Metro 2019

I know this was actually shot in November 2018, but I thought this title would make more sense as we’re in, you know, 2019.

“🎵 you should see me in a crown…🎵” Billie Eilish

Isabelle Touyarou, a photographer whose work you might have seen on my previous articles inspired by the Master and Margarita, Russian sci-fi or Moscow street art, brought me on an incredible journey through the famous Moscow Metro.

Quite packed but quite frequent, it is full of splendid artworks and architecture, some of the stations are literally breathtaking. I caught myself gasping on several occasions 🙂

In most pictures Isabelle managed to make the metro appear nearly empty but that’s all thanks to her talent and patience!

Created in 1935, the Metro was designed as a masterpiece dedicated to the glory of the Soviet Union and you can see quite a lot of mosaics or sculptures depicting Lenin or Soviet friendly scenes.

Literally on the selfie spot… Ironically, obviously. Novoslobodskaya station.

Another reason as to why I was so excited to visit this Metro is because of the universe created by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Metro 2033.

Metro 2033 is a book but also a game (which, I confess, I still have to finish!). Set-up in a post-apocalyptic world where the only survivors in Moscow where the people in the Metro at the time of a catastrophe, you follow the life of Artyom and other characters as they try to survive and investigate in their world, the Metro. Each station is like a city, sometimes a country, and some confederations have different politics, which makes it difficult to navigate.

“And then, after five minutes of silence, almost inaudibly, the old man sighed and said, more to himself than to Artyom: ‘Lord, what a splendid world we ruined . . .”
Dmitry Glukhovsky, Metro 2033

I’ve been trying here to give a snapshot of a contemporary Moscow Metro and let it be a memory of how it was just before the catastrophe happened in the Metro universe. I’m wearing headphones, sometimes looking at my phone, people around us oblivious of what’s happening in the surface. Let us enjoy beauty and smiles when it’s still possible… A message I wish to carry on for real in these uncertain times as well. Technically, I should have called my post Metro 2013 since that’s when the Metro was locked down in the books, but I would like it to be relevant today and make us think about the present.

No we’re not texting each other! Prospekt Mira station

VDNKh

In Metro 2033, it’s a very important station as it’s the home of hero Artyom and where everything begins. In 2033, it’s an independent station well known for producing mushroom tea and the northernmost inhabited place.

My very winter-friendly Star Sailor hoodie from Cyberdog

Novoslobodskaya

This station appears in the latest novel of the series by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Metro 2035. In 2035, the magnificent stained glass panels are covered in concrete…

Kievskaya

In the novel, people living in Kievskaya are scared and live in tents close to each other.

Will they live in Kievskaya as well in 2033?

Mendeleyevskaya

This station belongs to the Hansa coalition in the Metro 2033 universe, and Artyom has quite an adventure there in Metro 2035.

This station is named after Mendeleev, who created the Periodic Table in the 19th century, which is a helpful way to represent atoms. Hence the beautiful “atoms” hanging from the ceiling.

Ploshchad Revolutsii

In the Metro 2033 universe, this station has been given to the Communists by the Arbat confederation.

Apparently touching this dog brings luck! Useful for a post-apocalyptic universe I guess!

A man and a woman, both always represented in soviet sculptures. She’s reading! You can see another example in my Moscow photography article

Arbatskaya

Arbatskaya, Aleksandrovskiy Sad, Biblioteka Lenina and Borovitskaya form the Polis city-state, rich and powerful. Some pay Stalkers (inspired by Roadside picnic from the Strugatsky brothers as mentioned in a previous article) to collect books from the Lenin Library outside…