Alexandra “Sasha” Skochilenko ’17, Bard and Smolny College alumna and Russian artist who was imprisoned in 2022 for opposing the war in Ukraine, will speak at Bard College Berlin on Monday, April 7. Her talk,
How a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences Helped Me in Jail, which will take place from noon to 3 pm EDT and be accessible
via Zoom, will be moderated by her academic advisor, Ilya Kalinin, of Smolny Beyond Borders and visiting scholar at Bard College Berlin and Humboldt University. Skochilenko had been imprisoned in March 2022 for the act of placing anti-war leaflets, disguised as price tags, on goods in a grocery store in Saint Petersburg. In 2024, she was released along with other political prisoners as part of a larger prisoner swap between Russia, the United States, and several European countries. She is a 2025 recipient of the Bard College Award.
In her talk, Skochilenko will discuss her studies in anthropology at Smolny College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and how this experience shaped and strengthened her anti-war stance. She will also reflect on her courtroom speech which explored the value of life and reconciliation in times of war and conflict, and how these ideas helped her survive imprisonment.
Read more about Sasha Skochilenko ’17:
https://opensocietyuniversitynetwork.org/resources/video-collection/case-studies/sasha-skochilenko/
Post Date: 03-18-2025