Ben Noble, a friend and co-author, decided to tell the world a | Екатерина Шульман

Ben Noble, a friend and co-author, decided to tell the world a tale of a Dutch architectural studio, a book with pictures, two YouTube videos and a plan to remake the State Duma plenary hall on a more democratic basis. It involves him, the State Duma speaker, a benevolent oligarch who is to remain nameless, and myself. It is a funny story with a sad ending , very much like a story by Chekhov: nobody died but nothing much happened, everyone grew imperceptibly older, the schoolroom-like hall still stands, parliamentary democracy remains distant as the red roofs of Amsterdam.

"The links in the chain between the publication of Parliament and the Russian State Duma’s redesign choices also speak to what we might call the ‘intimacy’ of authoritarian power in modern-day Russia – that is, of a system in which a Facebook post by a peripheral, foreign actor, amplified by two YouTube videos (filmed by an influential intellectual from the domestic comfort of her kitchen), could end up influencing the choices of senior politicians in Russia.

The fate of the redesign (or rebuild) project remains uncertain. In December 2020, Vladimir Putin voiced support for a new State Duma building. But, in January 2021, Vyacheslav Volodin sounded downbeat. Might this be related to his potential ouster as speaker following elections in September 2021? Only time will tell".