ductile as a river stream, a favorite artisan material, reveals the ability of diamonds to transform a transcending light in a new way.

Jewelry items from the LETHE collection, inspired by nature and the meditative beauty of water, serves as part of the installation. The study of the river meandering bends and their ancient "fingerprints" on the Earth’s surface, the mysterious architecture of underwater caves and water landscapes drew the designers of ALROSA Diamonds to the images of ancient Greek mythology, where the Lethe River flowing in the underground kingdom is mentioned for the first time. A diamond is a symbol of eternity, it transcends time, while its fluttering radiance, forever enclosed in its precious facets, delights, and hypnotizes with natural beauty.

Art in the city

For its third season, the 1703 Art Fair ventures into the city with its cultural interventions for the first time. Special projects done together with partners, fair participants and artists will weave into iconic public spaces of St. Petersburg.

New Holland supported by 1703

From May 31 to June 30, the 1703 Art Fair and New Holland will launch an exhibition of Vasily Kononov-Gredin "Antiform number 16" in the New Holland’s Pavilion. Vasily Kononov-Gredin gravitates towards large forms in his art, he works in a total installation genre. The name of the new exhibition refers to the author's method of creating new objects through mechanical reassembling – this is how the artist explores the variability of form and the logic of using objects. The 16th object of the series is based on an installation of a sailing boat, the prototype of which could hypothetically have been made by Dutch shipbuilders in the vicinity of New Holland in the XVIII century. The installation does not have a final visual image, because the object can be reassembled repeatedly or set back to its original appearance, and so on indefinitely. Admission to the exhibition is free.

1703 x Four Seasons Lion Palace St. Petersburg x DiDi Gallery

From May 31 to June 9, as part of the side program of the Fair in its partner venues– Four Seasons Lion Palace St. Petersburg – a participant in the third season, the DiDi Gallery project will showcase contemporary St. Petersburg artists, while the hotel's bar team will offer an exclusive collection of cocktails inspired by modern art and love of the city.

Antonina Fathullina's sculpture group at the Italian restaurant Percorso

The main narrative revolves around a title sculpture, where the artist recreates a portrait of the Northern Renaissance master - Hieronymus Bosch. Miniature sculptures-drawings will greet the audience in the first room — light silhouettes of birds soldered from wire. Mysterious creatures, as if flown out of the artist paintings, invite the guests of the restaurant on an exciting journey through Italy. The second room meets the viewers with a large-scale sculptural group, in which the graphic rigor of metal lines goes hand in glove with the texture of individual details. Contrasting in color and in physical properties, materials turn heroes into guests from other worlds. Twisted metal threads come to life and take on a human shape, embodying a conversation between the mind and the senses. The works presented in the project encourage the patrons of the Percorso restaurant to immerse in the Renaissance atmosphere and grasp an elusive line between art and reality.

Alexandra Kokacheva's art from the "China" cycle and Konstantin Reshetnikov's animalistic sculptures at the Sintoho Asian restaurant

Alexandra's graphic series is inspired by the artist's long stay in China and plunges the viewer into the atmosphere of a modern Asian metropolis. A pulsating color brings life to the rigid compositional lines and carries the main message of the author that nature and the city are symbiotic, since unorderly rhythm of organic matter gets subsequently harnessed by man. The entrance is adorned by a series of sculptures of Konstantin Reshetnikov, in which the author rethinks the outlook of mythical unicorns and dragons. For him, the artistic process is a scientific venture paired with the opportunity to put forward hypotheses and prove or disband them. Trying on the role of a futurist scientist, Konstantin experiments with the shape and color of metal, presenting his characters in a single space-time dimension. The works in the project embody the idea of the two worlds – real and imagined - colliding, inspiring reflections on human interaction with the outside world. The strict graphic features of his art, combined with intense colors, follows the main features of the Sintoho restaurant visual code and embodies a delicate balance between tradition and modernity.

Exclusive cocktails from the Four Seasons Lion Palace St. bar team Petersburg

The "Bridgehopper" cocktail from the Xander bar is timed to coincide with the beginning of the bridge–drawing season and refers to the theme of the 1703 Fair - modern art. Cocktail "1703" from the Percorso bar in the restaurant of the same name is inspired by a wonderful gastronomic country - hot Italy. The Collector cocktail from the Sintoho restaurant bar tells the story of a Golden Dragon guarding a marble city full of resplendent domes, drawbridges and untold treasures in its golden storerooms.

1703 x Astoria x MYTH

From May 31 to June 10, at the Astoria Hotel, the fair's partner venue, with the support of the 1703 Fair and its participant, the MYTH gallery, a unique wooden object by Ulyana Podkorytova will be shown to the public – a shirt made of ploughshare (a material for roofing ancient Russian churches). The object is part of the Tamotka multimedia project, created in 2021 for the first exhibition at the HPP-2 Cultural Center and the V-A-C Foundation.

Ulyana Podkorytova is an artist who studies identity in the era of globalization based on her observations of various cultures during travels and residences. Using different media (video art, objects, graphics, photography) she builds an internal mythology based on translating the folklore of the Russian North and post-folklore (primarily Internet-based) to the present. Her art enjoys institutional recognition, being showcased in the State Tretyakov Gallery (Moscow), Multimedia Art Museum (Moscow), Garage Museum of Modern Art (Moscow), Aksenov Family Foundation (Moscow), as well as private collections.

Inspired by the exposition, Astoria’s chef, Francois Quentin, on the eve of the 1703 Fair, presented a set of hors-d'oeuvre for two, entitled For the Love of Art, to indulge in original taste combinations.

Special projects

1703 x masters

The year-round lecture hall program and the lecture program of the Fair

In cooperation with the masters school, its permanent partner, from September last year to current May, the 1703 Fair had held an annual lecture program. The program allowed a wide audience to learn more about the world of contemporary art. Between the editions of the fair, 12 events of various formats took place at the cultural venues of St. Petersburg – from meetings with experts to curatorial excursions. Among the key topics are the origins of the art market and the development of fairs in the world, private histories of art collections and collectors, features, patterns and problems of the modern art market, the influence of art fairs in the development of modern visual culture.

Every day from June 5 to 9, at the Manege venue, guests of the fair will find a rich lecture program prepared jointly with the masters school. The program includes lectures and discussions about collecting, cultural projects, and modern trends in art. The participants of the lecture program are gallery owners, curators, collectors, artists, architects, designers and other specialists of the art scene. The events will be available for the guests of the exhibition at the Manege during the days of the Fair. For five days in a row, the lecture program will become a platform for active dialogue between experts with each other and with the audience.

Special Yellow Map edition, art mediation and book corner in the Manege

A special issue of the Yellow Map from the masters project is timed to coincide with the 1703 Art Fair. The map tells about art events in St. Petersburg at the beginning of this summer. During the days of the fair, the Manege will have a masters bookstore opened and art mediation will be held several times a day – these are special tours of the fair, in which participants are engaged in a dialogue about art. Together with the mediator of the masters school, the guests of 1703 will discuss the works and galleries presented at 1703, as well as learn about the features of the Russian art market. This year, the number of art mediations will increase, and one can openly register on the official website of the fair.

1703 x VKontakte

Strategic cooperation with the largest social network in Russia and the CIS helps to maximize the audience of the Fair events. Broadcasts of the project's activities are exclusively available on the official VKontakte page.

1703 x The Art Newspaper Russia

The 1703 Fair joins efforts with its industry media partner, the only international art publication in the country, The Art Newspaper Russia, to talk about the project and to hold thematic events, developing a community of collectors around the main event throughout the year. During the Fair’s third season, The Art Newspaper Russia kiosk will be available for the first time at the Manege venue. Here the visitors can buy the latest issue of the newspaper with a special tab dedicated to 1703, as well as magazines and art books.

1703 x "Sobaka.ru "

In partnership with "Sobaka.ru" the fair held a series of events for collectors of St. Petersburg, and a month before the main event in the Manege, a joint special project between 1703 and the media outlet – a 144-page long art drop named "Collecting Art" - was released. It contains interviews with the main actors of the art scene, current listings and reviews. A colorful edition can be found on the days of the fair at the "Manege" information stands.

1703 x Artgid

Artgid, an information partner of the third season, in cooperation with 1703, has prepared an audio tour of the Manege Central Exhibition Hall. To know why you should attend the fair, why is it special, and to learn more about the participants, you can scan a QR code published in 1703 visitors brochures.

Collaborations and special offers

The 1703 Art Fair has developed some of the special projects and unique offers in partnership with restaurants, wine salons, bars and beauty and recreation spaces, the partners of the exhibition.

1703 x "Kultura"

The 1703 Art Fair and the Kultura Candy factory presented a joint project featuring Lisa Odinokikh. The artist has designed a graphic piece "Children's Laughter", which is used in a special edition of the packaging for your favorite sweets, timed to coincide with the start of the fair’s new season. The name of the graphic piece is a reference to the musical instrument of the same name made of bells, which emits an iridescent ringing. The artist associates it with the most sincere and happy laughter — as with a childish anticipation of the joy of a treat. The color scheme of the artwork is warm and saturated with the sun, wrapping the viewer in a feeling of joy and unity with the world. The sweets inspired by modern art in the original design by Lisa Odinokikh are available under the brandname of "Kultura". They, as well as candies wrapped in the 1703 branded package, made on the eve of the fair in a limited edition, can be purchased at the Kultury Cafe in the Manege during the entire duration of the exhibition from June 5 to 9.

1703 x Cosmotheca

Cosmotheca beauty stores, together with the 1703 Fair and the a—s—t—r—a gallery, have created a limited series of postcards with the work of Arthur Krivoshein "The easiest way to breathe underwater". The artist uses spontaneity and improvisation as the main artistic methods, offering the viewer to see reality from a different perspective. His work "The Easiest Way to Breathe Underwater" is about a chance to feel like an observer in flight, like a bird, or, like a fish, sail away to explore coral reefs. When buying a collectible postcard, Cosmotheca presents a box with memorable contents by Marc-Antoine Barrois– scented candles, a mini version of Ganymede, ENCELADE and B683 and a shopping bag.

1703 x Greenhouse of the Tauride Garden

Visitors to the 1703 Fair will be able to visit the Greenhouse of the Tauride Garden for free – a chamber space for relaxation and inspiration surrounded by tall palm trees, supple vines, tropical thickets and the soft sounds of a marble fountain. Also, guests of the Tauride Garden Greenhouse have a unique opportunity to visit the 1703 Fair for free. The promotions are valid for visiting both places on the same day.

1703 x Grand Hotel Moika 22

Exclusively for the fair, the Grand Hotel Moika 22 has prepared a special tea ceremony "1703" from the hotel's pastry chef Natalia Kononova. Each miniature created by the hotel's pastry chef Natalia Kononova embodies a unique taste and presentation. The special offer is available daily in the Tea Room until June 9th.

1703 x Italy&co

For the new season, the 1703 Fair jointly with the restaurant community italy&co. and with the support of Taste Project, have created a special dessert menu of "art objects". The base of the dessert italy&co. x 1703, resembles oil and canvas: whipped ganache on Belgian chocolate with a drop of lemon balm, blackberries, blackberry sauce and elderberry liqueur, and a meringue flake on top. In each of the five italy&co projects – Joli Grand Bistrot, Italy, Bist, Hitch Italian Rustic and Goose Goose – the dessert is distinguished by a special author's detail — as a reflection of one of the sections of the 1703 Fair this year’s program. All desserts are accompanied by a digestive. The special offer is available until June 9th.

1703 x Futurist

Alexey Alekseev's Futurist restaurant joins the 1703 Art Fair. Chef bartender Roman Kachanov has developed a special cocktail "1703.The Beginning", dedicated to the foundation year of St. Petersburg. The muted green tone refers to the nature and architecture of the city — and at the same time to its trademark palette. Clouds shaped as sparkling metal wool serve as a reminder of the weather and hint at a light melancholy, while in the center — a golden core becomes a symbol of age-old strength and integrity.

1703 x Cabaret Noise

Cabaret NOISE in the writers' quarter of St. Petersburg created a cocktail for the 1703 Fair "1703. The overture." It's a twist on mojitos in shades of green. This is a Silver Age mojito. "Overture" was the original title of the poem "Pineapples in champagne!" by Igor Severyanin, a poet of the Silver Age of Russia. The word ouverture is borrowed from the French language and translates as "opening", "beginning". The beginning of St. Petersburg was laid in 1703 — the number that the 1703 Fair proudly bears.

Permanent partners of the fair 1703

The permanent partners of the fair are the Roscongress Club and the supplier of fine beverages - Joia fine wines and spirits.