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Georgii Krutikov epitomises the utopian visions and aspirations of the Russian Avant-garde. In 1927, while still an architectural student at the Moscow Vkhutemas, he presented his vision for a flying city. It was a scheme that was intended to solve the problem of over-crowding and despoiling of the Earth s surface and resources, by placing humanity s living quarters in space. Inspired by dreams of space travel, notions of building a new world, and a revolutionary idealism which seemed to make all things possible, Krutikov developed his ideas in great detail, producing a substantial amount of data, along with numerous sketches, drawings, and plans. For decades, architectural historians of Rus...
The Russian Constructivist Aleksandr Rodchenko (1891-1936) cannot be categorized by any one of his remarkable activities. His prodigious career in photography, graphic design, industrial design, painting, stage set and theater design, fashion and costume design, and architecture is at last given its full recognition in this splendidly illustrated and exhaustive study of the complete range of his work. Rodchenko's artistic production is considered against the complex background of the political, social, personal, and artistic circumstances of the period, from the beginning of his studies at the Art School of Kazan to his encounter with Mayakovsky and the Futurists, from the famous Moscow Exhi...
Futurism was Russia's first avant-garde movement. Gatecrashing the Russian public sphere in the early twentieth century, the movement called for the destruction of everything old, so that the past could not hinder the creation of a new, modern society. Over the next two decades, the protagonists of Russian Futurism pursued their goal of modernizing human experience through radical art. The success of this mission has long been the subject of scholarly debate. Critics have often characterized Russian Futurism as an expression of utopian daydreaming by young artists who were unrealistic in their visions of Soviet society and naïve in their comprehension of the Bolshevik political agenda. By t...
Vitrines and glass cabinets are familiar apparatuses that have in large part defined modern modes of display and visibility, both within and beyond the museum. They separate objects from their contexts, group them with other objects, both similar and dissimilar, and often serve to reinforce their intrinsic or aesthetic values. The vitrine has much in common with the picture frame, the plinth and the gallery, but it has not yet received the kind of detailed art historical and theoretical discussion that has been brought to these other modes of formal display. The twelve contributions to this volume examine some of the points of origin of the vitrine and the various relations it brokers with s...
This collection of essays deals broadly with the visual and cultural manifestation of utopian aspirations in Russia of the 1920s and 1930s, while examining the before- and after-life of such ideas both geographically and chronologically. The studies document the pluralism of Russian and Soviet culture at this time as well as illuminating various cultural strategies adopted by officialdom. The result serves to complicate the excessively simplistic narrative that avant-garde dreams were suddenly and brutally crushed by Soviet repression and to contest the notion of the avant-garde’s complicity in Stalinism. Naturally, some essays document episodes in the defeat and dismantling of utopian projects, but others trace the persistence of avant-garde ideas and the astonishing tenacity of creative individuals who managed to retain their personal integrity while continuing to serve the cause of Soviet power. Contributors include: John E. Bowlt, Natalia Budanova, David Crowley, Evgeny Dobrenko, Maria Kokkori, Christina Lodder, Muireann Maguire, Nicholas Bueno de Mesquita, Maria Mileeva, John Milner, Nicoletta Misler, Maria Starkova-Vindman, Brandon Taylor, and Maria Tsantsanoglou.
Celebrating Suprematism throws vital new light on Kazimir Malevich’s abstract style and the philosophical, scientific, aesthetic, and ideological context within which it emerged and developed. The essays in the collection, which have been produced by established specialists as well as new scholars in the field, tackle a wide range of issues and establish a profound and nuanced appreciation of Suprematism’s place in twentieth-century visual and intellectual culture. Complementing detailed analyses of The Black Square (1915), Malevich’s theories and statements, various developments at Unovis, Suprematism’s relationship to ether physics, and the impact that Malevich’s style had on the design of textiles, porcelain and architecture, there are also discussions of Suprematism’s relationship to Russian Constructivism and avant-garde groups in Poland and Hungary.
By consequence of the Karabakh War in 2020 and due to Azerbaijanian revisionism concerning the history, culture and cultural monuments of the region, the discussion on Caucasian "Albania", which is little known in the West in both academic and public circles, has been reignited. The handbook provides an overview of the current state of research on the Caucasian "Albanians" in an objective, scientifically sound manner. The contributions are not necessarily intended to reveal new scientific findings but rather to summarise approved knowledge. The volume brings together internationally renowned scholars, researchers and practitioners from various fields of studies reporting on and reviewing the state of research concerning the Caucasian "Albanians", their history and archaeology, their language and written monuments, their religion, church history and their art, including their relation to the Udi people of today. The companion is intended to neutrally introduce the readership to the subject of Caucasian Albania from various perspectives.
With over 6,000 entries, this is the most authoritative dictionary of architectural history available.
A significant ideological transition has taken place in the discipline of architecture in the last few years. Originating in a displeasure with the ‘starchitecture’ system and the focus on aesthetic innovation, a growing number of architects, emboldened by the 2007–8 economic crisis, have staged a rebellion against the dominant mode of architectural production. Against a ‘disinterested’ position emulating high art, they have advocated political engagement, citizen participation and the right to the city. Against the fascination with the rarefied architectural object, they have promoted an interest in everyday life, play, self-build and personalization. At the centre of this rebelli...