Tacita Dean RA

The Russian Ending, Vesuvio, 2002. Etching in photogravure.

The Russian Ending is a series of photogravure prints taken from a collection of old postcards, most of which depict disasters or accidents. Tacita Dean’s selection of images and her inclusion of ‘director’s notes’ was inspired by her discovery that Danish film-makers made a happy ending for American release and a ‘Russian Ending’ for the Russians, for whom a tragic ending was palatable and even expected. The notes allow viewers an uncomfortable insight into the choreography of disaster.

• Royal Academy of Arts