MOSCOW, November 9 - RAPSI. Novosibirsk artist Artyom Loskutov, who was fined by a Russian court for displaying icon-styled art on the city's streets stylistically reminiscent of Pussy Riot, has filed an application with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), Damir Gaynutdinov, Loskutov's representative told the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com) on Friday.
He said that Loskutov has requested that the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) finds Russia in violation of the freedom of expression article of the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, thereby obligating the state to pay him compensation for moral damages.
News of the icon-style posters which were displayed on three billboards in Novosibirsk in March, spread after Loskutov uploaded photos of them on the Internet. The pictures show a haloed mother and child, with the woman wearing a Pussy Riot-style balaclava. The mayor's office claimed the ads were displayed illegally.
Three cases of offenses against religion were initiated against Loskutov. The magistrate court acquitted him on one count for lack of evidence, but he was found guilty of the two remaining counts and was fined a total of 1,000 rubles ($30).
On February 21, five young women wearing brightly colored balaclavas stood at the altar of Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral to perform a protest song titled, "Holy Sh*t." Shortly thereafter, an edited video of the performance that was uploaded onto the Internet incited a public outcry.
Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich were convicted of hooliganism and sentenced to two years in prison on August 17.
Later, the Moscow City Court commuted fellow Pussy Riot member Yekaterina Samutsevich's sentence from two years in prison to immediate release on probation due to the fact that she was detained by security prior to reaching the stage, and thus did not actually participate in the punk rock prayer.
The judge left Alyokhina and Tolokonnikova's sentences unchanged.
