The author of the exhibition is Anton Yushko, cave photographer from St. Petersburg and an active participant of international research projects. He has been going to expeditions for many years, collecting material on underground spaces in different countries. A special place in the author’s studies and art belongs to natural caves and abandoned mines of Northwest Russia.

Ruskeala Mining Park is a unique piece of industrial heritage, a former marble deposit with three centuries of history. Ruskeala has already revealed many of its secrets to researchers, but the metaphysics of the underground space still beckons with its mysterious beauty. Contributing to understanding and highlighting the innermost esthetics of the locality is one of the tasks for the authors and partners of the project “Ruskeala: the Secret of the Depth”.

This photo project started in 2013 and was exhibited for the first time with KarRC RAS support at the Outokumpu Mine Museum, Finland. It’s been on the roll since then: photography collections have become laureates of festivals and contests and have been exhibited in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Petrozavodsk, Sortavala, Pitkaranta, Segezha, Ruskeala. The exhibition presented at the Karelian Research Centre RAS this time will be an updated one. It includes several pictures taken in different countries and regions of Russia, but the bulk of it is images from Karelia.

The photo project has given an impetus to the new caving tour Underground Ruskeala, which received the grand-prix award of the pan-Russian Tour of the Year contest. In spring 2022, the facility celebrated five years of its successful operation. Over these years, owing to close cooperation with various institutes and units of KarRC RAS, Ruskeala Mining Park has turned into a scientific and creative laboratory for modern tourism. Kolmas Karelia company (Ruskeala Mining Park operator) and KarRC RAS are bonded by an agreement on multifaceted cooperation and work together in implementing environmental and geodynamic monitoring.

The exhibition is conceived as a vivid illustration of the key topics of sustainable development and sound use of underground spaces, as well as a demonstration of exceptional opportunities for domestic learning tourism.

The exhibition is organized by the Karelian Research Centre RAS, Leningrad Region Division of the Russian Geographical Society, Ruskeala Mining Park, with contributions from the Organizing Committee of the Land of Kalevala Ethnofestival, ScanTour tour operator, and the Republic of Karelia Tourism Administration.

The exhibition launch will be followed by the open seminar “Mining heritage of Karelia: from deposit mining to tourism”, KarRC RAS Conference Hall, 16.00 to 17.20. Experts will tell about the past and the present of mining history destinations in Karelia, both famous ones and those little known to a majority of tourists. The seminar will be broadcasted online on KarRC RAS YouTube channel.

The day will end with a tour of the Museum of Precambrian Geology of the KarRC RAS Institute of Geology guided by the Museum Director Oleg Lavrov.

The events will be of interest for specialists working in the tourism sector as well as to citizens and guests of Karelia curious about the history and nature of the region. Everyone is welcome!

The exhibition “Ruskeala: the Secret of the Depth” will take place in KarRC RAS lobby from June 9th to July 9th, 2022 (Mon.-Fri. from 9.00 to 18.00, Sat. 13.00-15.00). No fee.