World's first Ayn Rand museum opens in St. Petersburg
The author of bestseller ‘Atlas Shrugged’, whose real name was Alisa Rosenbaum, was born in the Russian Empire. Now, a museum has opened in the house she left behind when she emigrated.
St. Petersburg, Nevsky Prospect 120, the corner house facing Moskovsky Railway Station. This is where the future Ayn Rand would live before departing for the United States. She crossed the ocean in 1925 on a student visa and decided never to return.
Having fled the Bolsheviks, 30 years later, she published a novel about capitalism. In 1957, ‘Atlas Shrugged’ became a major hit in the United States and profoundly influenced Americans.
“Today, we are reintroducing the name of one of St. Petersburg natives to the city’s cultural landscape. Her ideas changed the worldview of millions of people around the world. This is not just a memorial apartment, but a space for dialogue, where history meets philosophy. Our goal is to showcase the origins from which Ayn Rand’s powerful intellect emerged,” says Dmitry Pavlov, the initiator and creator of the museum.
The exhibition materials (photographs, posters and copies of manuscripts) tell the story of the writer's life and work, as well as the core principles of her philosophical system – Objectivism. At the heart of the display is an old Remington Rand typewriter, which inspired Alisa Rosenbaum to adopt the pen name ‘Ayn Rand’.
For now, visitor access is limited, as it is just the beginning of a large-scale project to create a full-fledged memorial center. The space is open for collaboration with archives, collectors and admirers of Ayn Rand’s work.
