To produce the images that convey his fatalistic and ironic approach to life, tinged with hope, he needed the environment and knowledge of Mother Russia, oiled with a bit of bribery to certain circus trainers. Enter the Great Russian Bear, the personification of Russia for the last several centuries, onto center stage and into his studio. The bear is recognized as both brutish and cute – Misha was the mascot for the 1980 Olympic Games – and has remained a symbol of Russia since Tsarist times. In 2009 it is the symbol of the United Russia Party.

Russia' s President Vladimir Putin (L) congratulates prizewinners at the 2018 Youth Judo Tournament dedicated to Soviet and Russian judo coach Anatoly Rakhlin, and held at St Petersburg' s Yubileyny Palace of Sports in St Petersburg, Russia on May 23, 2018. (Photo by Mikhail Metzel/TASS)

Flashmob: Water Battle on All-Russian Exhibition Center in Moscow, Russia, on August 5, 2012. (Photo by Lilja Dal)

Tennis star Anna Kournikova of Russia recreates a legendary Marilyn Monroe pose during the filming of the adidas climacool commercial on location in Los Angeles. (Photo by CLIVE BRUNSKILL/Getty Images). 11 Mar. 2002

A hippopotamus performs during a show at the circus in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Russia, July 7, 2016. (Photo by Ilya Naymushin/Reuters)

Revellers from Russia parade during the Aoussou Carnival in Sousse, Tunisia July 26, 2015. (Photo by Anis Mili/Reuters)

Competitors in the Big Air challenge at the Proryv-2016 festival of extreme sports in Moscow, Russia on March 27, 2016. (Photo by Xinhua/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A guard dog in the suburbs of Yakutsk, Russia, considered to be the coldest city in the world, January 2014. (Photo by Amos Chapple/REX Features)