Afisha (Russian: Афиша — "Poster") was a Russian entertainment and lifestyle magazine published from April 1999 to December 2015 in Moscow, Saint Petersburg and 12 other Russia's major cities. In its peak years Afisha's readership reached approximately 1.5 million people.[1] Its online version remains one of Russia’s most popular media brands with a monthly Internet audience of more than 4.5 million.[2]

Afisha
Афиша
Logo and cover
Categoriesentertainment, art, lifestyle, social issues
Frequencytwice a month (before 2015), monthly (2015)
FounderIlya Oskolkov-Tsentsiper
First issueApril, 1999
Final issueDecember, 2015
CompanyRambler&Co
CountryRussia
Based inMoscow
Websitemag.afisha.ru

History

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Founded in April 1999[3] by Moscow journalist Ilya Oskolkov-Tsentsiper, American entrepreneur Andrew Paulson and businessman Anton Kudryashov Afisha was intended as Moscow's version of Time Out which Oskolkov-Tsentsiper and Paulson tried and failed to license.[4] It quickly outgrew its initial purpose as a bi-weekly listing magazine and ended up having a profound effect on Moscow’s cultural and nightlife scene.[5] In the next 10 years Afisha turned into a Russia's leading publishing house by launching an array of spin-off publications such as monthly travel magazine Afisha-Mir, alternative weekly Bolshoy Gorod, food magazine Afisha-Yeda and a series of Afisha-branded travel guide books.[6]

A team of young journalists, designers and photographers brought together by Oskolkov-Tsentsiper created a unique Afisha style which had a major impact on Russian media. Many high-profile Russian artists made their first public appearances on Afisha's front cover and the magazine popularised several new fashion trends – even introducing numerous new words into the Russian lexicon, from “deadline” to “hipster”.[7] A number of Russia's now prominent cultural figures started their careers writing for Afisha including film directors Avdotya Smirnova, Mikhail Brashinskiy and Roman Volobuev, award-winning writers Lev Danilkin and Yulia Yakovleva and Elena Kovalskaya who went on to become artistic director of Moscow’s Meyerhold Theater.[8]

Afisha played an active part in 2011–2013 Russian protests with its senior stuff helping to organise rallies in Moscow,[9] publishing manifestos demanding fair election[10] and at some point putting the opposition leader Alexey Navalny on the print edition's cover.[11] A 2013 issue with a rainbow flag on its cover and the story "27 stories from the lives of Russian gays" played an important role in the LGBT movement in Russia.[12]

In 2014 Afisha's parent company ProfMedia was bought by a Russian state-owned energy corporation Gazprom.[13] Soon after the new owners have shuttered magazine's struggling print edition[14] and fired most of the editorial staff.[1] Plans to relaunch the Afisha as a quarterly were announced but never realized.[15][16]

Online

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In 2013 Afisha launched daily updated sites "Vozduh", "Volna" and "Gorod", promptly telling about the latest developments in sphere of culture, music and life in Moscow, and "Serialy" - Russia's largest online television series library.

Afisha Picnic

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Annually the magazine held a music festival Afisha Picnic, a one-day outdoor festival held in Moscow, Russia every summer. It took place on the territory of Kolomenskoye, a former tsar’s estate, now a state-owned historical, architectural and nature reserve museum, located only 10 km south-east of the city center.[17] Since its start in 2004, the Afisha Picnic has followed the concept that mixes professional music festival featuring performances of international artists and local independent musicians, and urban-style event with all sorts of entertainment, such as designers’ market, gastronomic area, games and crafts, sports and amusements, lectures and workshops,[18] and, on one occasion, even a dance floor on the rollerdrome. The festival was visited by 50,000 visitors that spread out over 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) of land.[19]

References

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  1. ^ a b ""Афиша" уволила всю редакцию печатной версии журнала". Ведомости (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  2. ^ "Об "Афише" — Афиша" ["Bill" - Poster]. Afisha.ru (in Russian). 17 May 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
  3. ^ Pietiläinen, Jukka (2008). "Media Use in Putin's Russia". Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics. 24 (3): 365–385. doi:10.1080/13523270802267906.
  4. ^ ""Я был уверен: ничего из этого контркультурного проекта не выйдет"". republic.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  5. ^ "Демиург" [Demiurge]. Meta.kz (in Russian). 13 August 2009.
  6. ^ "Илья Осколков-Ценципер" [Ilya Oskolkov-Tsentsiper]. Lookatme.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 30 April 2014.
  7. ^ "Современные языковые процессы в СМИ (на примере журнала "Афиша") — курсовая работа" [Modern linguistic processes in the media (for example, the magazine "Bill" ) - course work]. Freepapers.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 30 April 2014.
  8. ^ Daily, Психо (2019-04-02). "20 лет за 2 минуты: где теперь сотрудники журнала "Афиша"". Teletype. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  9. ^ "Russia: The Kremlin's Not Laughing Now". Pulitzer Center. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  10. ^ "Russia's New Decembrists -- New York Magazine - Nymag". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  11. ^ Omidi, Maryam. "In pictures: Russia responds to Navalny's five-year sentence". The Calvert Journal. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  12. ^ "10 лет назад вышел знаменитый радужный номер "Афиши", благодаря которому многие решились сделать каминг-аут Мы разыскали нескольких его героев и выяснили, что с ними произошло за это время". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-12-05.
  13. ^ ""Газпром-Медиа" заплатил за холдинг "Профмедиа" $602 млн". Forbes.ru. 2014-03-28. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  14. ^ Макарова, Елизавета; Белавин, Павел (1 December 2014). ""Афиша" выйдет в новой редакции" ["Bill" will be released in a new edition] (in Russian). Kommersant. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  15. ^ «Афиша» не выпустила ни одного журнала за год с момента перехода на ежеквартальный график выхода
  16. ^ "Об "Афише": архив номеров". Archived from the original on 2016-12-01. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  17. ^ "Frommers Event Guide". Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  18. ^ Kosareva, Marina. "Out & About: Afisha Picnic Festival". Afisha Picnic Festival. Voices of Russia. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  19. ^ Jonathan, Earle. "Courtney Love Goes for a Picnic". Afisha Picnic 2011: Courtney Love Goes for a Picnic. The Moscow Times. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
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