Crossing the Border A Comparative Study of the Forest in the Poems of Gennadij Ajgi and in the Actions of Kollektivnye Dejstvija

In my article, I provide a comparative analysis of the forest in the production of the Russian poet Gennadij Ajgi (1934-2006) and in the performances of the artistic group Kollektivnye Dejstvija Коллективные Действия (Collective Actions, 1976-89). Relying on the principles of environmental ethics, I stress the creative value of marginality, related to both the neutral space of the forest in Soviet ideologized society and the selected authors’ exclusion from the official culture. Besides, I focus on the deep transformation of the lyrical subject who, by crossing the forest border, establishes a creative dialogic exchange with nature.