Title:
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Constructivism : from fine art into design, Russia, 1913-1933.
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The confused interpretations of Russian Construct ivism which have
appeared in Western literature have hitherto been based almost entirely
upon an arbitrary selection of mainly secondary material (in Russian and
translation) which has been easily available. The principal objective of
this thesis has been to establish a preliminary account of the development
of Constructivism which draws as far as possible upon original, primary
sources. The thesis traces the main elements of the picture that has
emerged. It portrays a development from relatively isolated explorations
of new formal vocabularies and a new attitude to materials at the scale of
small abstract constructions, into a full and multi-dimensioned philosophy
for the design of functional objects for a new society.
" Chapter 1 deals with the evolution of a new formal language in
abstract, "non-utilitarian" constructions - some wellknown, some hitherto
unknown - by the artists Tatlin, Rodchenko, Miturich and others.
. Chapter 2 examines the impact of the October Revolution and the
impetus this gave the artist in Russia to involve himself with the tasks of
the Revolution and the establishment of the new Socialist society.
ýrComha pter 3 then traces the theoretical arguments and conclusions
arising the process of attempting a fusion between this new ideological
content and the emergent artistic vocabulary.
Chapter 4 examines the evolution of teaching syllabuses and training
methods at the Moscow VKhUTEMAS as an attempt to realise the newly
formulated ideal of the "artist-engineer IItI 'artist -constructor'.
Chapter 5 surveys the concrete achievements of the Constructivists
in those areas of design which they had the opportunity to tackle: in the areas
of furniture, fabric, clothing, kiosk and theatrical design.
Chapter 6 then examines the subsequent gradual reduction of the
Constructivists' sphere of activity down to the small-scale design project
such as typographical poster and exhibition design, the part that photomontage
played in this move.
Chapter 7 attempts a new interpretat ion of the later work of Miturich
and Tatlin, placing it within the context of "organic construction". This is a
hitherto ignored dimension of the Constructivi st philosophy, which derived
its inspiration not from the field of machine technology but from the inner
logic of nature.
The Conclusion, viewing the Constructivist movement's demise as far
more the product of internal factors and the wider cultural climates of the late
1920's than of any direct political attack, outlines the subsequent careers of
some of its leading members.
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