March 10 is the Day of Archives in Russia. This holiday is celebrated by the Institute of History and Archives of RSUH, which has been considered a forge of archivists since its foundation.
Today, the archives reflect the material and spiritual life of society, having invaluable historical, scientific, social, political, economic and cultural significance. Every year, the volume of documents of the Archival Fund of the Russian Federation, stored in state and municipal archives, is increasing by an average of 1.7 mil items.
Dr. Chichuga, Associate Professor of the Department of Records Science, Audiovisual, Scientific and Technical Archives of RSUH, spoke about the prospects of the profession, her experience with unique documents, and how and where the knowledge of the graduates of the Institute is applied.
When did you decide to devote your life with archival activities? What influenced your choice?
In 1995, I entered the Faculty of Technotronic Archives and Documents. In the 1990s, as is known, there was an “archival revolution” in our country. The topic of archives became very relevant. It captured the pages of periodicals and transfixed the minds of society. I didn’t and couldn’t know anything about the work of archives then and only in the process of studying did I begin to understand what function documents actually performed, what unique treasures did archival funds contain and, finally, how boring and yet exciting the work of an archivist could be.
My Faculty turned out to be unique in the sense that I had to learn not only the basics of archiving, but also work with audiovisual and paper documents, formed as a result of scientific and technical activities, in the national economy and mass media.
Having graduated, I became a specialist in audiovisual, scientific, technical and economic archives. To fully master the craft of an archivist was possible only by practicing it. I remember how I worked in the State Archives of the Russian Federation systematizing the funds of organizations and institutions, such as the Federal Labor Inspectorate, the All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions, the Ministry of Labor and many others. To be honest, it wasn't easy work.
You ask what influenced my choice to devote my life to archival activities? There is no clear answer here. It involves my alma mater with its atmosphere, which I did not want to leave. There were also the teachers who had generously shared their knowledge and instilled me with an interest in the methods of research and the profession (including the work of a teacher); it was they who set the bar high for my work.
I also believe I drew a lucky ticket in choosing my future profession because in 2000 I graduated from the Russian-Swedish Center of RSUH. The archival education and the educational program of the Center defined the direction of my professional growth. I knew where I should go. And most importantly, I came to love my job.
What Russian or foreign archives have you worked with? On what projects?
As part of the Russian-Swedish Center of RSUH, I received several scholarships, which allowed me to get acquainted with foreign archival experience. In the early 2000s, I worked as a researcher at the National Archives of Sweden (Riksarkivet) and the Center for Entrepreneurial History in Stockholm (Centrum för Näringslivshistoria). Experience in archival research work and knowledge of the Swedish language allowed me to take part in two major international archival projects.
The first one, Sources of Swedish industrial history in the East - Nobel, took place in 2008. The project involved working with archival documents on the history of the activities of the Petroleum Production Company Nobel Brothers and the oil industry in Russia in 1870–1920 in order to popularize the history of the company and provide free access to primary sources on the Internet. From 2012 to 2014, I participated in a Russian-Swedish project on the history of Swedish companies in Russia in the 19th and the early 20th century. It involved researching materials from the Russian and Swedish archives.
What unique documents have you worked with?
For me, the documents of any fund and any archive seem unique when I start working with them for the first time. Sometimes you realize that no one has touched them before you. At such a moment, you begin to feel even more important as an archivist and historian, you start making assumptions, and then understand why these documents are important.
I recall the words of Dr. Ilizarov, a professor of RSUH, who once said in one of his interviews “it is much more difficult to see the people’s memory in the nondescript documents of the recent past: yesterday and the day before yesterday”. And it truly is. The archivist is looking for answers to many questions daily. In the words of the French historian Mark Blokh, he "selects and sifts, that is, analyzes."
Today, I am especially interested in funds of personal origin, those of engineers, travelers, doctors, technical intelligentsia in general. It's hard to say what will interest me later. Archives are meant to be researched. Working with the original source is, first of all, "the pleasure of learning amazing things."
How and where do you apply the knowledge and skills acquired at the Institute of History and Archives of RSUH?
First of all, in my teaching activities. Everything that I have to work with as a researcher is used in my lectures and seminars. I use it a lot in everyday life, too. After all, we are all documents. Each of us has an archive. And they are not just papers littering the apartment. If we look at them differently, we will see that they are witnesses of our private life, of our time. It is important to collect and store documents, otherwise they will simply waste away.
How promising is the profession of archivist?
Of course, this profession is promising. And I want to believe that despite the digital transformation, it will remain so for many years to come. It is best to master new knowledge and skills in the area that is in demand today and will not go anywhere tomorrow. Our Faculty trains professional personnel for work with archives. The demand for such specialists is huge. There are few of them in the labor market.
Today, the structure of any enterprise includes research, design and pilot project supervision. All of them create their own sets of documentation. In the workflow of modern organizations, materials on non-traditional media (film-photo-phono documents) are on the increase. And the labor market needs specialists who can work with documents that are created and accessed using special devices.
Students gain knowledge about the process of creating documents, and then apply it in organizations. These organizations are federal, regional, municipal and departmental archives; companies providing archival services on a commercial basis; design and engineering organizations; archives of commercial organizations and the banking sector; media organizations (press services, news agencies, film distribution companies) and many others.
What would you wish to future young researchers?
Search, study documents and think! I wish you luck, patience and great source study intuition.
