“Curious Guslitsa” in Yegoryevsk: Street art and practices of civic participation in the urban improvement

Abstract

This article examines a case in which the creation of a street art piece became a way to engage residents in the development of a public space improvement project as part of the preparation of an application for the All-Russian Competition for the Best Projects for Creating a Comfortable Urban Environment in Small Towns and Historic Settlements (MGIP). The material draws on the experience of preparing a competitive application for the improvement of a section of the Guslitsa River embankment in Yegoryevsk, Moscow Region, in 2025, as well as related event formats aimed at engaging citizens in discussions of the area and design solutions. Although in the early stages, the project team viewed the street art and graffiti, abundant on buildings and fences along the embankment, as something to be painted over, the process led to the development of an alternative approach: treating graffiti and street art as a relevant cultural phenomenon and an urban resource with which it is possible to develop appropriate, non-prohibitive practices of interaction, as well as using it as a pretext for joint action and public discussion of future transformations of the area. In addition to describing Yegoryevsk's cultural landscape and a detailed reconstruction of the mechanics of engagement (an open art lab, collective development of a sketch and creation of the mural, and a festival timed to coincide with the submission of the application), the author analyzes the preconditions that made this scenario possible and assesses the case's impact — at the level of the competition application, the city's cultural infrastructure, and the participants' experiences.