I love Soviet art, or what’s now called Soviet neo-realism. Graphic, mosaics, sculptures and paintings of the Soviet artists are superb. Paintings are so touching, thoughtful and soulful, full of light, deeply rooted in the best traditions of the classic Russian fine art.
It’s a well known fact now that CIA used the modern art as one of the tools to destroy the Soviet Union (which is just another name for Russia in the twentieth century)
The Soviet Realism and its artists have been vilified, literally leveled with dirt by the liberal terror. The paintings were habitually destroyed, neglected, or hidden in museum storages away from researches, artists and viewers.
Fortunately, true art never dies.
Soviet realist painting makes international auction debut – Aleksandr Deineka sets full-frontal record, as foreigners sell out, Russians take home
Masterpieces of the Soviet Neo-Realism 1953-1968
More about the Russian Academy of Fine Arts in Saint Petersburg
Semyon Mikhailovsky, Rector of Repin St. Petersburg State Academy: “Why have we decided to do this project? We have an Academy. We have studied 18th and 19th centuries very well. As for the 20th century…. It’s not that known. And, if it’s known, it’s not represented well as a school. And we had an idea for this epic project that would tell the story of our Academy of Art by its periods. We wanted to start with Repin and his pupils. But it’s too complicated, because most of their works are either in the Russian Museum in Moscow, or scattered in provincial museums all over the country.
Then I came to the Academy museum storage, and was shocked by the sheer number of works there. And they were so dusty and neglected. Just thrown on the back and forgotten. They were paintings of beautiful people, paintings with so much light, just discarded and not needed.
I started taking them out one by one and into my office. And we decided to start with the year of 1953, the year when Stalin died. Because this political event was important for this school. This is when the “European spirit” appeared. The period from 1953 to 1968 was a period when we tried to become a European country.”
[I shall correct Mr. Mikhailovsky that it wasn’t “European” spirit that depicts beautiful full of light people. It’s the Russian realism spirit. As a liberal, he obviously rejects everything Russian, and dubs “European” everything so genuinely Russian.]
This is a great illustration of how much Mr. Mikhailovsky is mistaken and woefully uniformed when it comes to post-war European art. Please, look through this short presentation, before you watch the video.
Survey of Europe’s most prominent post-WWII artists. Movements include Pure Creation, L’Art Informel, L’Art Brut, CoBrA, and British figuration artists.
[20:30] Mr. Mikhailovsky has finally done talking and you can enjoy the art.
More images from the exhibition Soviet Neorealism 1953-1968
Soviet realism paintings
Images of artists in Soviet art
First dates as seen by Soviet artists
“It’s a well known fact now that CIA used the modern art as one of the tools to destroy the Soviet Union ”
Who Paid the Piper: CIA and the Cultural Cold War
By Frances Stonor Saunders
http://www.amazon.com/Who-Paid-Piper-Cultural-Cold/dp/1862073279
Well worth reading.
I think this article explaining changed views on architecture is also part of the cultural cold war.
Architecture, Patterns, and Mathematics
“We are interested here in what happened in the twentieth century. The Austrian architect Adolf Loos banned ornament from architecture in 1908 with these preposterous, unsupported statements:
The evolution of culture is synonymous with the removal of ornament from utilitarian objects. … not only is ornament produced by criminals but also a crime is committed through the fact that ornament inflicts serious injury on people’s health, on the national budget and hence on cultural evolution. …Freedom from ornament is a sign of spiritual strength. [13]
This hostile, racist sentiment was shared by the Swiss architect Le Corbusier:
Decoration is of a sensorial and elementary order, as is color, and is suited to simple races, peasants and savages…. The peasant loves ornament and decorates his walls. [14]”
“It’s a well known fact now that CIA used the modern art as one of the tools to destroy the Soviet Union ”
This is still thought to narrowly and chauvinistic. The sentence should read:
It’s a well known fact now that the CIA invented, financed and orchestrated ‘modern art’ as one of the myriad tools to destroy the cultural & spiritual cohesion and integrity of a l l peoples of a l l nations in order to prepare the ground for the global fascist dictatorship.
By the way, even Frances Stonor Saunders is a CIA lifetime actor.
http://mileswmathis.com/stoner.pdf
Short version here, for those reluctant to buy the entire book: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/modern-art-was-cia-weapon-1578808.html
Cheers,
Erast
That is very interesting and I did not expect it to be as clearly true as it seems to be. That article linked by Erast Fandorin, quite an eye-opener. But a bit of perspective might be in order. All authorities sponsor art to bolster their cultural hegemony. It was true of the Popes, it was true of medieval secular nobility and Renaissance burghers and bankers, and it was certainly and very overtly true of the Soviet Union. The Soviets were totally funding, mandating and channeling art. So no big surprise if the Americans did it too.
The American problem seems to have been that what they wanted was art which expressed freedom and stuff, so something open and spontaneous and avant-garde which they could counterpoise against Soviet Realism to make it look bad. And they had such an artistic movement available in Abstract Expressionism. But for one thing, if they just had the government sponsor it, that wouldn’t look very spontaneous and avant-garde. And for another, American lawmakers were a bunch of traditionalists who didn’t want to fund this modern crap (and I can understand why–IMO American Expressionism sucks). So the CIA did it secretly.
But the basic purpose was exactly the same as if it had been done overtly, like everyone else including the Soviets did–they backed the art they thought was the best, most powerful expression of their culture in order to impress and influence. From my particular really-disliking-pure-abstraction perspective, it’s less ominous than pathetic–like really, Abstract Expressionism was the best expression of American culture they could find? Sad comment on American culture.
And yet the damn stuff succeeded and has been vastly influential for decades. And while I’m tempted to dismiss this success with a drive-by smear like, “If there’s nothing to the actual art, it’s all the easier for snobs to mystify,” I think that can’t be all there is to it. Some people must genuinely like the stuff. Go figure, I will never understand taste.
People like it.
Inverted consciousness requires festishization, to relieve psychic tension.
Once understood, the process of fetishization can be applied to anything… coke, pepsi, Donald Trump or gerbils up the yingyang.
The joke is on those who sit back and ‘appreciate’ the thing they say they ‘like.’ Behind them is a laughing oligarch who just spent 50 million on a matisse for his water closet.
That’s something to think about – sounds clever – thanks,( just read a book by Rattray with
descriptions of fetish in Ashanti). Seems to be the investing of special powers in something,
but the powers are only known to the initiated?
Is it really a well known fact? I’ve looked at books on modern art and never seen any mention
of Cia. Probably not a fact at all. Nothing to do with the cia at all. Anyone got any evidence to prove it is? Sounds like a load of timewasting rubbish to me. Still, very nice to see some new
Soviet era paintings – in particular there are various ways of using colour that I find fascinating
and difficult. Difficult to see how the painter chooses colours,often not realistic, yet produces
a very powerful and realistic effect. Anyone got theories that might have been used, say in the 40’s, fifties or sixties?
Dear Seb,
You wrote: “of Cia. Probably not a fact at all. Nothing to do with the cia at all. Anyone got any evidence to prove it is? Sounds like a load of timewasting rubbish to me.”
The CIA and the US Government spent millions weaponizing modern art against Russia.
https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=CIA+modern+art
This is something you learn first, if you study the modern art at the American universities.
Great, Scott –
Have followed the link, does seem pretty convincing. Apologies for doubting
your word. Thanks for evidence. Often wondered why US does’nt have any proper painters.
Any chance of showing contempory paintings from a) Galicia, b) Donbass?
Hi, Seb
“Any chance of showing contempory paintings from a) Galicia, b) Donbass?”
Absolutely, yes.
Something to look forward to; accepting that even you may not have time to fit it in. Went to an orthodox liturgy today. Powerful stuff. All the best.
These are beautiful paintings … and the music. It all transposes me to that bygone time filled with vast human energy, spirit of action and bright hope, camaraderie, humanity at its best. Will that ever return, in a distant future perhaps? The above stands as a solid, tangible testimony of its existence for posterity, that it is possible, that it can be achieved.
My sentiment exactly, Sergey.
I did grow in semi-communist Yugoslavia and while its ideology was oppressive and boring for most grownups, its actual investment in children was wonderful. For about $5 a year one becomes a member of either skiing and mountain climbing club, or gymnastics club, or folk dancing club, or short-wave radio club, chess, aero-modeling, parachuting, boat clubs, and so on.
Almost all such clubs had more or less qualified coaches consisting of volunteer students or young professionals, that provided healthy generational mix, social structure, transmission of knowledge and above all integrity and ethics. At least, that was my experience in the 50’s and later in the 60’s, when I became volunteer coach and instructor for volleyball and soccer.
Best regards, Spiral
And so do I, Spiral.
I also hail from Yugoslavia of that same period. It all was exactly the way you recalled.
Through 1950s I myself was a member of four such clubs – first aero-modeling, then gymnastic, judo, and amateur radio design, each costing almost nothing…
All the sports had a very clear hierarchical selection process, where at the top would go the best of the best. And the best were the best. None of the sport clubs were “professional”, no club “private owners”, no money involved whatsoever, all was strictly amateur, and all the top sportsmen could compete in Olympics, for example. In football (socker) there were levels of local teams competing to enter the “small league” (“B”), who in turn would compete to enter the “big league” (“A”), etc., etc…
And the high quality university education was absolutely free! (Applying for a semester, or for an individual examination, required only a formal “government stamp” that cost an equivalent of a few pennies.) There were no obstacles to anyone going to the very academic top, it all depended how hard you studied and how able you were. For sheer living expenses you had no problem if you had family in the city, and if not, then there were generous stipends provided by governmental firms, obliging you to spend a couple of years working for them in the interior of the country upon graduation. For a good student, being at the university felt like a gift, a privilege of being at the temple of knowledge.
Where has all of that gone?…
Поздравi.
(That was Поздрави, наравно…)
Petre,
Any answer to ” Where has all of that gone?… ” can fill, in fact, is filling dozens of books.
First, many of my Russian friends had similar child experiences in USSR since horrendous
civilian losses during WWII, specifically children and young males, made both governments quite worried of who is going to continue development of socialism. Both postwar USSR and Yugoslavia
had huge number of orphanages and the same slogan : “Our children are our future” and they really meant it, and invested into it.
Second, these policies/investments really started to yield dramatic results in the mid 50’s, as shown by world leadership in chess ( USSR first, Yugoslavia second for many years), and the space program. Everyone knows about Sputnik, dog Lajka, and Yuri Gagarin, but few know that American Appolo space program was designed by a group of seven Serbian mechanical and electrical engineers, most educated at Belgrade Univ.
Once Yugoslavia was forced to abandon Bolshevik system, in the late 40’s, and started experimenting with alternatives, both inside and outside, the artistic creativity took off, as well as the scientific and economical one, since Yugoslav companies (which were inexpensive and of relatively high quality) started building and trading throughout nonaligned world, without any political or financial strings attached. Similar to what Putin and Xi are trying to do today.
Soon, Yugoslavia was one of the most respected countries in the world, in terms of its bold policies,
social, international, and economic. I needed no visa for any country in Europe, except Albania, but
then everyone who wanted to enter Albania was considered enemy unless proven otherwise. Yugoslavia was truly multi-national, multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-alphabetical, multi-religious, before European Union ever was. Similar to USSR, but much more free and open.
I remember attending international philosophical summer school in Korchula ( a beautiful island in the Adriatic See), with over 100 foreign participants discussing in depth Yugoslav system of self-management and nonalignment, its principles, ideology, stability, results, future, and alternatives.
This is not to say that there were no ugly domestic problems, and some equally unpleasant international one. No country exists without those, except possibly for micro-states like Andorra and Lichtenstein.
Why this started to change in the mid 70’s? Partly it is due to Tito’s several earlier mistakes which, due to his fragility and mild senility, started to seriously undermine political system. He had no strength to solve it and then, after his death in 1980, there was no one in power with sufficient charisma and vision to address these problems . Tito and his close supporters did not groom a worthy successor, even worse, there was no viable system that could do so. On the contrary, internal squabbling among regional socialist parties (some of them, no doubt, encouraged by traditional enemies of Yugoslavia) dramatically aggravated these problems (just as in USSR
in the 1990-1992).
And partly it is due to the precarious financial situation (huge debts to IMF and World Bank) that Yugoslavia found itself in the late 80’s, with no clear vision how to address it. I am sure that these debts were engineered to torpedo Yug. financial system and speed its destruction.
Yugoslavia entered 90’s severely weakened (politically and economically) and both domestic and foreign “bugs” quickly overwhelmed whatever was left of its immunity. Agony lasted about 10 years
until Oct 2000, when Slobodan Milosevic was cowardly mailed to Hague, by the Soros financed “colored revolutionaries”, to be “tried” by the so called “international court of justice” and murdered there.
That was the end of Yugoslavia and its courageous attempt at shaping its own future in a novel, constructive and meaningful way. So sad, so very sad and deeply tragic. People like me are called Yugo-nostalgic, which is supposed to be a derogatory adjective, but of course it is totally mindless. Here is why: I was educated in Belgrade, participated as volunteer in rebuilding its roads and infrastructure (work brigades, radne akcije), was in the army during Czechoslovakian crisis 1968-1969, studied and worked there. In mid 70’s I went to study first in Israel, where I saw 1973 war, then in 1975 to USA, where I currently live. Comparing, social, cultural and educational systems of the three countries, the Yugoslav ones were, for me, by far the superior ones. I will not try to elaborate here why that is so, as that would take quite a bit of work and time. Perhaps a metaphor, however crude, will suffice: Yugoslavia was trying to open to, and work with, the world. Israel was and is too obsessed with its role in, and how to use, the world (sort of narcissistic personality disorder), while USA is bully trying to control, and exploit, the world one way or another (definitely sociopathic personality disorder).
Best regards, Spiral
Many thanks to you guys from those places helping a curious old texan with some first hand accounts of your way of life; of course the capitalist rats wanted it destroyed. Yes in this vein one can see how junk art could be used to make us insensate to anything with some soul. They couldn’t repress good painting but they could promote the junk and make you feel un-cool if you didn’t “appreciate”. In architecture first year they pushed that coubusier and mies van der rhoe crap, anti-decorative, nazi-modernist sterility, pejorative dismissal of Louis Sullivan and any great traditions that the presence of could refer citizens to community pride. That was in the 60’s.
I like far more of that style of paintings than I dislike. It seems in the West there is something that says not being able to understand a painting. Or the images being so weird and void of what a person or object actually looks like. That somehow that makes it better. And the artist is a “master”. I don’t know where that type of thinking comes from myself.For a thousand years, and more, people tried their best to be able to paint or carve art into natural form. And today the more unnatural the “art” is, the better its liked. I’ve seen reports of stand-up lamps.With a plastic water-hose tied around it being accepted as “art”,and selling for $30 thousand dollars at auction (bought by a Russian oligarch no less,geez). The bad taste of these “artists” and “patrons” is breathtaking in today’s World. Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci must be turning in their graves at such lunacy.
Scott – these are beautiful faces, amazingly alive, so much human warmth and depth and robustness. You can feel their blood moving, their hearts beating, their feelings infusing their moments.
I’ll have to spend more days on this. Thanks for the tip on how to come to this, first briefly scanning the work of Europe, and then skipping to the point where the narrator stops talking. Thank you, sincerely, for bringing this to our attention – what a fine patriot you are :)
The USSR continues to amaze me, the more I learn about it. Underneath my lifetime of Cold War propaganda, all along there was Russia, and its near abroad, all waiting only to be seen. What a cruel trick to hide it from us. How it deadened and decayed us not to know it.
Thank you again.
Nice! Hours of fun looking up the artists presented in the slideshows. Also a nice site: http://www.leningradartist.com/search/artisttop.html
Some edgy women artists, like Evgenia Antipova. Thanks for the post.
With “Socialist realism” ,you at least knew what you were seeing. In Western propaganda the spin can be “subtle”. Here is an example. A Facebook account on the Russian response to the attacks on Putin is reported like this ” Russian President’s Office Denies Reports Linking Leader to Offshore Bank Accounts”. If you look at it,it seems “straight forward” but the spin is inserted with the title. There was no “linking Putin” to offshore bank accounts. A “small fact left out” of that statement. Putin’s name isn’t mentioned anywhere in that report. Several people “he knew” where linked to offshore accounts,but not Putin. So by titling the story that way it’s an “implication” that he was “accused” of involvement with offshore accounts. Just one more way the West “spins” the news to serve their propaganda purposes.
Thanks Scott for posting this.I love the Russian paintings,my first book I bought in the soviet times in Russia was Ilya Repin’s beautiful book with all his paintings and drawings (a large book).I love the Russian colors,the style of painting,the portraits and of course the landscapes with large sky and deep perspective view,the shadows and lights,the purity of colors with warm and cool nuances,the harmony of the composition.I am glad to have been visited the Ermitage in Leningrad,I have spent more than two days there and still haven’t seen just a tiny part.Then Tretyakov in Moskow.This was back in 1985.One day I would like to repeat that.Thanks again.
From still earlier times: “Religion is poison – protect children”, 1930 poster by distinguished Soviet artist Nikolay Borisovich Terpsihorov (Николай Борисович Терпсихоров, 1890-1060). My favorite.
http://i.ucrazy.ru/files/pics/2014.03/1395423496_0_99bb0_9b8c940f_orig.jpg
See Terpsihorov’s other paintings:
https://www.google.com/search?q=Терпсихоров+Николай+Борисович&gbv=1&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiF1Y7h4ffLAhVH2yYKHWLgDaQQsAQIGA
Thanks for showing us this excellent collection. I love Soviet Art. The one on “First Dates’ takes us back to a time of purity and healthy approach to male female relations that is almost unheard of today.
Bravo! Scott thanks a lot lot lot!
Not entirely on topic, but I’d like to link to a 3 part series of Soviet war paintings here:
http://www.allworldwars.com/Soviet%20War%20Paintings.html
thank you sir, remarkable.
Thank you Scott for the amazing collection.
Many, many years ago, I visited Louvre with my mom. Straight we went to see da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
The pleasant maiden was as serene and peaceful as she appeared in good photographs and other reproductions.
But the image indelibly etched in my young memory was that of a small crowd of contrived people of various ages, sizes and genders, posing in front of the famed opus in suspended animation, with incredibly artificial facial expressions, from grotesque grins to abominably escalate eyes, taking unnaturally deliberate positions with their four limbs, making themselves the main objects of the exhibition … attempting to “tell aloud” to the entire world how they “understand” and are “worthy” of such a supreme art, are “on its level”… As thoroughly disgusting as anything could be.
And I said, “Please mom, let us go to musée paléontologique”, it was not too far away. And on hours end I thoroughly enjoyed the mighty prehistoric beasts, filling in my vivid imagination their giant skeletons with flesh, muscles, skin and scales, and hearing the museum dome reverberate with their terrifying roars.
Your comment..
I remember randomly picking up William Boyd’s ‘Norman Stone – Forgotten Legend’ (or close – it was in the nineties). Some newly-discovered American artist that had been unearthed from the fifties, or thereabouts.
I began reading it, just skimming basically.
Within ten minutes, laughter was bubbling up..the tone. So – so – *reverent.*
And if there was one thing I knew about Boyd, it was that he was anything but ‘reverent.’
The paintings were completely ho-hum. No wonder.
The whole thing was a hoax.
‘Norman Stone’ didn’t exist – ever.
But the Establishment critics – particularly New York – were completely taken in – much to their subsequent outrage. (David Bowie even delivered a reading to a select gathering. Before I knew it was a hoax, I remember thinking ‘how the mighty are fallen ‘ – how could a consummate artist ( different medium, and populist, but still a genuine creative genius – fall for c**p like Norman’s banal daubs? I needn’t have worried – turns out later he was in on it. He was always characterized by a distinct lack of pretension, so I should have known better.)
I also think Andy Warhol was basically hoaxing the American ‘scene’ too. And probably amazed that he was taken seriously. But he went along with it, because it made him a packet.
I attended an exhibition of his once. I never laughed so hard in my life.
‘Sleep’ was the highlight.
A film of someone sleepily in real time, eight hours long.
Yes, definitely a joker.
Ps. Did someone say he was Russian?
I thought he was Polish.