Mexico and Russia once had a common border (Alaska and Northern California). Perhaps we will have it soon, but now on the Moon.

-andrey Pakhomov, Rossotrudnichestvo representative in Mexico and Counselor of the Russian Embassy in Mexico-

Some familiar faces greeted us with a smile, from a stellar stage mixed with touches honoring the legacy of Vasily Kandinsky Abstract. Spotlight, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin's pioneering, followed by Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman cosmonaut, y Svetlana Savitskaya, who performed the first spacewalk. Later, Laika tender, Belka y Strelka. They had come back to life, through the hands of Mexican artist Daniela Oliveros.

All of them, and a series of engravings of the exhibition “Sky. Cosmos. Man (myth, legends, reality). Estampa centuries XVI-XX”, facilitated by Rossotrudnichestvo, original photographs of the skies of Moscow and an installation by the artist Paco Márquez, They adorned the lobby of the National School of Languages, Linguistics and Translation of the UNAM during the Day of Cosmonautics: Mexico and Russia united by the Cosmos.

this initiative, driven by Gabriela Oliveros, Russian Art author Alma MX, together with visual artists Daniela Oliveros and Paco Márquez, It consisted of a painting exhibition, film and conferences, and it was inaugurated on Tuesday 9 of April, with the presence of the director of the ENALLT, Drag. Maria del Carmen Contijoch Escontria; the representative of Rossotrudnichestvo in Mexico, Sr. andrey Pakhomov, and the Head of Russian, Asian Languages ​​and Modern Greek, Prof. Ricardo Cornejo Avila.

“This exhibition aims to present to the university community and students of Russian language, the protagonists of the Russian aircraft through the centuries, who have become icons of history through the work of scientists and professionals from various fields for generations”. Right away, There was a brief cocktail, where attendees could enjoy snacks by Russian restaurant Kolobok and exchange opinions and views on the subject.

During the Day, the public had the opportunity to see the Mexican film Cygnus, a proposed high-level science fiction genre directed by Hugo Félix Mercado, which it was filmed in the Large Millimeter Telescope Alfonso Serrano (GTM) and it has won awards at film festivals in Berlin and Miami. The director was present during the screening and interacted with students later.

The roundtable discussion was also conducted “Cosmonautics and scientific collaboration: prospects and challenges”, with a presentation by Dr. Antonio Castellanos, Institute of Nuclear Sciences, and Dr.. Gabriela Frías, the same ICN, who has extensive experience in Science Communication.

This interdisciplinary proposal inspired by the Cosmos comes to changing times and closer ties between Mexico and Russia, because it is important to encourage young Mexicans in the vocation and scientific collaboration, in particular, with the nation pioneer in the exploration and travel to Cosmos, through different media and formats.

Series of portraits of icons of Cosmonautics by Daniela Oliveros (@darbol_o)

The pictorial exhibition of icons of Cosmonautics will have its next stop in the lobby of the Sala Ollin Yoliztli on Sunday 14 April at 12 p.m. during the concert Sounds of the Universe on the occasion of the International Day of Space Flight, an initiative of the Foundation p.i.. Tchaikovsky, focused on cultural exchange between Russia and Mexico.