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On 23 June, the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Perm ordered the arrest in absentia of Naylya Allakhverdiyeva, the former director of the PERMM Museum of Contemporary Art, in a case concerning “offending the feelings of believers” (Part 1, Article 148 of the Criminal Code), and put her on a wanted list. This was reported by TASS.

She was placed on the federal wanted list on 26 May, and on the international wanted list on 19 June.

The case was opened following complaints from citizens to various law enforcement agencies. According to sources cited by the media, the reason for the prosecution was several works in the PERMM collection. The investigators allege that Allakhverdiyeva, aware that these works could be offensive to religious believers, nonetheless allowed them to be freely displayed in the museum and on its website.

The informants took offence at the use of biblical themes in works such as “Angel with a Trumpet” by Sergei Gorshkov, “Blue Cities” by Tania Anoshina, “Paradisi” by Konstantin Zvzdochetov, and other contemporary art pieces. Currently, only the last two works can be found in the museum’s online collection catalogue. These works were first exhibited at PERMM in 2011–2012.

18:46 The Perm Regional Court has overturned the Dzerzhinsky District Court’s decision to arrest Naylya Allakhverdiyeva in absentia. This was reported by TASS. No new preventive measure has been chosen for the woman at this time. She remains on the international wanted list.

  • In November 2024, security forces searched the PERMM museum and Allakhverdiyeva’s home in connection with a case against gallery owner Marat Gelman. Earlier, in March, investigators had visited the former director as part of a state treason case against Pyotr Verzilov.
  • The PERMM Museum was founded by Marat Gelman in 2009, who served as its director until 2013. Allakhverdiyeva became the museum’s director in 2019 and stepped down in 2024.