Palazzo Madama. The Imaginary Museum of Irina Antonova

Unyielding, like Joan of Arc, icy, like the Snow Queen, incorruptible, like Robespierre, Irina Antonova (1922–2020) shaped the Pushkin Museum in her own image and likeness.

This book is an imaginary museum: a biography in art objects, connected in one way or another to the main character.

While exploring the "treasures of Antonova," you will learn many stories about how this fiery woman managed her life, how she changed the museum and non-museum world – and how her obsession with her ideas turned her into a work of art and an icon.