Lecture

Avant-Garde Architecture: Soviet Constructivism and Its Ideologies

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Description

This lecture delves into the evolution of avant-garde architecture in Soviet Russia, particularly focusing on the constructivist movement from 1917 to 1930. The instructor begins by contextualizing the political landscape, highlighting the impact of the Bolshevik Revolution and the subsequent establishment of a socialist state. The discussion emphasizes the dual aspirations of avant-garde artists: embracing the harsh realities of industrial life while seeking autonomy in form. Key figures such as Vladimir Tatlin and Viktor Shklovsky are introduced, illustrating their contributions to the avant-garde ideology. The lecture further explores the influence of art historians like Heinrich Wolfflin and August Schmarsow on Russian artists, emphasizing the shift towards a formal understanding of art and architecture. The instructor contrasts the rationalist approach of the ASNOVA group with the more socially engaged constructivist movement, led by figures like Alexander Rodchenko. The lecture culminates in a discussion of the OSA group’s focus on functional architecture and housing typologies, reflecting the broader social and political reforms of the time.

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Related concepts (31)

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national republics; in practice, both its government and its economy were highly centralized until its final years. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, with the city of Moscow serving as its capital as well as that of its largest and most populous republic: the Russian SFSR.

Russian avant-garde

The Russian avant-garde was a large, influential wave of avant-garde modern art that flourished in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, approximately from 1890 to 1930—although some have placed its beginning as early as 1850 and its end as late as 1960. The term covers many separate, but inextricably related, art movements that flourished at the time; including Suprematism, Constructivism, Russian Futurism, Cubo-Futurism, Zaum, Imaginism, and Neo-primitivism.

Socialism

Socialism is a political philosophy and movement encompassing a wide range of economic and social systems which are characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the economic, political, and social theories and movements associated with the implementation of such systems. Social ownership can be public, community, collective, cooperative, or employee. While no single definition encapsulates the many types of socialism, social ownership is the one common element, and is considered left-wing.

Design

A design is a concept of either an object, a process, or a system that is specific and, in most cases, detailed. Design refers to something that is or has been intentionally created by a thinking agent, though it is sometimes used to refer to the nature of something. The verb to design expresses the process of developing a design. In some cases, the direct construction of an object without an explicit prior plan may also be considered to be a design (such as in some artwork and craftwork).

October Revolution

The October Revolution, known in Soviet historiography as the Great October Socialist Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment in the larger Russian Revolution of 1917–1923. It was the second revolutionary change of government in Russia in 1917. It took place through an armed insurrection in Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg) on . It was the precipitating event of the Russian Civil War.

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