American popcorn has made its way into the heart of Russian culture. Organizers and participants came together on Sunday at a Moscow festival marking the tenth anniversary of the introduction of popcorn to Russia.
It was exactly ten years ago, on December 16, 1991, that popcorn, considered an Americandelicacy here, first made its appearance in this land famous for its artists.
To celebrate the occasion, ten “artists” decided to recreate a famous Russian painting in, you guessed it, popcorn. It took the ten artists a total of six hours of painstaking work to complete the popcorn painting. The result of this long ordeal was a 120 square meter popcorn mosaic.
The Russian Records Agency, the local equivalent of the Guinness Book of World Records, was at the Manezh exhibition complex to witness the event. A ceremony was held in front ofonlookers to officially register the record.
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The ceremony was immediately followed by a popcorn lovers’feast, with festival-goers consuming large amounts of the much-loved snack. Both the young and the old eagerly took part in thefestive celebrations. Some participants voiced their support for the unusual event.
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There were also those who talked about feeling a sense of camaraderie among their fellow popcorn enthusiasts.
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The celebrations continued for hours and even included some live performances.
Clean up for the event was no problem---there were many eager onlookers on hand to clean up---and eat---the delicious mess.