"The sixties were just beginning. Artists were learning freedom. They interrogated their inner world and listened, waiting for an answer. They expected insights from themselves, and recognition from us."

“Amidst the lively, changeable, and colorful flow of Moscow's life at that time, three territorially close poles of universal attraction once emerged, drawing everyone in. They are: 1) the 'Artistic' café in the passage of the Arts Theater; 2) the 'Sovremennik' theater on Mayakovskaya; and 3) the Sooster's basement on Krasina,” recalls art historian Irina Uvarova. “...their modest home was wonderful. Heated by a sense of homely comfort, it managed to be bohemian and carefree in the face of harsh and meager life...

Artists, actors and poets, the girlfriends of actors, artists, and poets, the friends of poets, artists, and actors, Lydia's childhood friends, their husbands, acquaintances of the husbands of childhood friends, young artists from Estonia, painters from Chișinău, a self-taught thinker from Transcarpathia, and a prodigy from the Urals who arrived specifically to meet Sooster... In the haze and smoke of gatherings, faces often appear before me: Yuri Sobolev, Ilya Kabakov. Boris Zhutovsky, Vladimir Yankilevsky, and Asarkan, a theater critic, flash before me. I remember Efremov came by...

Men in sweaters resemble the heroes of Remarque. Girls on slender heels resemble Hemingway's heroines. Through hair falling over their faces, they gaze at the paintings with a mysterious and sad look...”

In Tallinn, from May to June 1960, there was an exhibition of young artists featuring Ülo Sooster's illustrations for Friedbert Tuglas's book "Little Illimar."

In October 1961, Sirje Jõgevere, a classmate of Ülo, organized an exhibition of Sooster's works at the library in the town of Lokhva.

Sooster sent three works to the Tartu Spring Exhibition, but at the last moment, they were taken down directly from the wall of the hall.

Heldur Viire, who came from Tallinn for three months, drew a lot together with Ülo and communicated with Sooster's friends in Moscow.

From the memories of Lidia Sooster, who was working at the Small Theatre as a set designer at that time: “I brought home tubes of relief paste, nitro enamel paints, bronze, and silver. Ülo was obsessively drawing, adding new discoveries to previously made drawings. He marveled at the appearance of all sorts of splotches, poking at them with his fingers, blowing in different directions, and sometimes adding ink to the drawings, exclaiming, ‘Oh, shine, shine, shine!’ Marta, Ülo’s aunt, sent him markers and rapidographs as a gift from Sweden. All his artist friends stood frozen around the table where these wonders were spread out… Ülo waltzed around the table. ‘I’ve never seen such beauty! People, people, look at how many drawings I will make!’ Among the abstract works, young maidens, witches, and all kinds of evil spirits began to appear – an endless search for new forms. ‘One must determine one’s special place in art,’ Ülo said. His drawings with markers began to emerge – trees, the sea, sand, and stones alternated with beautiful figures of women.”

 Ülo oli eriliselt kiindunud jazzi. Ta käis Tallinna, Riia ja Tbilisi jazzifestivalidel.

Ülo Sooster tries to join the Union of Artists, the Moscow association of graphic artists. He is rejected.

He finishes the staged composition "Eye in the Egg" and the surrealist "Large Junipers."

He draws for the collection "Science and Humanity," which began to be published in 1962 at the initiative of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR.

An exhibition of Sooster, Sobolev, Yankilevsky, and Neizvestny was being prepared at the "Yunost" hotel. The exhibition did not take place; it was banned.

However, a one-day exhibition was held at the House of Teachers on Bolshaya Kommunisticheskaya Street. Participants included Elia Belutina's studio, Ülo Sooster, Yuri Sobolev, Vladimir Yankilevsky, and Ernst Neizvestny. A foreign film crew produced a news segment titled "Abstract Art on Bolshaya Kommunisticheskaya Street," which aired on American and European television channels.

As a result, the artists were invited to exhibit at the Manezh for the 30th anniversary of the Moscow Union of Artists. On December 1, the head of state, Nikita Khrushchev, visited the exhibition and caused a complete uproar.

“At that time, when Sooster the romantic was alive, the Moscow underground was gathering strength for a meeting with worldwide fame. It would take them out of the country, and they would learn to live in a civilized world and hate each other. But Ülo was no longer present at this celebration of life; he died in 1970.

However, he did manage to receive his first kiss of global fame while still alive,” writes art historian Irina Uvarova. “The underground, or avant-garde, suddenly found itself allowed into the exhibition halls of the Manezh… Khrushchev, the then ruler, had never seen anything like it. He probably hadn’t seen anything at all apart from reproductions in the magazine ‘Ogonyok.’ But contrary to popular belief, I dare to prove that he was somewhat sensitive to art. The new paintings and new sculptures truly electrified him; indeed, they radiated high-voltage energy. A historical scandal occurred. He yelled at Ülo separately. In the suddenness of the expletive in those walls, Ülo forgot Russian words.

In the morning, the kindergarten teacher returned little Tenno from preschool. While the whole group was peacefully having semolina porridge, Tenno made a statement: ‘I don’t like Uncle Khrushchev. He yelled at my dad.’ After receiving information from the kindergarten, Lida went to the closet to look for both camp suitcases…

However, time passed, and the suitcases were not needed; there were no reprisals regarding undesirable art. Of course, exhibitions were out of the question, but all the ‘heroes of the Manezh’ were instructed to be given work in publishing houses.”

Ülo Sooster had to adopt a pseudonym – Smorodin. For several years, he designed books under this surname. Why Smorodin? Because the surname Sooster means ‘blackcurrant’ in the Hiiumaa dialect.

Lidia moved to work at the Gogol Theater.

On “Tuesdays” on Krasina Street, artists Eduard Steinberg, Viktor Pivovarov and Alexander Kharitonov began to visit as well.

Ülo met physicist Viktor Trostnikov and began illustrating his book “Physics: Close and Distant.”

The popular science book "Physics: Near and Far" was published by "Znanie" in 1963, for which Ülo created a series of 199 drawings.

According to his wife’s memories, "he was completely captivated by this new work, saying: 'If I were born again, I wouldn’t be an artist, I would be only a physicist.'"

Art historian Eha Komissarov notes that "Sooster turned the book’s design into an artistic event. In this edition, he constructed a remarkable number of new typographic symbols and images, incorporating projective geometry, which he mastered through mannerism... Sooster significantly expanded the technical possibilities, linking them with esotericism or presenting inspiring intersections between futurism, surrealism, mannerism, and contemporary leading technologies."

The compiler of the book, physicist and philosopher Viktor Trostnikov, decades later, would say that to understand Sooster's work, it is essential to grasp his philosophy. "For many years, starting from our collaboration on the book Physics: Near and Far until Sooster's death, we spent hours discussing philosophical problems... Sooster's philosophical system evolved, and he responded vividly to new trends... In every phenomenon, he saw different, sometimes contradictory components... The global system is defined both by the world and by the nature of the subject perceiving the world.

As surprising as it may seem, he valued logic, mathematics, and all exact sciences very highly (otherwise, he wouldn't have taken on Physics: Near and Far). Moreover, the Protestant nature of his ancestors was clearly felt in him, speaking through the spirit of the proud inhabitants of Northern Europe, who placed human reason above all.

...He viewed his entire artistic endeavor as a journey toward that distant truth, which is not artistic truth but belongs to the realm of thought. Sooster's allegorical, symbolic, and deeply irrational art was merely a foothold for reason, which, in his view, was above art."

Artists from the "Lianozovo Group" visited the Tuesday gatherings, including Evgeny Kropivnitsky with his wife Olga Potapova, their daughter Valentina Kropivnitskaya with her husband Oskar Rabin, and others. There was a reciprocal visit, leading to introductions to many non-conformist artists.

The works Landscape with a Bomb and Lips were completed.

The work Old Tallinn, which was sent to Tartu for a retrospective exhibition, was rejected by the selection committee.