Northern Ethnotopias in the contemporary art of Russia and the Northern America

The research focuses on the contemporary artistic practices of 2010–2020s, that produce visual representations of the lifestyle, cultural memory, and worldview of the northern communities in Russia and the North America. Contemporary Arctic art includes such new genres as total installations, immersive and performative exhibitions, land art, process-based art, participatory art, and community art. The study identifies the characteristics of «ethnotopia». This concept means the strategy for artistic representation of the Northern territories in the frames of multiculturalism and interdisciplinarity, environmental activism and minimalism, craftsmanship and body knowledge, immersive and multisensory experiences, decoloniality, and globalization. The analysis of the site-specific Arctic art projects and the case study of U. Podkorytova and M. McMaster’s art projects detected the following traits of the Northern ethnotopia. First, the Northern ethnotopia reflects the conflict between the perception of circumpolar places as neutral and empty spaces and their interpretation as materialization of the human experience in its historical and cultural diversity. Second, artistic representations of the North form the interdisciplinary projects that combine photography, video, crafts, sculpture, and music with ready-made techniques, collage, montage, and detourage. Third, artists reveal the authenticity of the Northern experience in its’ connection to memorial spaces, when they communicate with local communities. The study of artistic ethnotopias allows to identify the North representation in the dialogues between local and global artists, art institutions, creative industries, and audiences. The research results may be applied to the spheres of culture, art, and business, involved in the creation of exhibitions, art residencies, artistic research, and media projects.