Propaganda has been a consistent tool when it comes to warfare. Throughout the years, it’s taken many forms and has shifted styles immensely. Arguably the most exciting shift occurred around World War 1 and the Russian Revolution when Soviet Russia turned to constructivism. Many elements of Soviet design became apparent during this time. Constructivism is a brilliant part of graphic design history which represents a dramatic shift in not only design but the entire world. The work of Alexander Rodchenko and other post-Russian revolution, constructivist artists laid the groundwork for Russian propaganda and created a plethora of different elements which would be implemented in the work of countless other soviet artists for the entirety of the Soviet Union’s lifetime.
To understand why it is that constructivism was erected during this time, one must first understand the history of the Soviet Union. Before the leadership of the USSR, Russia was under the governance of the Russian Empire, led by Tsar Nicholas II. Starting in 1914, the Russian Empire joined the allied powers of World War I, teaming with Great Brittain, France, and the United States. As this war waged onward, another was beginning in the heart of Russia. Everlasting resentment had built up against the leader of the Russian Empire and eventually sparked multiple protests against authority. Several instances of revolution could be seen during this time, and between both these and World War I, the Russian death toll was growing exponentially.
It wasn’t long before citizens of Russia began to plea for Tsar Nicholas II to step down and lend his power to another governing force. To the surprise of many, he did so, shifting Russian leadership to the Russian Provisional Government. However, the people were not satisfied, thus creating the group known as the Soviets. The Russian Provisional Government and the Soviets both shared ruling of the land, often in rival fashion. What one side would advocate for, the other would contradict. This lasted until late 1917 when Vladimir Lenin led his group of Soviet troops, known as Bolsheviks, to overthrow the Russian Provisional Government, turning the Russian monarchy to socialism, and later creating the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) (Britannica, “Russsian”). This change in power birthed, in the words of Katie Donovan, “A new era of world politics, heralding the ideological battle between communism and capitalism that dominated most of the 20th century”(Donovan, “Peace”).
Now that it is understood how the USSR became a leading governing force, it is important to understand its goals. Since gaining power, Vladimir Lenin and the Soviets had pushed the motto- “Peace! Land! Bread!”. This became essentially the first piece of Soviet propaganda. Upon closer inspection, it is clear that “Peace!” was in favor of the withdrawal of Russian troops from World War I and ending the Russian Civil War. “Land!” was in favor of acquiring the “rightful” Soviet territory, abolishing private property, and leaving it for the “peasantry”. Finally, “Bread!” was in favor of ending the nationwide famine, which was caused by the rationing due to the war. All of these things combined give a great deal of insight into
Along with the rise of the Soviet Union came the rise of Soviet artists. These artists were tasked with the responsibility of spreading the objectives of the USSR visually. Especially earlier in the timeline of Soviet Russia, the Russian population was mostly illiterate apart from those who lived in large cities and had the privilege of education. This meant that the demographic which early propaganda artists targeted were often rural, illiterate poor people. This can be seen all throughout the work of early artists. Contrary to popular, text-heavy design of the time, artists like Alexander Rodchenko began simplify his work. Rodchenko used basic geometric forms, borrowed from parts of cubism and futurism, in order to create a pleasing design which would be easy for people to internalize (Brittanica, “Constructivism”).
When it comes to Alexander Rodchenko, he is most known for his piece known as “Books!(Please) In All Branches of Knowledge”. This piece features a photographed image of a woman shouting, accompanied by text surrounded in red and black geometric forms. From the angle and shape of the text, it is clear that the words are supposed to be coming from the woman shouting. The largest and most prominent word is “Books” and the following words off to the right of the main word are “In All Branches of Knowledge”. This apparent shaping of text and angular form of the piece as a whole is definitively constructivist in nature. In fact, this poster specifically is one of the defining works which displayed Soviet constructivism. Not only is this piece powerful because of it’s design aspects, it also shows how much the USSR had their focus set on education. “Developing mass literacy was seen as crucial to the success of the revolution. Lenin argued: ‘As long as there is such a thing in the country as illiteracy it is hard to talk about political education’”(Behrent, “Education”.)
Along with this work came many others which displayed similar ideologies of repair to the newly founded Soviet nation. The USSR began pushing a shift from agriculture to industrialism, as did several artists. Adopted by many poster designers of this time, constructivism was the avant guarde, shifting to a completely different design atmosphere. At the same time communism was the new form of government, which also meant a change of pace for all the people of Russia. Collectively Russia was rebuilding itself while simultaneously trekking untouched territory both politically, and artistically. These two dramatic changes went hand and hand, and is why constructivism is so often associated with the design of this moment in time.
As time moves forward, so does the shift of design. New styles are explored, as old become forgotten. The Soviet Union progresses into World War II, The Cold War, and eventually the fall of the USSR, but one thing stayed consistent- the use of post-revolution constructivist design elements throughout the creation of Russian propaganda. Nomatter what conflict, subtle knods to the styles of great artists like Alexander Rodchenko can be seen in the art of that period of time. Whether it be the use of geometric letterforms, the iconic red and black color pallet, or the use of photography, traces of Rodchenko’s work can be found all throughout Soviet history.
