Filming at VDNKh, Moscow, August 1991

VDNKh was a huge exhibition ground showcasing all of the USSR. There happened to be a film being shot when I visited it, in front of a fountain representing all of the republics of the Soviet Union.

Moscow, USSR, August 19, 1991

Here are 7 shots from my monochrome film of the coup d'etat attempt against Gorbachev in Moscow, August 1991. All are scans of prints, the negatives being among those stolen from my apartment in St Petersburg in 1994; at least I still have the prints, anyway. The scans are a bit thin on detail, a bit grainy, but they're history, so we'll forgive them their defects.

Moscow, USSR, August 19, 1991

Second from my "Gorbachev Coup" slide set. There were so many photographers in the crowds, I felt quite safe shooting everything which was happening, even though I had little understanding of what it was all about at the time.

St Basil's Cathedral, Red Square, Moscow, August 1991

The reflection and the art, but not the reality; the viewer must recreate this from what can be seen. I love finding layered scenes like this, with different versions of the same thing.

Kremlin Panorama, Moscow, USSR, July 1991

The other camera I had on my first trip to the USSR was a disposable 35mm panoramic job with preloaded film, just for kicks. No great art resulted, but I was pleased with most of the results anyway, enjoying the format change.

Moscow, August 19, 1991

My first visit to the USSR coincided with the beginning of its end. Having gone into the centre of Moscow to finish a roll of film on this day, I found myself scrambling for more film as history unfolded itself around me. I didn't speak any Russian then, and had to ask others in the crowd what was going on. "Gorbachev's been taken ill," I was told.

I don't consider myself a strong journalist, but this was an event which required the role, so I photographed what I could. More to follow from these frames later.