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Alexander Rodchenko

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Artist

The Resume

    (December 5, 1891-December 3, 1956)
    Born in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation
    Prominent Constructivist painter, sculptor, graphic designer, and photographer
    Studied at Kazan School of Art (1910-14)
    Painted 'Dance. An Objectless Composition' (1915), 'Non-Objective Painting No. 80 (Black on Black)' (1918), 'Construction No. 127 (Two Circles)' (1920), and 'Pure Red Color, Pure Yellow Color, Pure Blue Color' (1921)
    Taught at Proletkult School in Moscow (1918-26)
    Joined Productivist movement, which aims to incorporate artistic forms into everyday life (1921)
    Photographed for the magazines Lef and Novyi Lef
    Photographs include 'Mother' (1924), 'Balconies' (1925), 'Columns of the Museum of the Revolution' (1926), 'Down with Bureaucracy' (1927), 'At the Telephone' (1928), 'Guard at the Shukhov Radio Tower, Moscow' (1929), 'The Staircase' (1930), 'Dive' (1934), 'Black Swan' (1940), and 'Riga' (1954)
    Died in Moscow

Why he might be annoying:

    It is said that he left school before finishing his formal education. (1905)
    He designed propaganda posters for the Soviet government.
    His art style declined in popularity during the 30s, when the Russian public's art tastes grew more conservative.
    When he presented 'Pure Red Color, Pure Yellow Color, Pure Blue Color', he proclaimed the end of painting, only for him to start painting again in the late 1930s.
    His paintings during the 1940s were never seen by his contemporaries because they didn't fit officially sanctioned art standards.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He had a firsthand experience of social injustice during the Tsarist era.
    When the Soviet government decreed that all artists should build the economy through practical means, he chose to stay rather than leave, believing that art has a place in the social and economic spheres.
    The posters he designed were considered the best examples of modern graphic design.
    He and his wife managed to survive Stalin's Purges despite his art being officially condemned.
    He helped establish public art museums throughout the Russian provinces.

Credit: Big Lenny


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 7 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 32 Votes: 46.88% Annoying