tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34192886121270575842024-03-06T13:02:20.581-07:00A Soviet Poster A DayEvery soviet poster no matter the date of creation bears a stamp of expressiveness and graphical quality. The attention to details is awesome. The scope of techniques is endless. Soviet posters are a treasure chest with inspiration for any graphical designer, not to mention the seeing pleasure itself. And what's important, every Soviet Poster has a historical reference essential for understanding the layers of meanings it carries through time.Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.comBlogger108125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-33499384728356268302009-09-09T12:59:00.004-07:002009-09-09T13:10:05.316-07:00News from A Soviet Poster A Day BlogHi, friends! <br /><br />A <a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/">Soviet Poster a Day Blog</a> is no more! It has ceased to be. But there's no reason to cry as I have just started two other blogs: <a href="http://printadog.com/">PrintADog.com</a> and <a href="http://artpostersofwar.com/">ArtPostersOfWar.com</a>. Feel free to subscribe to "<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/PrintADog">Dog Posters</a>" and "<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/ArtPostersOfWar">War Posters</a>". I had great time writing stuff about vintage Soviet Art here (120 posters reviewed so far – check the <a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2007-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2008-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=50">archieves</a>!) and during the last two years of absence I could not stop thinking about the joy of investigating the background of these beautiful artworks. Now I'm not limited to Soviet Union - France, Britain, Spain has produced an equal amount of amazing posters over the 20th century. <br /><br />Also two years ago I got myself a beautiful beagle dog. "My little old dog: A heart-beat at my feet" – this a quote by Edith Wharton – and the dog Harley became my true pride and joy. So my intention to explore the world of dogs is obvious. Thus I started "PrintADog.com". <br /><br />These blogs are updated two-three times a week. I have yet to update lots of things on there– design, site info, etc., so you're comments are most welcome. See you at <a href="http://printadog.com/">PrintADog.com</a> and <a href="http://artpostersofwar.com/">ArtPostersOfWar.com</a>!<br /><br />With best regards,<br />Alex<br />A Soviet Poster A Day Blog<h4><span style="font-weight: normal;" lang="EN-US"></span></h4><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjngnr6qUUNBQbhYNT8HkPQW4zgdMz7HIZ8Riwm1lS9YbHkUuCU90goICPe-tpZOJa2jO6bwPOSbj7yQRM5Zsqj_gTxhifBkKPrwW8CkbNooyko2MeiITHsocGubf46x0TxBjrUyDqxJcI/s1600-h/501098-trenirujsja-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 288px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjngnr6qUUNBQbhYNT8HkPQW4zgdMz7HIZ8Riwm1lS9YbHkUuCU90goICPe-tpZOJa2jO6bwPOSbj7yQRM5Zsqj_gTxhifBkKPrwW8CkbNooyko2MeiITHsocGubf46x0TxBjrUyDqxJcI/s400/501098-trenirujsja-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379560148785925538" border="0" /></a>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-70170669286305995482007-12-18T07:53:00.000-08:002007-12-18T08:03:53.848-08:00The Lies Machine<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiQv1nrJdwrKHcTHIHx3tSwhk8GB5hPmSvWo5WLV4a7JcsBRIXefN1ZdCf_wncYvC6dVk6Ovxt5JM3NB3RGuC9aiznKKkHqJdslou7m1zg9rIZB4bFCbV_6Aw7-ZzQULZGsVuzjmbZ6GU/s1600-h/Brehomet.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiQv1nrJdwrKHcTHIHx3tSwhk8GB5hPmSvWo5WLV4a7JcsBRIXefN1ZdCf_wncYvC6dVk6Ovxt5JM3NB3RGuC9aiznKKkHqJdslou7m1zg9rIZB4bFCbV_6Aw7-ZzQULZGsVuzjmbZ6GU/s400/Brehomet.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5145342212162580962" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;" lang="EN-US">Lies Machine Gun (TASS Window #625)</span><br /><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Kukryniksy, Lebedev-Kumach, 1942</span><o:p></o:p></span> <p style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal">In a man to man fight, the winner is he who has one more round in his magazine.<br /><span style="" lang="EN-US"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin_Rommel">Erwin Rommel</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-style: italic;">No matter the actions,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Killer Hitler can’t hide his failures,<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">At Rzhev and </span><st1:place style="font-style: italic;" st="on">Stalingrad</st1:place><span style="font-style: italic;">.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">To deceive people<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">He invented the “Lies Machine Gun”.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Which volleys lies nonstop.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">The Machine talks nonsense at full speed,<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">But still cannot suppress the truth<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">As it is the truth that bellows at river Don,<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">And it can be heard on </span><st1:place style="font-style: italic;" st="on">Volga</st1:place><span style="font-style: italic;"> too.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">In </span><st1:place style="font-style: italic;" st="on">Africa</st1:place><span style="font-style: italic;"> the truth is rumbling.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">The “Lies Machine Gun” fires in vain.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p><br />This is a perfect example of the WW2 propaganda poster created by Kukryniksy. The poster shows Hitler, who fires a “Lies Machine”, resembling a machine gun. The device is actually a cartoon of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Goebbels">Joseph Goebbels</a> – the Nazi minister of Propaganda. The poster’s verses oppose the newspapers fired by this Lies Machine Gun against the cannonade of artillery at the last battles won by the Soviets. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battles_of_Rzhev">Battles of Rzhev</a> (January 8, 1942—March 22, 1943) were a series of offensives aimed at eliminating the threat to <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City>. They were also named "Rzhev meat grinder" for the huge losses. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stalingrad">Stalingrad Battle</a> (August 19, 1942 - February 2, 1943) was the turning point of World War II in the European Theater. Stalingrad was situated on the river <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volga_River"><st1:place st="on">Volga</st1:place></a>, and the river <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_River_%28Russia%29">Don </a>was one of fighting points during its siege. <st1:place st="on">Africa</st1:place> is mentioned as despite the commander’s talent of<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin_Rommel"> Erwin Rommel</a> Germans suffered significant losses at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gazala">Gazala </a>and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Tobruk">Tobruk </a>there. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Still although in 1942 the situation at battlefronts improved, the war was yet to win, both in Africa and <st1:place st="on">Europe</st1:place>.<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Buy the WW2 posters at allposters! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p><br /><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/466255_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com46tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-72754489021659413662007-12-13T08:18:00.000-08:002007-12-13T08:28:50.241-08:00You play to win the game<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5g0R6a50clac_h0DF5F22AFzXqboHsrjEzOeRNMKADiUD-0ZQQgU-kvZLxToGwklcYtJYG5_gloGXTjm9kE0t9JScvIM4u23O2hrG4vh39hRnNZfOZlLbSE9f_n_0tvHFl6g5ghpBan4/s1600-h/Olympics.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5g0R6a50clac_h0DF5F22AFzXqboHsrjEzOeRNMKADiUD-0ZQQgU-kvZLxToGwklcYtJYG5_gloGXTjm9kE0t9JScvIM4u23O2hrG4vh39hRnNZfOZlLbSE9f_n_0tvHFl6g5ghpBan4/s400/Olympics.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5143492896218233058" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><st1:place style="font-weight: bold;" st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><span style="" lang="EN-US">USSR</span></st1:country-region></st1:place><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> is a mighty sports power!<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">B. Reshetnikov, 1962</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard for all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence: in other words it is war minus the shooting.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><p style="text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Orwell">George Orwell</a>, Collected Essays</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">After the WW2 the attitude to sport in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region></st1:place> changed greatly. Before the War training was about building a better citizen and soldier. Now it became professional. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War">Cold War</a> was at full swing and Stalin considered sport achievements as a perfect way to show the advantages and power of the communist state. The pressure was hard – to take part in the international competitions abroad the Sports Committee Head Romanov had to submit an application with the names of the athletes and personally guarantee their perfect results. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">In 1952 the <st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region> first took part in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1952_Summer_Olympics">Olympic Games</a>, held in <st1:country-region st="on">Finland</st1:country-region>, <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Helsinki</st1:City></st1:place>. The debut was lost – Soviet Union took home 71 medals (22 Gold) less then the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">USA</st1:country-region></st1:place>’s 76 medals (40 Gold). Next year Stalin died, but the hatched of sports war was dug up already. Next <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1956_Summer_Olympics">Games</a> (Melbourne, Australia, 1956) were won by <st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region> - 98 (<st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region>) to 74 (<st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">USA</st1:place></st1:country-region>) overall medal score; 37 to 32 Gold medal score. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_Summer_Olympics">The 1960 Games</a> in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Rome</st1:City>, <st1:country-region st="on">Italy</st1:country-region></st1:place> strengthened Soviet victorious reputation as the overall medal count was 103 to 71 and 43 to 34 in Gold count. The superiority was significant, - for instance, soviet gymnasts won 15 of 16 possible medals in women's gymnastics. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1964_Summer_Olympics">The Games</a> in 1964 were lost; the competition between the <st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region> and the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">USA</st1:country-region></st1:place> continued, but the early sixties were always considered to be the golden era of Soviet sport.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The poster above shows a giant man, whose face was painted in a way to resemble the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Torch">Olympic Torch</a>. His hair is waving like fire. On his chest there are large letters saying “<st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">USSR</st1:country-region></st1:place>”. The background is composed of the golden medals won in several sports disciplines: skis, weight-lifting, running and rowing. The slogan and the very dominating curve of the image add to the slogan at the bottom: “A Mighty Sports Power!”<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p><br />Buy these sports posters at allposters!<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:195px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/465830_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-64952079631437195112007-12-12T09:13:00.000-08:002007-12-12T09:22:24.811-08:00Stuff that matters<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCQlceTfAI2AKINP548IPXg1xQ59_YEvKWi4CZ5z7GARPRutCj9r7aXxx1B8UNm8UjkLZN1AWcKOvi4U_q8Iq2jJvPxB9rQJOSNn17dW9O-KNr1sB9afyG0YdDUTUjWFae36997FNWjQ/s1600-h/Staff+that+matters.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCQlceTfAI2AKINP548IPXg1xQ59_YEvKWi4CZ5z7GARPRutCj9r7aXxx1B8UNm8UjkLZN1AWcKOvi4U_q8Iq2jJvPxB9rQJOSNn17dW9O-KNr1sB9afyG0YdDUTUjWFae36997FNWjQ/s400/Staff+that+matters.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5143136336623253714" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Staff makes absolutely all the difference. Stalin<br />G. Klutsis, 1935</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p><br />This is a quote from the speech delivered by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin">Joseph Stalin</a> for the military academies graduates in <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kremlin_Palace">Grand Kremlin</a></st1:PlaceName><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kremlin_Palace"> <st1:placetype st="on">Palace</st1:PlaceType></a></st1:place> on the 4th of May 1935. During this event he also uttered another famous phrase: “This is the people, who are the most valuable asset”. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Like may other well known quotes this one has several meanings. First of all the thirties were a time of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Purge">Great Purge</a>, when Stalin was getting rid of all his political rivals and of those, who might be untrustworthy. Due to these ruthless measures a great many of Soviet people were arrested, convicted and eliminated. Yes, the staff did matter: people should have been absolutely loyal to Stalin. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Another thing was obvious enough: the country was right in the middle of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five-Year_Plan_%28USSR%29#The_Second_Plan.2C_1933.E2.80.931937">Second Five Year</a> Plan and the rapid industrial development required as many specialists as possible. The country was craving for skilled labor force. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Finally, this poster was a part of the Stalin’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personality_Cult">Personality Cult </a>which started in 1929, after the Stalin’s fiftieth birthday. Actually it was Stalin who was the most valuable asset of the <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place> and the one, who was absolutely impeccable. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Buy Stalin posters at allposters.com:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:195px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/465713_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-56705383661797578282007-12-10T08:13:00.001-08:002007-12-10T08:20:59.350-08:00Silence is gold<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifaxtotJnpIhVUUSC-ZdB0MU16_VXhsSGQp8nVZ-mk9rbqsPjk7XfU2LNGXPEqOfTOm_rEcw98OJy9TbgvPQ3ZvjjnHN-SF9pWQW44w90td6kZcrtcXThyphenhyphenqmd0eZ0kHESXCPyhx26-rNU/s1600-h/Keep_your_mouth_shut.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifaxtotJnpIhVUUSC-ZdB0MU16_VXhsSGQp8nVZ-mk9rbqsPjk7XfU2LNGXPEqOfTOm_rEcw98OJy9TbgvPQ3ZvjjnHN-SF9pWQW44w90td6kZcrtcXThyphenhyphenqmd0eZ0kHESXCPyhx26-rNU/s400/Keep_your_mouth_shut.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142378463874070722" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;" lang="EN-US">Keep your mouth shut!<br /></span><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">N. Vatolina, </span><st1:place style="font-weight: bold;" st="on">N. Denisov</st1:place><span style="font-weight: bold;">, 1941</span><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The energetic verse says the following:<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-style: italic;">Keep your eyes open.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">These days</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Even the walls have ears.<br />Chatter and gossip</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Go hand in hand with<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Treason.</span><o:p><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">This is one of the most famous posters of the WW2. It was created by Nina Vatolina, a Soviet poster artist. After the break of War Vatolina along with other artists started making artworks, which covered the most acute topics both of battle front and home front. This one was aimed at increasing vigilance. It shows a working woman in kerchief, who holds her finger to lips, which is a gesture for silence. The face pictured had a real prototype, who turned out to be Vatolina’s neighbor. Her sons were at battle-front, so her stare did have a certain attitude. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <h1><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;" lang="EN-US">The verse was written by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuil_Marshak">Samuil Marshak</a> – a Soviet poet, who is most known as the author of numerous fairy tales and poems for children. During the War he was busy writing satire and pamphlets as well as collaborating with various poster artists, including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kukriniksy">Kukriniksy </a>(see their <a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/search/label/Kukryniksy">posters</a>). Also, during his life Marshak did brilliant translations of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Burns">Robert Burns</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespeare">William Shakespeare</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Wordsworth">William Wordsworth</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keats">John Keats</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Milne">Alan Milne</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kipling">Rudyard Kipling</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></h1> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Nowadays this poster has a new life as it turns out to be quite popular in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Russia</st1:place></st1:country-region> and abroad. In the era of strict corporate policies and constant privacy infringement “Keep your mouth shut” slogan does make sense, you know. <o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Buy this very poster at allposters here!<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:195px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/465461_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-68883557525976029302007-12-06T12:50:00.001-08:002007-12-06T13:00:04.320-08:00The perfect citizen<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOr26ttdL4n17_B2iAMawg3nXcR5Y0FyBORp6xXjZlZ_ek-AT7VxNn571RqwKtkANLj-V-t_dBJwwInR2KhgZZI_YVvHhAlpt_72gFlQq92tllJrc5EWBHsK-LxGnZhXcxpmeC8jPyMCI/s1600-h/Smoke_cigarettes.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOr26ttdL4n17_B2iAMawg3nXcR5Y0FyBORp6xXjZlZ_ek-AT7VxNn571RqwKtkANLj-V-t_dBJwwInR2KhgZZI_YVvHhAlpt_72gFlQq92tllJrc5EWBHsK-LxGnZhXcxpmeC8jPyMCI/s400/Smoke_cigarettes.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5140965253720678082" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Smoke cigarettes<br />I. Rosanov, S. Sakharov, 1950</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Just smoke cigarettes. No brand advertized whatsoever. This was because in the Soviet times all the factories were controlled by the ministries, which were specifying the amount of goods to produce. So to meet the goals (fulfill the plan, sent down by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Party_of_the_Soviet_Union">Party</a>) the ministries were issuing orders to the factories and works to make quantities of, say, cigarettes for a certain amount of money. The factories were producing them, utilizing the suppliers (which were in tern coordinated by the same ministries) and paying with the money from ministries. The stores were to sell these goods at fixed prices. A planned economy that is. The only thing not set in the equation was the client. This year he needs more shoes, next time the interest is driven to hats. The planned economy is too sluggish to follow the trends, and moreover it cannot follow the demand, resulting in constant shortages.<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">This very poster advertises cigarettes as a product. The reason for this is that the majority of the Soviet citizens were smoking homegrown low-quality tobacco (makhorka). The ministry of Food Industry (GlavTabak) – mentioned in the right top corner of this poster, had set increase of cigarettes’ production as their goal in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Year_Plan#The_Fourth_and_Fifth_Plans.2C_1946.E2.80.931950_and_1951.E2.80.931955">Five Year Plan</a>, so to increase the demand for the expensive smoking products (and cigarettes were high-priced compared to makhorka) this poster was published. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The man on the poster is a Russian version of a Marlboro Man. He symbolizes the best personal qualities needed after the war. This is a Soviet engineer or a scientist: young, educated and handsome as well – this is an advertizing poster after all. The country was deep in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War">Cold War</a> and the only way to win it was to advance technically and industrially. For the next ten years this is the scientist who is the positive protagonist of the Soviet culture.<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p>Get the tabacco posters at allposters:<br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/464720_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-82527058970242753322007-12-05T12:11:00.000-08:002007-12-05T12:18:49.418-08:00Marching into eternity<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqUChHThkl1p9XPDj8rVL5hqbzeuVV7IyimHQMCJU9lHfbZjgXxp1_cMylrkWyLpbhNvAPUlLfNd-fPF-EtKfu59jD9lvXv9LsoUdQUYC7kGZOthrUAHWlLfW2-RWXV8hT5e7gDD9qdm0/s1600-h/Na_oboronu.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqUChHThkl1p9XPDj8rVL5hqbzeuVV7IyimHQMCJU9lHfbZjgXxp1_cMylrkWyLpbhNvAPUlLfNd-fPF-EtKfu59jD9lvXv9LsoUdQUYC7kGZOthrUAHWlLfW2-RWXV8hT5e7gDD9qdm0/s400/Na_oboronu.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5140584295290366338" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">To Defend USSR<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">V. Kulagina, 1930</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">This striking poster was created by Valentina Kulagina, who was one of the most expressive woman poster artists of the first half of the 20<sup>th</sup> century. She was married to Gustav Klutsis (see his <a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/search/label/Klutsis">posters</a>) - another representative of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vkhutemas">Vkhutemas</a>-artist generation. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">This very poster has a strong influence of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suprematism">suprematism</a>, an art movement originated by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazimir_Malevich">Kazimir Malevich</a>. <span style=""> </span>The giant red figures of soviet soldiers in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budenovka">budenovkas </a>(military cap) are marching with their shouldered rifles. The slogan is simple and motivating: “To Defend USSR”. The poster space is multidimensional, with three color areas contrasting. The distorted cubist perspective of the factories in the left bottom corner adds another dimension. The idea behind is that both factories and the Red Army add to the defense potential of the country. The workers are transforming into determined soldiers as they are marching away from their workplaces. <span style=""> </span>And the white airplane silhouettes fly through as if there are no barriers for them whatsoever. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">What a mind-blowing work of art it is.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Buy this very poster here:<o:p></o:p></span></p><a class="APCTitleAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?item=2555691&AID=1581405051&PSTID=1&LTID=1&TID1=0&lang=1" target="_top" title="CCCP Russian Propaganda Poster"><img src="http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/VAS/0000-7136-4_a.jpg" alt="CCCP Russian Propaganda Poster" border="0" height="115" width="86" /></a><br /><img src="http://tracking.allposters.com/allposters.gif?AID=1581405051&PSTID=1&LTID=1&TID1=0&lang=1" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana,arial,helvetica;font-size:10;"><br /><a class="APCTitleAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?item=2555691&AID=1581405051&PSTID=1&LTID=1&TID1=0&lang=1" target="_top" title="CCCP Russian Propaganda Poster">Buy at AllPosters.com</a><br /><br /></span>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-51765183941607094352007-12-03T09:35:00.000-08:002007-12-03T09:44:35.813-08:00Homo Homini...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyphenhyphenZ6ywCr4L1y1OCmQPmWUApjgPhRcim_SI398jQ1uzS9hFmEpkN6TyidRxeyS5UIf9fHcwNUPc28ZmqZfgdPx1g2qilO-7E8hiA6F00qu1kXbRHjd0J0SIt-C-YckIlINQMIPmr5a9V0/s1600-r/Moral+Codex.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARQSlXOXXmF-_J4-le3oq5COlwEiBLTGPlSRv0OVee7FWLTRRQ5f_oYIVYL2shCwgdWBBh1d28-SWFyIDDmhg0pObd1c8mUjkQ75vnNEgjVaIEmyA_6gW5fm6Vd-hpsqkzBAWEy7eWpw/s400/Moral+Codex.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139802121616222562" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">A man is a friend, comrade and brother to a man!<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">B. Soloviev, 1962</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US">This cheerful poster goes back to 1961. During the XXII Convention of Communist Party of the Soviet Union the Moral Codex of Communist Builder was adopted. This was a significant event, as the previous XXI Convention declared that socialism had been finally built in the Soviet Union. Now the new program was approved, with the new main goal of building communism. The deadline was set at 1980, and there were numerous tasks to complete, including the material and technical bases required for becoming the world number one in production of goods and the quality of life of the citizens. The other features of communist society yet to be implemented were the communist self-government and the advanced personality of soviet communists. The qualities needed for the latter were specified in the 12 points of the “Moral Codex of Communist Builder”. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US">Some of the points say: “Adherence to communism, devotion to the socialists Motherland and the socialist countries” (1), “Constructive and productive work for the society: the one who does not work – does not eat (2), “Mutual respect in family life, care of children” (7), “Irreconcilability to unfairness, laziness, lies, careerism, money-grubbing”(10), “Intolerance to the enemies of communism, peace and people’s freedom” (11). <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US">This poster illustrates the point six of the Codex, which says: “Humane relations and mutual respect among people: a man is a friend, comrade and brother to a man!”<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US">In Russian “A man is a friend…” sounds really ironical, as it resembles the famous Latin proverb “Homo Homini Lupus Est”, written by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plautus">Plautus</a>, meaning “A man is a wolf to a man”. English philosopher <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plautus">Thomas Hobbes</a> popularized it in his <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leviathan_%28book%29">Leviathan</a>, mentioning that before creation of government everybody was at war with everybody, hence “Homo Homini Lupus Est”.</span></p>Check beautiful Soviet Posters at Allposters:<br /><span style="" lang="EN-US"> <o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/464178_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-3583185499110801672007-11-28T09:33:00.000-08:002007-12-03T10:12:42.796-08:00One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNm8U-X1-4ZfbjYXf-VooCBsxzuPE9YFkRxGcGhxJDY_B2ogPKYumXK20_-sE9lzsiQcYgzq7Qkcg9aLOpUmzKyEx4fA7quPLrQKnToN6leA8SgEd4QtbYRTOPPUiUoBUUDhdXvbkj1A/s1600-h/Glory_Cosmos.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137946145103714770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: pointer; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNm8U-X1-4ZfbjYXf-VooCBsxzuPE9YFkRxGcGhxJDY_B2ogPKYumXK20_-sE9lzsiQcYgzq7Qkcg9aLOpUmzKyEx4fA7quPLrQKnToN6leA8SgEd4QtbYRTOPPUiUoBUUDhdXvbkj1A/s400/Glory_Cosmos.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Glory to the explorers of space!<br /></span><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">A. Leonov, A. Sokolov, 1971</span><?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p> </o:p><p class="MsoNormal">This is a remarkable poster, a result of collaboration between an artist Andrey Sokolov and a Soviet cosmonaut <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Leonov">Alexey Leonov</a>, who did the painting for this poster. </p><p class="MsoNormal">In 1965 he and Pavel Belyaev were launched on board of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_2">Voskhod-2</a> spaceship. During the flight Leonov became the first person to walk in space. The whole event took 12 minutes of being in open space, and was followed by an accident as due to spacesuit inflation Leonov couldn’t get into the airlock. He managed to keep cool and opened a valve, which drained some of the pressure, allowing him to get inside. Another accident happened at the landing – an automatic space orientation system failed, so they had to get back on manual controls. The landing was safe enough, although the touchdown happened in a far and uninhabited place in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiga">taiga </a>- 180 km north of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 /><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perm">Perm</a>.</st1:place></st1:city> Due to severe weather conditions the cosmonauts had to spend two days there before being rescued. After this flight Leonov and Belyaev received the highest Soviet award – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_of_the_Soviet_Union">Hero of the <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place></a> for their personal courage. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Later in 1975 Leonov became the commander of the first joint flight of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">US</st1:country-region></st1:place> and Soviet Space Programs – the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo-Soyuz">Apollo-Soyuz test project</a>. </p><p class="MsoNormal">The space ship on the painting looks like a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soyuz_7K-OK">Soyuz 7K-OK</a> spaceship. It is flying towards the space station, orbiting the Earth. The painting depicts the romantic intention popular among the soviet people – that all the promising results and space records combined with the very advanced socialist system would very soon pave wave to space for everybody. Why wouldn’t there be apple trees on Mars by 2015?</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(255,0,0)">The Anniversary post!</p><p class="MsoNormal">This is the hundredth soviet poster covered in the blog so far. A kind of a small anniversary, it is. Four and a half month ago on July 12 I published the first poster “<a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/2007/07/every-soviet-poster-no-matter-date-of.html">We strike the false shockworkers</a>”. Since then many things happened: A Soviet Poster a Day was featured in “<a href="http://blog.wired.com/sterling/2007/08/a-soviet-poster.html#comment-form">Beyond the Beyond</a>” blog by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Sterling">Bruce Sterling</a> on <a href="http://www.wired.com/">Wired</a>, “<a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/09/evil-kitsch.html">The Daily Dish</a>” by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Sullivan">Andrew Sullivan</a>, <a href="http://boingboing.net/2007/09/13/soviet-poster-per-da.html">BoingBoing</a>, “<a href="http://blogsofnote.blogspot.com/">Blogs of Note</a>” here on <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.blogger.com">Blogger</a>. I gave interviews to <a href="http://picks.yahoo.com/picks/potw/20071019.html">Yahoo.picks</a> and <a href="http://www.lemonde.fr/web/article/0,1-0@2-3214,36-974943,0.html">Le Monde</a> – one of the biggest newspapers in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">France</st1:country-region></st1:place>. The blog turned out to be the second most popular English-speaking blog in <a href="http://www.krusenstern.ch/blogbuch/top-100-russiaukraine-blog-ranking-november-07.html">Top-100 blogs</a> about <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Russia</st1:country-region></st1:place> with a <a href="http://technorati.com/blogs/http://sovietposter.blogspot.com">Technorati rating</a> of 534 (so far). <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Hurray! </p><p class="MsoNormal">I would like to say <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">thanks for coming to everybody</span>, I really appreciate your interest in Soviet art, your valuable comments and support. Thanks again! And there are hundreds of beautiful Soviet posters yet to cover. So it’s going to be fun! ;) </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><br />Check the astonishingly beautiful space images at allposters!<br /><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><iframe id="apciframe" style="WIDTH: 125px; HEIGHT: 249px" name="apciframe" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/463736_PosterStore.asp" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-39496159945588819312007-11-27T10:19:00.001-08:002007-11-27T10:27:35.870-08:00Work is the curse of the drinking classes<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31gg6CooFOrKAIlmyekjZQdMoDJEUdHJ-2b8cfrYEijF85u1OYUcFWI57co03omIYHQgfNems_NQCvG1vR7SSIgWx2HKwb_XzD39NmoomnFFyibmtVxdvmNHhXKNQmZJsxaVrl8IVJP0/s1600-h/Dolbanem.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31gg6CooFOrKAIlmyekjZQdMoDJEUdHJ-2b8cfrYEijF85u1OYUcFWI57co03omIYHQgfNems_NQCvG1vR7SSIgWx2HKwb_XzD39NmoomnFFyibmtVxdvmNHhXKNQmZJsxaVrl8IVJP0/s400/Dolbanem.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137587231866657218" border="0" /></a> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">Let’s thrash it!<br />V. Deni, 1930</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is a beautiful anti-alcohol poster created by Victor Deni – who was one of the brightest soviet poster artists of the first half of the century. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The poster shows a Red Worker standing in front of steaming factory pipes. He is about to smash a big bottle of alcohol. The giant hammer has words “The Cultural Revolution” written on. Unlike the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_revolution">Chinese Cultural Revolution</a> of the sixties, which was a political struggle, the Soviet Cultural Revolution implied elimination of illiteracy, foundation of educational system, changing of private and social life of the citizens, development of science, literature and art under the supervision of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Party_of_the_Soviet_Union">Party</a>. Of course alcohol was considered to be the enemy of these reforms. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Below there are verses by Demian Bedny, who was one of the most noted poets of the Soviet times: </p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">You, there, don’t trifle with booze<br />D’rather thrash it<br />Culturally,<br />Roughly,</p><p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">Powerfully, wrathfully,<br />Smash daily,<br />At your every step,<br />Give no rest to the enemy.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">An impressive artwork, indeed. </p><o:p></o:p>Check Alcohol Posters at Allposters: <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/463580_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-38020957396837589172007-11-26T10:39:00.001-08:002007-11-26T10:43:30.818-08:00Leningrad is calling up<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIcH38ibFACwk5YBALJm70SkzCxV32Jp3gCwEJ-laAW2DME4bbliFS1DpUUGZu0xB7GcaquHjsDtvIn2rGFXIc93vaH48XWABOQnPpoCRXIIiPqpD8o9QpWveSAhSI4i2dG9ka_QwA7Q/s1600-h/Leningrad.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIcH38ibFACwk5YBALJm70SkzCxV32Jp3gCwEJ-laAW2DME4bbliFS1DpUUGZu0xB7GcaquHjsDtvIn2rGFXIc93vaH48XWABOQnPpoCRXIIiPqpD8o9QpWveSAhSI4i2dG9ka_QwA7Q/s400/Leningrad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137220798141864338" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><st1:city style="font-weight: bold;" st="on"><st1:place st="on"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Leningrad</span></st1:place></st1:City><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> is calling up<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Unknown artist, 1930</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The telegraph tape stuck to the poster says (note the absence of punctuation marks): <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>ATTENTION EVERYBODY<br />THE WORKERS OF <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">LENINGRAD</st1:place></st1:City> FACTORIES<br />FULFILL THE FIVE YEAR PLAN ON<br />MAIN PRODUCTS<br />IN THREE YEARS<br />PROLETARIAT OF THE <st1:place st="on">UNION</st1:place><br />FOLLOW THE CITY OF <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">LENIN</st1:place></st1:City><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>The background of the poster is occupied by the silhouette of Lenin with his famous gesture, showing the way to the bright future. He stands behind a massive red factory building; its workers standing in front of it, with their hands rose as if they are openly voting for the message on the tape. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Petersburg"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Saint Petersburg</span></st1:City></st1:place></a><span style="" lang="EN-US"> was capital of the Russian Empire for more than two hundred years (1712-1728, 1732-1918). In 1914 it was named Petrograd, as <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Saint Petersburg</st1:place></st1:City> sounded too German. In 1917 it became the heart of Bolshevik’s uprising during which the city workers assaulted the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_Palace"><st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Winter</st1:PlaceName> <st1:placetype st="on">Palace</st1:PlaceType></st1:place></a> (the Tsars’ residence). The city's proximity to anti-Soviet armies forced Vladimir Lenin to move his government to <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City> on March 5, 1918. Three days after Lenin’s death Petrograd was renamed <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Leningrad</st1:City></st1:place> and remained until 1991, when the original name was restored to kill its connotation with the Soviet times.<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Check masterpieces from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermitage_Museum">Hermitage </a>(<st1:city st="on">Saint Petersburg</st1:City>), the biggest <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">museum</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:placename st="on">Russia</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/463463_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-42927166934431644292007-11-23T06:33:00.001-08:002007-11-23T06:53:22.397-08:00There and back<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMm1_0vr0wZmms8x6_2eu-MRPHN_v3ypDMIHt88nJQ-JuqNbb3l-MaZuN2G0y1lLO7swC-j4DWCZwXab5pabq0SIzTioqtIY6ITuUOr0c_OGGWQyM58iKlEAY5ojaaOZ3bi8vw4VY3l8Q/s1600-h/Drang+nach+osten.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMm1_0vr0wZmms8x6_2eu-MRPHN_v3ypDMIHt88nJQ-JuqNbb3l-MaZuN2G0y1lLO7swC-j4DWCZwXab5pabq0SIzTioqtIY6ITuUOr0c_OGGWQyM58iKlEAY5ojaaOZ3bi8vw4VY3l8Q/s400/Drang+nach+osten.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136044080181975394" border="0" /></a> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">To The West!<br />Ivanov V.S., 1943</p> <p style="text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><span style="font-style: italic;">Our strength consists in our speed and in our brutality. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genghis_Khan">Genghis Khan</a> led millions of women and children to slaughter—with premeditation and a happy heart. History sees in him solely the founder of a state. It’s a matter of indifference to me what a weak western European civilization will say about me. I have issued the command—and I’ll have anybody who utters but one word of criticism executed by a firing squad—that our war aim does not consist in reaching certain lines, but in the physical destruction of the enemy. Accordingly, I have placed my death-head formation in readiness—for the present only in the East—with orders to them to send to death mercilessly and without compassion, men, women, and children of Polish derivation and language. Only thus shall we gain the living space (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebensraum">Lebensraum</a>) which we need. Who, after all, speaks to-day of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_Genocide">annihilation of the Armenian</a>s?</span></p> <p style="text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><span style="font-style: italic;">The “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_quote">Armenian quote</a>” from a speech by Adolf Hitler to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wehrmacht">Wehrmacht </a>commanders at his Obersalzberg home on August 22, 1939, a week before the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_invasion_of_Poland">German invasion of </a></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_invasion_of_Poland"><st1:place style="font-style: italic;" st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Poland</st1:country-region></st1:place></a><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drang_Nach_Osten">Drang Nach Osten</a> (German “Drive towards the East”) is a conception of German expansion on the eastern lands. The idea goes back to the campaigns of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne">Charles the Great</a>. The term was widely used in 19th century by the German intellectuals. But only in the 20th century it matured in the works of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Ernst_Haushofer">Karl Ernst Haushofer</a> – a German geopolitician, who laid grounds for the expansionist policies of Nazi Germany. Drang Nach Osten was an essential part of Lebensraum (or living space), needed for the growth of the German population, so that to create a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Germany">Greater Germany.</a> This living space should have been found in the East where the traditional inhabitants of <st1:country-region st="on">Russia</st1:country-region>, <st1:country-region st="on">Poland</st1:country-region>, <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Ukraine</st1:place></st1:country-region> and other Slavic states had to be exterminated. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The poster shows a sign with Drang Nach Osten slogan, nailed to the tree by the Germans during their offensive. After fighting the Soviet territory <span style=""> </span>back a Russian soldier knocks it down by the rifle butt. In the background Soviet fighters attack and artillery men fire field-guns. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kursk">Battle of Kursk </a>(July 4 – July 20, 1943) heroically won by the Red Army led to massive counteroffensive. So the slogan on the poster forms exact antithesis to the Drang Nach Osten saying: “To The West!”</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>Check WW2 posters at allposters!</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/463025_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-15451828427281133132007-11-22T08:31:00.001-08:002007-11-22T08:45:31.563-08:00Dramatic Transformation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHf-M3UTV2zNDMJAFlOAcZVjE65x9budHA8eNmSUfIpN-8zXukM90fR5ybcJnROVinqwE-0hqBVt8OFbW_7zepQ5e2CTlgSsds249zLVDP5LW-xor9P1tDZDY19gma-KCRwyAmilDo2b4/s1600-h/Prevraschenie.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHf-M3UTV2zNDMJAFlOAcZVjE65x9budHA8eNmSUfIpN-8zXukM90fR5ybcJnROVinqwE-0hqBVt8OFbW_7zepQ5e2CTlgSsds249zLVDP5LW-xor9P1tDZDY19gma-KCRwyAmilDo2b4/s400/Prevraschenie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135703751268407634" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Transformation of fritzes (The TASS Window №640)<br />Kukriniksy, 1942</span><o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The poster verse says:<br /><o:p></o:p><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">These are not the animals with wild howl<br />Crossing stormy river flow.<br />This is Hitler kicking<br />Troops eastward. </span><o:p style="font-style: italic;"></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Here where all the windows are loop-holes,<br />And the bushes hide death,<br />Here after tasting the foreign ground,<br />The fooled fritzes<br />Transform into grave crosses. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p style="font-style: italic;"></o:p><span style="font-style: italic;">And this death of German bastards<br />Have no magic whatsoever. </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />This is military triumph of<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">The Red Army</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>This poster is a great example of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TASS_Windows">Okna “TASS”</a> art. These series of posters drawn always on acute topics, were created during the WW2 by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kukriniksy">Kukriniksy </a>– a group of three brilliant cartoonists. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The poster shows German lines marching under direct command of Hitler and transforming into swastikas and then into white birch grave crosses. This poster is a very significant artwork of the War as this is the first time German soldiers (pejoratively nicknamed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritz">“Fritzes”</a>) are portrayed as being fooled by its rulers – namely <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitler">Hitler</a>. The first row of soldiers is archly pictured with red noses and in cowardly poses, but certainly not evil. The second row has undergone partial transformation in swastikas. The final transformation is death in a form of grave crosses. Such separation of the ordinary executors and organizers became possible when in the beginning of 1942 Soviet Army performed successful counteroffensive - the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Moscow">Battle of Moscow</a>. This operation eliminated the direct threat to the Russian capital, made the blitzkrieg impossible and strengthened Soviet confidence in final Victory. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p>Check the tank images at allposters:<br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/462943_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-63509347128522248552007-11-21T11:34:00.001-08:002007-11-21T11:48:35.663-08:00A bigger pack<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhItL0iEjbuTE0ok4kiYGoW35qorsHsMUwdTzqvu3lypHUI9GyLaZfiv_Ypdj0l3DeXxA-lalNJRwI-Vn250-Huac-b1JosHdCwdHxebW2dNF40amFINwtlPmj7_W2JPZpLTbqFDYX-IH4/s1600-h/Pachka.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhItL0iEjbuTE0ok4kiYGoW35qorsHsMUwdTzqvu3lypHUI9GyLaZfiv_Ypdj0l3DeXxA-lalNJRwI-Vn250-Huac-b1JosHdCwdHxebW2dNF40amFINwtlPmj7_W2JPZpLTbqFDYX-IH4/s400/Pachka.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135379472647625010" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;" lang="EN-US">Smoke cigarettes “The Pack”<br /></span><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">M. Bulanov, 1927</span><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>A tobacco advertizing poster from the NEP era. The slogan says: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-style: italic;">Smoke cigarettes “The Pack”<br />[Available] Nowhere but in Mosselprom</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The poster advertizes cigarettes named as simple as “The Pack”. The poster shows “The Pack” stationed on a gun carriage, forming a cannon with multiple barrels – the cigarettes themselves. This goes back to the popular vanity show of the times – a human cannon ball. The cannon has just fired a shot, and there is a smiling man riding a flying “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papirosa">papirosa</a>” (a cigarette without a filter). He is dressed in a typical store clerk clothes – “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosovorotka">kosovorotka</a>” or Russian shirt, “kartuz” or peaked cap and jack boots. The store clerks responsible for the wholesale purchase were the target audience, as there was a <a href="http://sovietposter.blogspot.com/2007/10/nowhere-but-in-mosselprom.html">Mosselprom </a>building pictured in the background there. The poster was bright and energetic enough to attract attention to the cigarettes with such an ordinary name – “The Pack”. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Check the vintage cigarettes here:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/462872_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-80621881744865020302007-11-20T05:25:00.001-08:002007-11-20T05:49:52.052-08:00Man's power<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEvac2AQxi2F04kvIZdgyMtNrH4iTcwlGyqNyVtkg1WJWnaTgM8BFPVr7ZVrM4KmkyuEr0N84I8dMCqmftar1HthNOZP7uKUhYJLIkPRzjTKUiRga3Z-W46tUQdOigjuMVKDOtJjd6g0/s1600-h/Man_power.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEvac2AQxi2F04kvIZdgyMtNrH4iTcwlGyqNyVtkg1WJWnaTgM8BFPVr7ZVrM4KmkyuEr0N84I8dMCqmftar1HthNOZP7uKUhYJLIkPRzjTKUiRga3Z-W46tUQdOigjuMVKDOtJjd6g0/s400/Man_power.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5134915556050114850" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Man’s power – to help the woman!<br />A . Rudkovich, 1970</span><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Carrying on with the woman’s subject. Here is a nice social poster of the seventies devoted to elimination of spongers and parasites not only in the economy, but in private life of Soviet people as well. The forefront of the poster is occupied by a shadow image of a tiny woman bent under the housekeeping workload: the perambulator and a big bag with some food and goods in it. Actually, the times of deficit were never far away, and in the seventies Soviet people had to spend lots of time standing in queues after work. So working full time, nursing a baby and getting food for the family all in one day was a hard occupation indeed. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">On the contrast the background shows a healthy and strong hand of a man, who is holding nothing but a standard domino bone, which is apparently very light. In the Soviet times dominoes were extremely popular – it was a game of ordinary working folk. The chess were too complicated, cards were usually gambling, and therefore played on bets giving it a criminal flavor, backgammon was played mainly by the Easterners – so dominoes ruled the yards near the newly built <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khruschev">Khruschev</a>’s blocks-of-flats, later named Khruscheby (“Khruschev” and “truschebi” (slums) merged together), factories at lunch times, and all other places, where Soviet men could cease working without aftermath. Homes were such places as well, so a great majority of women were heavily overworked compared to men. Obvious inequality, it is. And the socialism was declaring that both men and women were equal. Hence this poster. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Check these beautiful woman photos:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/462747_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-16724772448377173362007-11-19T12:19:00.000-08:002007-11-19T12:23:39.654-08:00We bring fear to the bourgeoisie!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfEaiz6KheyoVXLkaRtuRJHTYggUdugDzyRFKqVOBo70bcXSHs4WQgRUCmIjDTiq9OK1jMU8LSgSKKULfkYsPygUcHOSTdApXv5OljA3yz-YSihTC1zrUbPzRgQm06myjoGQFrNP57Lk/s1600-h/Woman_vote.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfEaiz6KheyoVXLkaRtuRJHTYggUdugDzyRFKqVOBo70bcXSHs4WQgRUCmIjDTiq9OK1jMU8LSgSKKULfkYsPygUcHOSTdApXv5OljA3yz-YSihTC1zrUbPzRgQm06myjoGQFrNP57Lk/s400/Woman_vote.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5134649203653253394" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;" lang="EN-US">Worker and peasant women – all should go to the polls!<br /></span><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">N. Valerianov, 1925</span><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>The poster says: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-style: italic;">Worker and peasant women – all should go to the polls!</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Gather under the Red Banner along with men,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">We bring fear to the bourgeoisie!</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Women in traditional peasant sarafans and workers blouses march in passionate pace crushing and throwing back the landlord or factory owner. This poster from the twenties shows the typical image of a fat capitalist in waistcoat, top hat and chain-watch. Later it will be reproduced many times in children books, on posters and in other various types of propaganda. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">The election system of the Soviet times looked democratic, but of course was far from it. People were electing Working People’s Deputies on all levels – including the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on the basis of universal, direct and equal suffrage by secret ballot. But the elections were formal and non-competitive, all the candidates were previously approved by their superiors in the Party. However, the very election procedure was considered to be the perfect opportunity for propaganda and in this very case education as before the Revolution women hadn’t have the right to vote, and the majority of them were illiterate. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Check the vintage woman posters at allposters!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/462677_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-57905908454132970962007-11-15T08:08:00.001-08:002007-11-15T13:05:26.142-08:00Everything for the Victory<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbAmyaLTz_mtgUnKhxD554sbnCKo3GbuBbWQ5otmuLD_W1ffEXPHFv2bVmTZbuIP25ih6QJx2Q0I35IxjkyRn9zOkXnvSvbwNHxXw4WenUfDNREREQfR01i7nFcS4bpo0sxS44XWRdoAE/s1600-h/Woman_front.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5133100008949586178" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: pointer; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbAmyaLTz_mtgUnKhxD554sbnCKo3GbuBbWQ5otmuLD_W1ffEXPHFv2bVmTZbuIP25ih6QJx2Q0I35IxjkyRn9zOkXnvSvbwNHxXw4WenUfDNREREQfR01i7nFcS4bpo0sxS44XWRdoAE/s400/Woman_front.jpg" border="0" /></a><span lang="EN-US"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"></span></span><br /><span lang="EN-US"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Everything for the Victory</span></span><br /><span lang="EN-US"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Women of </span><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 /><st1:country-region style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold" st="on"><st1:place st="on">USSR</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"> for the Front</span><br style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">A. Kokorekin, 1942</span><?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p></o:p></span><br /><p><span lang="EN-US">It were not only the Soviet Soldiers who were the heroes of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Patriotic_War">Great Patriotic War</a>. 15 mln of Soviet women were accomplishing a great labor feat on the home front. The evacuation which implied moving of 500 of factories and works from <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:city> alone required a tremendous amount of labor force. As all the males were joining the Red Army women and children were operating machines on the factories. More than 374 thousand of housewives returned to the industry. By October 1941 45% of all workers in the <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place> were women. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span lang="EN-US">The poster shows a determined woman in workers’ coveralls with a slide gauge in her pocket. Her hand leans on a general purpose aircraft bomb FAB-250 (250 is its mass in kg). The background has rows of smaller bombs FAB-100 ready for dispatch to the front. The aircraft bomb has a red star painted on – this goes back to the war tradition, when the workers painted encouraging notes for the soldiers on the arms they send to the battlefield. In this case this is just a Red Star. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span lang="EN-US">Check the bomb images at allposters:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span lang="EN-US"><iframe id="apciframe" style="WIDTH: 125px; HEIGHT: 249px" name="apciframe" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/462059_PosterStore.asp" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-56816981991263226462007-11-14T13:52:00.001-08:002007-11-14T14:11:01.237-08:00It’s the Hero’s heart who fights the fight<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMTg-rRV8CFqvKFJTSxMetzZXXRvwsOCe4cQ4MG5Ps-tmKVF3_mx8fyPhX6HGFqUfTCmej9YX_JPliY7rictgNjKSYRm6tjRe9OjsOvQKuIXsExK0JMVkOTuCGm-YnVBmxWL2v_FxCj3k/s1600-h/Brest.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMTg-rRV8CFqvKFJTSxMetzZXXRvwsOCe4cQ4MG5Ps-tmKVF3_mx8fyPhX6HGFqUfTCmej9YX_JPliY7rictgNjKSYRm6tjRe9OjsOvQKuIXsExK0JMVkOTuCGm-YnVBmxWL2v_FxCj3k/s400/Brest.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5132817409767422162" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Glory to heroes of Brest Fortress<br /></span><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">O. Savostjuk, B. Uspenskiy, 1969</span><o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="" lang="EN-US">This is a poster created to commemorate the great defense of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brest%2C_Belarus">Brest</a>, performed by Soviet soldiers in 1941. The poster shows a </span>soldier holding a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RPG-40">RPG-40</a> antitank grenade ready to make a throw. The contrast red and black image along with the slogans form the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Star">Red Star</a>. The slogans go clockwise starting from 9 o’clock: “I swear”, “Viva Motherland”, “No step backward”, “Never retreat from the fortress” and finally “Death to fascism”. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">Brest Fortress was actually attacked two times – in 1939, being a Polish fortress, it was assaulted by German general <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_Wilhelm_Guderian">Guderian</a>, who according to the secret protocols of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov-Ribbentrop">Molotov-Ribbentrop</a> pact signed by Nazi Germany and Soviet Union was partitioning Poland. Later that year, Brest Fortress was given to Soviet Union according to that pact. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">On June 22, 1941 the fortress and the city of Brest was attacked by Nazi Germany at the beginning of the surprise war – this was its second and the most famous siege. According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Barbarossa">Operation Barbarossa</a> (blitzkrieg or flash war) Brest Fortress was to be taken by 12 o’clock the first day the war broke out. But German generals, who had been planning the operation, certainly underestimated the devotion of Russian soldiers, who managed to defend the fortress for almost a whole month – surrounded and not knowing that the front line had been moved hundreds of kilometers deep into the Soviet territory. Finally, the defendants perished, and became one of the icons of Soviet WW2 Heroic Propaganda. Upon getting into the demolished fortress Nazis found writing on the part of the wall which said: “I die but never surrender. Farwell, Motherland. 20th of July, 1941”. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">Check the beautiful fortress images at allposters!</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/461949_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-42357048463876074112007-11-13T13:11:00.000-08:002007-11-13T13:17:26.631-08:00I'm so crazy I don't know this isn't possible<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfg-Oj-5Yx_d6rt638iotDEREm5CzHeF2RveL4bRmlOa4u1Ty6Mkw2qiYu7_rLQQw2F02jIGGTGqJR7zlmz_ytb6t0RzcbuWD9PNq1J99jHfkv3pPIAAKb-m8kwPhhdBGgXlJvQHdacSs/s1600-h/Ducks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfg-Oj-5Yx_d6rt638iotDEREm5CzHeF2RveL4bRmlOa4u1Ty6Mkw2qiYu7_rLQQw2F02jIGGTGqJR7zlmz_ytb6t0RzcbuWD9PNq1J99jHfkv3pPIAAKb-m8kwPhhdBGgXlJvQHdacSs/s400/Ducks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5132436137304466546" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Let's conquer the virgin blue!<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">V. Gorlenko, 1964</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Sometimes the ideas for Soviet Posters seem to be quite hilarious. Take this one from the sixties. It shows a great number of ducklings, who carry slogans which say: “Let’s conquer the virgin blue!” They are proceeding from a giant egg, moving in a horde like soviet workers at an October demonstration. Their main goal according to the slogans is to live and increase its weight on the water. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">In reality lots of soviet young people were cultivating the virgin soils which were considered to be the main source of extensive development of agriculture. At that time lots of “advanced” means were tested like planting of maize corn everywhere including areas near the polar circle, general breeding of rabbits or in this very case the duck farms building, which was considered to be a perfect way of getting plenty of cheap meat for the people. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Needless to say that all the efforts were in vain: the corn didn’t seem to grow according to forecasts, and moreover Soviet people were not eager to choose it instead of wheat bread. The rabbits and ducks although breeding well and fast were prone to epidemics and required lots of food to grow. These were some of the failures in agricultural development which lead to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khrushchev">Khrushchev’s </a>forced retirement in 1964.<o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Check the duck posters at allposters:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/461835_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-57116808865988614452007-11-12T12:26:00.001-08:002007-11-12T12:45:55.338-08:00Long Live the World October<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToz2JlLdIYnm687QjBt1-6obaxG8UzOMWGHrXen9jERacF1XzFoyu159Iu5necFHpNx0VHElPVceT6re0bsFf8yv_JwkYm1vkL6W1v2lj3Cs6P7Tu7UzOEh4MQ8PGsan9HDepGSOvxJQ/s1600-h/World+October.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToz2JlLdIYnm687QjBt1-6obaxG8UzOMWGHrXen9jERacF1XzFoyu159Iu5necFHpNx0VHElPVceT6re0bsFf8yv_JwkYm1vkL6W1v2lj3Cs6P7Tu7UzOEh4MQ8PGsan9HDepGSOvxJQ/s400/World+October.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5132053283919701074" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">Long Live the World October<br />G. Klutsis, 1933</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">The International Communist Revolution was an idea by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Marx">Karl Marx</a> mentioned in his <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Manifesto">Communist Manifesto</a>. He thought that the class struggle would wipe the borders and all workers and peasants would finally live happily in a classless communist society. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">The idea of Revolutionary War, which would lead to International Communist Revolution, was based on the assumption that the communists of Russia would be helping their mates abroad to start the fight with world imperialism. At first the plan was as follows: Soviets were suggesting the democratic peace treaty which would end the WW1 to all the parties, and in case it had been turned down the war would have to become Revolutionary War, leading to establishing of communist regimes in Europe.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"> However, when the peace treaty proposal was rejected by every country except Germany (it agreed to start negotiations), Lenin was to start the War. But he didn't as the army was in poor shape and the economy was collapsing. Certainly Bolsheviks would have lost recently acquired power, as both the workers and peasants would have turned against them in case of another armed conflict, when so many internal problems had yet to be settled. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">So despite the opposing Bolsheviks headed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buharin">Buharin</a>, the idea of World Communist Revolution had to be postponed. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">This poster goes back to 1930, when the chance to spark the Revolution was certainly slipped. However Soviet Union was supporting local communist parties abroad, which were united under <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comintern">Comintern</a>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">The brilliant poster by Gustav Klutsis (who was one of the victims of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Purge">Great Purge</a> of the later thirties) shows the Earth with several workers standing with Red Flags in their hands. The Earth image and the workers’ figures are photomontage. Also, the Earth is part map, part another photograph showing the heads of workers at a march. The standing figures represent various countries – holding flags with the slogan “Long Live the World October” written in different languages including hieroglyphs, meaning that the October Revolution would happen no only in Russia, but in all other counties of the world.<span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Get the astonishingly beautiful Earth space images below: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/461680_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-44416463195019530542007-11-10T10:13:00.000-08:002007-11-10T10:21:40.371-08:00From Russia with Love<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXpmIBVpiAi_Kqb-YtdSFueWFkY96sVSZHfW48nacN3gMDS1Sn7pD3MIfsXlK07NY7ypfSE5OjNEX6xTjOEN0XVDFzHNqe4jFwR2-mVC-q-L14NPP-Or1O1nlnmP2ewOkzbjf7BR1sD40/s1600-h/Trans_siberian_express.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXpmIBVpiAi_Kqb-YtdSFueWFkY96sVSZHfW48nacN3gMDS1Sn7pD3MIfsXlK07NY7ypfSE5OjNEX6xTjOEN0XVDFzHNqe4jFwR2-mVC-q-L14NPP-Or1O1nlnmP2ewOkzbjf7BR1sD40/s400/Trans_siberian_express.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5131276736652715074" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Intourist. Transsiberian express<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">M. Litvak, 1930</span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">Here is a great example of the advertising posters of the thirties. This one is aimed at foreign audience as it is promoting the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-Siberian_Railway">Transsiberian Express</a> journey. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><o:p></o:p>The poster shows a curved surface of the Earth with symbols of Moscow and Beijing shown: to the left there are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kremlin">Kremlin </a>towers and a dome of<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Basil%27s_Cathedral"> Saint Basil's Cathedral</a>. Moscow is the starting point of the Transsiberian Railway. Its four routes nowadays lead to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladivostok">Vladivostok </a>– the largest of the Eastern Russian Cities (6430 km from Moscow), to North Korea, Mongolia and China arriving at Beijing. On the poster this is signified by the Chinese <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagoda">pagoda </a>and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinto_shrine">Shinto shrine</a> gate – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torii">torii</a>, meaning that this is also an easy way to get to Japan. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><o:p></o:p>The poster is very dynamic – the train is moving fast through the red star gate, gate to the communist Russia. The header sais: “Transsiberian Express! The shortest way from Europe to the Far East”. The footer goes: “Intourist. Moscow. Hotel Metropol. The tickets in all major travelling agencies of the West”. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intourist">Intourist </a>was the official state travel agency of Soviet Union, founded in 1929, after the Soviet Union had been recognized by the majority of the Western States.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">The cars have signs, which prove the high class of the long journey – the train has sleeping cars and dining cars as well. Below the train there are the names of the cities like Berlin, Moscow and finally Beijing. The Earth also has the price tag displayed. The first class 12 day journey costs 250 USD – which was quite a reasonable price bearing in mind the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_depression">Great Depression</a> of <span style=""> </span>1929.<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">But why German is the language of the poster? The thing was that according to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles">Treaty of Versailles</a> Germany’s rights had been significantly derogated, especially in terms of weapons development and manufacturing. So Germany was looking for partners who could help it restore its military potential after the loss of WW1. In contravention to the Treaty <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junkers_%26_Co">Junkers </a>(a German aircraft builder) was assembling its plains near Moscow and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krupp">Krupp </a>was building artillery works in the Central Asia. By 1929 Soviet Union had agreements with 27 German companies. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">And in return the young Soviet Union, who was in bad need for modern technologies on its way to becoming an industrial power, received perfect training for its specialists. German professionals could have ample wages if travelled to Russia and shared their experience. <span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Purchase the trains art prints at allposters!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/461333_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-58192936744168581782007-11-08T12:25:00.001-08:002007-11-08T12:43:14.575-08:00The way machine sees us<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw8OfYcMdxv30-dGU2V8L2HGR9aMMJS-u0trscQQsz-EEqJ7xVQYDPaasWcUhn76VvVlahAd_jE1dUVCfUYDOmIyz7C3AUnRM6mMUPxh5Rtruc2aPJkIe0r-z2nTUV0R9kY_xjQEtAVdI/s1600-h/Eleventh.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw8OfYcMdxv30-dGU2V8L2HGR9aMMJS-u0trscQQsz-EEqJ7xVQYDPaasWcUhn76VvVlahAd_jE1dUVCfUYDOmIyz7C3AUnRM6mMUPxh5Rtruc2aPJkIe0r-z2nTUV0R9kY_xjQEtAVdI/s400/Eleventh.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5130568483660702770" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; font-weight: bold;" align="left">The Eleventh<br />V. Stenberg, A. Stenberg, 1928</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Laughing Man:</span> You could put it like that, I suppose. "I am the machine that reveals the world to you as only I alone am able to see it"</p><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Motoko: </span>Dziga Vertov. He was a Russian film maker, wasn't he?</p><div style="text-align: right;"> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_In_The_Shell:_Stand_Alone_Complex">Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex</a> - Japanese cyberpunk anime television show</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><o:p> </o:p><br />This a movie poster, which announces the famous documentary by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dziga_Vertov">Dziga Vertov</a>. His actual name was Denis Kaufman, and he was one of the founders and main theorists of news-reel and documentary shooting. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">This documentary was released in 1928, and was called “The Eleventh”, meaning the eleventh year after the October Revolution. Its main idea was to show the progress the young soviet state had achieved. The man on the poster is a grotesque image of Dziga Vertov himself. His eyeglasses reflect the agricultural and industrial machinery. This is an illustration of one of his main theories – that a true documentary is not about mere snap-shooting of <span style=""> </span>life, but instead it is about life, run through the eyes of the observer, whoever he is - or whatever it is. Unlike other documentaries of that time this principle implied the distinctive presence of the protagonist in the movie, although he might not be shown directly or it might not be human at all.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"> This was a silent black and white documentary. But the cut was done in a way that illustrated the sounds of the machinery and other things shown. This was <span style=""> </span>a staggering technique for the twenties and it did earn Dziga Vertov a wide international acclaim. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left">This constructivist poster done by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenberg_Brothers">Stenberg brothers</a> is a masterpiece itself. The bold type on the left side says the name of the film: “The Eleventh”. Every eyeglass has also this name inscribed in. To the right there are the credits: “Author-Director Dziga Vertov Chief Cameraman Kaufman”. The Chief Cameraman Kaufman was Dziga Vertov’s brother – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Kaufman">Mikhail</a>, who was also a noted film maker. There was also another brilliant cinematographer in this family: the third brother <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Kaufman">Boris</a>, together with parents, moved to Poland after the Revolution. In 1954 he won Oscar and Golden Globe for the first American feature film <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Waterfront">On the Waterfront</a>, but he never had a chance to meet his brothers after 1917.<span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="" lang="EN-US">Buy Stenberg Brothers’ movie posters at allposters!<br /><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;" align="left"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/461052_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-12545317243700186872007-11-07T08:21:00.001-08:002007-11-07T08:40:13.934-08:00You say you wanna revolution<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zQ-iV2rSZJw-DJwlL1cdxomDbRIsHrarrs2McLHK3AAlNTlOqHrEgfyV62pquoEctVOjgkHzHIqI0Vq7KgGbOw0Er-PQ0SRH2-9-RbKjLULtM6V7jHkngtATM-UHJPUdpgQvfUN3Lhk/s1600-h/Red_flag_buheev.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zQ-iV2rSZJw-DJwlL1cdxomDbRIsHrarrs2McLHK3AAlNTlOqHrEgfyV62pquoEctVOjgkHzHIqI0Vq7KgGbOw0Er-PQ0SRH2-9-RbKjLULtM6V7jHkngtATM-UHJPUdpgQvfUN3Lhk/s400/Red_flag_buheev.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5130134638692924482" border="0" /></a> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">90<sup>th</sup> Anniversary of the October Revolution</span><br />Bukheevy, 2007</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal">Don't you know it's gonna be all right<br />all right, all right<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Revolution by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lennon">John Lennon</a>, The Beatles</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span>Today is the 90th Anniversary of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_Revolution">October Revolution</a>. This was a milestone event in the history of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Russia</st1:place></st1:country-region>, and of course there were hundreds of posters created to commemorate and outline its features and consequences. Later I’ll be featuring them here. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">But today I would like to show a poster which is definitely not a Soviet artwork. The style is different, and the release date also speaks for itself – this is a modern poster of the year 2007. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">This poster is almost unartful, it has got very simple typographics, but, boy, has it got the idea! </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The background is a modern <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Russia">Flag of Russia</a>. It consists of three color fields – the white, the blue and the red. According to Wikipedia there are several meanings of these colors. The Flag may reflect the Russian social system under the monarchy: white represents God, blue the Tsar and red the peasants. Another very common interpretation is the association of colors with the main parts of the Russian Empire: white thus represents <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belarus"><st1:country-region st="on">Belarus</st1:country-region> </a>("White Russia"), blue <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Ukraine</st1:place></st1:country-region> </a>(or Malorossia, "Little Russia"), and red "Great Russia". Note that Belarus and Ukraine are independent countries now (Before the Revolution they were part of the Russian Empire and later part of the Soviet Union). <span style="" lang="EN-US">Back to the Flag. A different interpretation associates white with the bright future (where the color itself is associated with brightness, while its placement at the top - with future); blue with clouded present, and red with bloody past. </span>These<span style="" lang="EN-GB"> versions</span> are not commonly known to everybody nowadays, and it is only the association between the red color and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Flag">Soviet Red Flag</a>, which is recognized by majority of Russians. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">So the authors add <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammer_and_Sickle">Hammer and Sickle</a> to the red field turning it into a small Red Flag of the Soviet Union, symbolizing that although modern <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Russia</st1:place></st1:country-region> does not resemble the old times, it still has the the 74 soviet years embedded into its history. The foundation of the economy, the superpower heritage (although acquired through numerous losses and hardships), the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II">great Victory</a> – and most importantly the lives of fathers and mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers – all this goes back to the Soviet times. <span style="" lang="EN-US">Which were originated from the October Revolution of 1917. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/460912_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-86802898772423284352007-11-06T10:36:00.000-08:002007-11-06T10:47:44.473-08:00From the craddle<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4wdbEafFOOa6MMAWecHxxOfDwscApinma3iIZqIzgbNZdl_KC5bMEpCXzOxJcAud7mSNuCrPYI-hG4XTaMWG0R62jiKX6zXL7kLhvMFcTcF51Ib3X57B9Bc37QmR2W0AhM5xSm70Tnew/s1600-h/1515.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4wdbEafFOOa6MMAWecHxxOfDwscApinma3iIZqIzgbNZdl_KC5bMEpCXzOxJcAud7mSNuCrPYI-hG4XTaMWG0R62jiKX6zXL7kLhvMFcTcF51Ib3X57B9Bc37QmR2W0AhM5xSm70Tnew/s400/1515.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129798759365475378" border="0" /></a> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">“Soviet Posters in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">France</st1:place></st1:country-region>” Art Exhibition<o:p></o:p><br />A. Yakushin, 1974</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p><br />In Russian a poster is called “плакат”, or placard. The word itself originates from the verb “plaquer” – to stick, or to glue in French. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">France</st1:place></st1:country-region> played the main role in development of poster styles in the 19th century. Such outstanding artists as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henri_de_Toulouse-Lautrec">Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec</a> were creating posters which had much more art than advertising, ideology or communication in them. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">In the <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place> this high-quality approach to posters was brought to the new level. The posters were on the forefront of official art. And of course the Government was using them to promote communism values and Soviet style abroad. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The poster above is announcing the Exhibition of Soviet Posters, which took place in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Paris</st1:City>, <st1:country-region st="on">France</st1:country-region></st1:place> in November 1974-January 1975. The venue was the biggest art gallery and museum in the world – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre">The Louvre</a>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The poster which promotes poster exhibition should have been of the highest graphical quality. And it was indeed. The graphics are laconic, symbolical and brilliant: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_star">Red Star </a>forms the flat background, blending together with a three dimensional image of Hammer and Sickle. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammer_and_sickle">Hammer and Sickle</a> is aimed upward as if being held by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_and_Kolkhoz_Woman">The Worker and Kolhoz Woman</a> sculpture, thus adding emotion and movement to the artwork. Note the hatching and the shades of the Hammer and Sickle – they are in perfect line with the geometrical simplicity of the red pentagram. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Buy these vintage French posters at allposters here! </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/460705_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe></p> <a href="http://www.multitran.ru/c/m.exe?t=2990686_1_2"></a>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3419288612127057584.post-29352138708952026462007-11-02T10:28:00.001-07:002007-11-02T10:42:32.604-07:00The people's Army<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuuGLIRBlJ8__9v1n6zHi2OjWRbqVqfzFFeLtBpV9__2Rsq7h4QFIP5LEYl5ygROW6B9GVVpp3Ppt6iP20qxYBLZ_6EYdtJfTjnkho9VfsObVfoqc29fjTfgphb2Ejli-wf7sY_pnHL5Q/s1600-h/900.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuuGLIRBlJ8__9v1n6zHi2OjWRbqVqfzFFeLtBpV9__2Rsq7h4QFIP5LEYl5ygROW6B9GVVpp3Ppt6iP20qxYBLZ_6EYdtJfTjnkho9VfsObVfoqc29fjTfgphb2Ejli-wf7sY_pnHL5Q/s400/900.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5128296379805334546" border="0" /></a> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">Workers' and Peasants' Red Army<br />15 anniversary Art Exhibition<br />A. Deyneka, 1933</p> <p style="font-style: italic; text-align: right;" class="MsoNormal">From wild forest to the British seas - Red Army is the mightiest!"<br />One of the famous revolutionary marches of the Civil War</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is an art exhibition poster devoted to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_army">Soviet Red Army</a>. <span style="" lang="EN-US">The exhibits included paintings, graphics, sculpture, textile works related to the events the Red Army took part into – the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Civil_War">Civil War</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_1">World War 1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet-Polish_War">Soviet-Polish War</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_People%27s_Commissars">Council of People's Commissars</a> set up the Red Army by a Decree on January 28, 1918. In the 1918 the Red Army was quite democratic. The Army was based on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Guards_%28Russia%29">Red Guards</a> which consisted of workers. At that time anybody could enlist, so the army contingent soon got very diverse. The discipline was weak and the orders were carried out according to its “Revolutionary significance”. The very idea of army hierarchy and strict obedience was considered to be bourgeois, and therefore contradicted with Communism. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">All this did not help to fight the enemies of the <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place>, so in short time the original tsar’s army system was restored. Many of the pre-revolution military specialists were drafted to make the Russian Army a professional and effective force. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US">After coping with the most acute problems like intervention of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_Entente">Entente </a>and offensives of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_movement">Whites</a>, the ranks were combed-out thoroughly, leaving only the representatives of Workers’ and Peasants’ classes in the Red Army. </span>Being a military man signified one’s political loyalty and devotion to communist ideals. The <st1:place st="on">Soviet Union</st1:place> was a state of Workers and Peasants, so the Red Army was the people’s army. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The poster above was created by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Deyneka">Alexander Deyneka</a> – a brilliant and impressive artist. He was famous of his patriotic and battle-paintings. Here is one of his masterpieces named “<a href="http://www.deineka.ru/work-oborona_sevastopolya.php">Defense of Sevastopol</a>”. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">On this Red Army poster he pictured two soldier’s heads in helmets. The style is simple, and the face expressions are plain. They are determined and open, truly men of the people. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p>Buy army posters at allposters: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-US"><iframe name="apciframe" id="apciframe" style="width:125px;height:249px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" src="http://affiliates.allposters.com/PosterStore/460221_PosterStore.asp" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"><a class="APCAnchor" href="http://affiliates.allposters.com/link/redirect.asp?AID=1581405051&PSTID=5&LTID=16&TID1=0&lang=1">Buy Posters at AllPosters.com </a></iframe><o:p></o:p></span></p>Alexander Zakharovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04569539983200605884noreply@blogger.com3