Alexey Mokrousov

Alexey Mokrousov is Author of articles on the history of Russian theater and the literature of the Russian émigré community. Previously, he taught at various Moscow universities. Today, he is an independent researcher.

The project

Title: Russian émigrés in Paris in the 1920s: between politics and culture

"This research focuses on Diaghilev's last major project: his library. Founder and organizer of the Ballets Russes, Diaghilev was also, towards the end of his life, a passionate bibliophile. He dreamed of creating a museum of Russian culture, of which the library was to be one of the main components. Although this project remained unfinished, the library itself was created and contained more than a thousand works. A special place was reserved for banned books—such as works on Russian Freemasonry and the first edition of “Voyage de Saint-Pétersbourg à Moscou”—reflecting Diaghilev's political convictions as well as his aspirations as a collector. His library later became known as the “Diaghilev-Lifar Library” – it was under this name that it was sold at auction in 1975. Many rare items disappeared from the library, some of Diaghilev's publications were replaced, and, above all, the museum of Russian culture that he had imagined and which was to house his library never saw the light of day. Nevertheless, many members of the Russian émigré community in Paris remained attached to the history of the library and the ensuing “hunt” for its treasures by the Soviet authorities. A special place will be given to the tragic figure of Senator de Monzie."

Selective Bibliography

• “Remains under observation...”: On Vladimir Mayakovsky’s stay in Paris in the 1920s (based on archival materials from the Paris Prefecture of Police) // The Works of V.V. Mayakovsky. Issue 5: Interdisciplinary Approaches and World Reception / eds. V.N. Terekhin, A.A. Rossomakhin. Moscow: IMLI RAS, 2024.
• Nikolay Sinezubov. Materials for a biography (based on research in Russian and French archives) // Tretyakov Readings. 2023: materials of the reporting scientific conference / scientific ed. T.A. Yudkevich. - M .: State Tretyakov Gallery, 2025. Pp. 318 - 334.
• "We Became Friends… Was Electrified": Why Not Sukhovo-Kobylin? "The Objective Poet" as Received by Apollon Grigoriev // "Invisible Quantity." A. V. Sukhovo-Kobylin: Theater, Literature, Life / ed. by O. N. Kuptsova, E. N. Penskaya. Moscow: National Research University Higher School of Economics, 2024.
• Between Rogier van der Weyden and Vasily Nemirovich-Danchenko: Toward a Cultural Geography of Gaito Gazdanov // Gaito Gazdanov: Facets of Personality and Talent. Moscow: RUDN University, 2022. pp. 181–195.