Today in class in order to continue with the modern art in Russia, we discussed the works by El Lissitzky. In fact Lazar Markovich Lissitzky, he was a Russian visionery artist exploring different fields of art and design, such as architecture, painting, typography, poster design, photomontage. One of his landmarks is a new composition style incorporating type into the page. In the beginning he was influnced by Malevich and a group of suprematists. Teaching at the school together with Malevich, Lissitzky developed his own style, called Proun (Project for the Affirmation of the New). He focused on the dimentional elements and how to represent multiple perspectives on the flat surface. Later due to his education in architecture, he was creating fully dimentional pieces and commercial designs. In 1920s Lissitzky moved to Berlin and became an ambassador of Russian avant-garde art in the Western world. He experimented with typography and more commercial, political and public art. He was a source of inspiration for many of his contemporaries, starting from the artists associated with the Dada movement to Jan Tschichold and the De Stijl movement in the Netherlands. The movie 'The Battleship Potemkin' from 1925 featured one of the greatest interest of Lissitzky, the new exciting technique of photomontage. The film by Sergei Eisenstein is regarded as one of the most propaganda works ever produced and shows a dramatic battle between the Royalists and the common people of Russia.
Another representative of Russian avant-garde is Alexander Rodchenko. He was appointed Director of the Museum Bureau by the government in 1920. He was not only a painter but in his later years got engaged into photography and graphic design. His great contribution in the avant-garde movement and constructivism was the studies on color that eventually he reduced to a monochromic pallet. He stated that by doing so he 'reduced painting to its logical conclusion and exhibited three canvases: red, blue, and yellow. This is the end of painting'.
Unlike in Russia where the cenzorship and Lenin's party did not support the arts, in the Netherlands a new movement flourished. De Stijl was introduced around 1917 and for the next 15 years gave a direction for the young artists. The group took an Utopian approach to the aesthetics. They believed that people need harmony and balance after the dreadul years of wars and chaos. The main characteristics of the new style was a pure abstraction consisted of geometric shapes, lines, arranged at right angles, primary colors, black and whites, the lack of ornamentation, texture and illustration. De Stijl was represented by Theo van Doesburg, Gerrit Rietveld and Piet Mondrian. It was Mondrian who came up with the philosophy of the movement that he later named neoplasticism.
The final movie on Russian avant-garde was an interesting closure to that period of time in the art and design history. The transition from the celebrated and prosperous artists into the victims of the Communist system is an imporant factor to understand. Contary to the group led by Theo van Doesburg in the Netherlands, the artsist in Russia struggled to carry on their professions and had to make sacrfices and adjustements to the philosophy of the Bolschevik party. I think it was very interesting how the artsist, such as Tatlin turned into the social/public art and saw a bigger purpose in creating design for packages, advertising, commercial posters. Following the constructivism they felt importance in their acts and service to the people of Russia. This awareness kept them eager and inspired to work despite the political limitations.
A note on the figure of El Lissitzky. I think it is fascinating to see how Russian avant-garde art developed from Cubo-Futurism called by Filippo Marinetti (Italian Futurist) 'savagely primitive' to Constructivism. The influence of Lissitzky as a representative of Constructivism shows how art crosses cultural and political boundaries. He did not only inspire Russian artists. Moving to Germany he opened a new way to the Western world, blocked by the Russian regime. In Germany he became a recognised figure and joined the Dada movement. He was commissioned with a special issue of the magazine 'Merz' . Through his relation with Walter Groplus his work was also a source of inspiration for the Bauhaus. Finally, De Stijl with Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg as the founders was based on the ideas brought from 'primitive' Russia by its greatest ambassador or arts, Lissitzky. At the same time he was extensively writing on design, attending conferences, lectures and exhibitions and stayed open to the evolving technology (contrary to more traditional artsist such as Malevich). He said: 'The sun as the expression of old world energy is torn down from the heavens by modern man, who by virtue of his technological superiority creates his own energy source.' As for me it is very inspiring to see such a man on the field of graphic design. He embraced different fields of art and left a significant mark on all of them. I think it is right to call him a Renaissance artist of XX century for his passion and explorations in arts and education.
As for Lissitzky's designs I feel that even now they are innovative and breaking the boundaries of what one could call 'safe' or 'correct' design without any outstanding elements versus the sparks of genius. On the example of 'Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge' from 1919, I find it amazingly interesting to create such a fascinating composition of pure geometric forms and type (also very geometric). There is a movement to the design that creates an order from that, at first sight, chaotic composition. It is further emphasized by the simplicity of the color pallete. Red capturing our attention and then the gradient of black and white. There is also a clear hierarchy: first come the elements and afterwards the text. I feel these is so much to apply to my design work from only this one piece by Lissitzky. Finally it is not purely a design, but a propaganda poster with clear symbolism of red as Bolscheviks and revolution and white, the anti-revolutionary forces (reinforced by the text in Russian 'Bey Belych' meaning Beat the Whites 'Klinom krasnim' with the Red Wedge)
Lissitzky | van Doesburg | Mondrian
Another representative of Russian avant-garde is Alexander Rodchenko. He was appointed Director of the Museum Bureau by the government in 1920. He was not only a painter but in his later years got engaged into photography and graphic design. His great contribution in the avant-garde movement and constructivism was the studies on color that eventually he reduced to a monochromic pallet. He stated that by doing so he 'reduced painting to its logical conclusion and exhibited three canvases: red, blue, and yellow. This is the end of painting'.
Unlike in Russia where the cenzorship and Lenin's party did not support the arts, in the Netherlands a new movement flourished. De Stijl was introduced around 1917 and for the next 15 years gave a direction for the young artists. The group took an Utopian approach to the aesthetics. They believed that people need harmony and balance after the dreadul years of wars and chaos. The main characteristics of the new style was a pure abstraction consisted of geometric shapes, lines, arranged at right angles, primary colors, black and whites, the lack of ornamentation, texture and illustration. De Stijl was represented by Theo van Doesburg, Gerrit Rietveld and Piet Mondrian. It was Mondrian who came up with the philosophy of the movement that he later named neoplasticism.
The final movie on Russian avant-garde was an interesting closure to that period of time in the art and design history. The transition from the celebrated and prosperous artists into the victims of the Communist system is an imporant factor to understand. Contary to the group led by Theo van Doesburg in the Netherlands, the artsist in Russia struggled to carry on their professions and had to make sacrfices and adjustements to the philosophy of the Bolschevik party. I think it was very interesting how the artsist, such as Tatlin turned into the social/public art and saw a bigger purpose in creating design for packages, advertising, commercial posters. Following the constructivism they felt importance in their acts and service to the people of Russia. This awareness kept them eager and inspired to work despite the political limitations.
A note on the figure of El Lissitzky. I think it is fascinating to see how Russian avant-garde art developed from Cubo-Futurism called by Filippo Marinetti (Italian Futurist) 'savagely primitive' to Constructivism. The influence of Lissitzky as a representative of Constructivism shows how art crosses cultural and political boundaries. He did not only inspire Russian artists. Moving to Germany he opened a new way to the Western world, blocked by the Russian regime. In Germany he became a recognised figure and joined the Dada movement. He was commissioned with a special issue of the magazine 'Merz' . Through his relation with Walter Groplus his work was also a source of inspiration for the Bauhaus. Finally, De Stijl with Piet Mondrian and Theo van Doesburg as the founders was based on the ideas brought from 'primitive' Russia by its greatest ambassador or arts, Lissitzky. At the same time he was extensively writing on design, attending conferences, lectures and exhibitions and stayed open to the evolving technology (contrary to more traditional artsist such as Malevich). He said: 'The sun as the expression of old world energy is torn down from the heavens by modern man, who by virtue of his technological superiority creates his own energy source.' As for me it is very inspiring to see such a man on the field of graphic design. He embraced different fields of art and left a significant mark on all of them. I think it is right to call him a Renaissance artist of XX century for his passion and explorations in arts and education.
As for Lissitzky's designs I feel that even now they are innovative and breaking the boundaries of what one could call 'safe' or 'correct' design without any outstanding elements versus the sparks of genius. On the example of 'Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge' from 1919, I find it amazingly interesting to create such a fascinating composition of pure geometric forms and type (also very geometric). There is a movement to the design that creates an order from that, at first sight, chaotic composition. It is further emphasized by the simplicity of the color pallete. Red capturing our attention and then the gradient of black and white. There is also a clear hierarchy: first come the elements and afterwards the text. I feel these is so much to apply to my design work from only this one piece by Lissitzky. Finally it is not purely a design, but a propaganda poster with clear symbolism of red as Bolscheviks and revolution and white, the anti-revolutionary forces (reinforced by the text in Russian 'Bey Belych' meaning Beat the Whites 'Klinom krasnim' with the Red Wedge)
Lissitzky | van Doesburg | Mondrian
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