Artist Gennady Troshkov with photography by Mel Theobald and Robert Weitz.
Kashin, located about 180 kilometers north of Moscow, is one of the oldest cities in Russia. Never has the word “heart of the city” had
more meaning because the center of Kashin is uniquely heart-shaped as a result of the oxbow formed by the Kashinka River which defines its contour. The river is a visual wonder because of its vegetative density of grasses, reeds, algae, lillypads and sloping embankments. The length of the Kashinka is 128 Kilometers feeding into the Volga River near the Uglich Reservoir. In 1319 this principality of the Rostov family was traded to the principality of Tver. Kashin was gifted to various family members and traded numerous times until 1591when Tsar Feodor Ivanovich appointed a governor from the Moscow State to control it. One popular legend suggests that Kashin was prohibited from engaging in warfare by a woman on the Rostov family who was one of the first Russian women to be sainted. Whether true or not, there is a serenity to this town which is intricately embraced by the winding flow of this gentle and beautiful river.
World Rivers Note: On August 17, 2006, using a locally produced remnant of lace purchased in the Kashin market, Gennady Troshkov walked across a bridge and down the embankment of the Kashinka River to a favorite fishing spot. On a small patch of gravel he was enveloped by the vegetation and luscious green landscape. Voluptuous white clouds filling the sky were reflected in the mirror surfaced water. In a great unification, Troshkov, a graceful and gentile artist, began a series of movements in which the fabric was integrated with the water and the landscape. In the distance the dome of an Orthodox church was inverted on the opposite shoreline. It was a perfect day in a perfect place.
