Benjamin Leigh Smith is Britain's "forgotten" Arctic explorer. He came from a radical and philanthropic family; his grandfather William Smith M.P. had been a key supporter of Wilberforce's anti-slave trade campaign, Florence Nightingale was a first cousin, and his sister Barbara Bodichon was a pioneering feminist and educationalist. Join us for a night of exploration with his great-great-great niece Charlotte Moore.

Readings from the Icebreaker Dreaming Arctic Library in and outside of Pushkin House, followed by an in conversation with exhibiting artist Ruth Maclennan and Gareth Evans, writer, editor, producer, and Whitechapel Gallery adjunct film curator.  They will discuss the works in the exhibition, and the questions they raise, from filming landscape in the Anthropocene, to art and activism.

Пушкинский Дом приглашает отпраздновать Старый Новый год с актрисой Нового драматического театра Наталией Маевой, которая прочитает стихи поэтов Серебряного века, посвященных русскому Северу. Выступление пройдет на фоне инсталляции Руфь Макленнан «Ледокол видит сны» (Icebreaker Dreaming). Прозвучит поэзия Николая Гумилева, Марии Цветаевой, Анны Ахматовой, Николая Бунина и грузинского поэта Тициана Табидзе в переводе Бориса Пастернака.

Why has the Arctic been depicted as timeless for centuries when in fact it has been a site of Imperial desire and riches for European courts and now global powers? Why are we so prone to project our utopian dreams onto the Arctic - despite its ice melting? This panel discussion with artist Ruth Maclennan, writer Michael Bravo and philosopher Esther Leslie explores different perspectives of thinking about the Arctic and why it matters for us. The discussion will be chaired by ‘Icebreaker Dreaming’ curator Elena Zaytseva.