American Civil War landmarks aren’t usually associated with Russian conceptual art. Yet the Antietam National Battlefield in western Maryland is precisely where artist Leonid Tishkov’s handmade, illuminated moon landed in early September. Tishkov’s Moon evokes a strong sense of melancholy and whimsy on a site that was once home to the bloodiest one-day battle in US history. A series of photographs captures the crescent-shaped moon sitting atop a church table, resting in a pigsty and lying on the ground, blanketed by a US flag like a fallen soldier.
These photographs and more are part of Private Moon: America, an exhibition at the Hand Print Workshop International (HPWI) in Alexandria, Virginia, where Tishkov is artist-in-residence through September. Since arriving stateside, Tishkov and his Moon have visited major landmarks across Washington, Maryland and Virginia.

Photographs by Leonid Tishkov