Painting of the 30s in the USSR. Fine arts and architecture in the USSR. Features of the development of literature

Education

30s - one of the most controversial periods in the history of not only the political, economic, but also cultural development of the Soviet state. In the field of education, first of all, the fight against illiteracy continued. Universal compulsory primary education throughout the country was implemented by the end of the second Five-Year Plan (1937). In 1937, universal compulsory seven-year (incomplete secondary) education was introduced in cities, and in 1939 the task of transition to universal secondary education (ten years) was set. However, education in high school became paid in 1940 (300 rubles per year). This switched the interest of the majority of urban youth from secondary schools to vocational schools and factory training schools (FZO), which trained personnel reserves of qualified labor.

In the early 30s the dominant one in the 20s was rejected. theory of the withering away of the school. Universal education was accompanied by a serious reform of primary and high school, a turn to the traditions of the pre-revolutionary school with its fundamental knowledge. Schools introduced a strictly defined schedule of classes and strict regulation of the educational and social work of schoolchildren. The main form of organizing the educational process was the lesson. Instead of “loose books,” stable textbooks on the basics of science were introduced. But, as in the 20s, they tried to bring training closer to production. Most schoolchildren carried out social work within the framework of pioneer and Komsomol organizations. In 1934, by decree of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, the teaching of history in schools was restored, and history departments were opened at Moscow and Leningrad universities, training highly qualified historian teachers.

IN higher education since 1932, emphasis has been placed on the quality and fundamentality of specialist training. Entrance examinations to universities were restored, the brigade-laboratory method of teaching was replaced by lectures and seminars, and collective responsibility for the quality of studies was replaced by individual responsibility. Party mobilizations for studying at universities (Party thousand members), reservation of places for women, social restrictions on admission to universities and; finally, the famous workers' faculties. To increase the responsibility and role of teachers in educational process The Council of People's Commissars established academic degrees and titles in 1934.

The science

In the 1930s, the main feature of the development of science was a sharp turn to the needs of the country's economic development. As before, the main scientific center of the country was the USSR Academy of Sciences, whose branches began to be created in the capitals of the union republics in 1932. More than a thousand research institutes of the USSR Academy of Sciences and economic people's commissariats developed the main scientific and technical problems provided for by state plans.

In the early 1930s, based on the developments of Soviet chemists led by Academician S.V. Lebedev, the production of synthetic rubber from ethyl alcohol was established. In 1932, geologists under the leadership of Academician I.M. Gubkin discovered new oil-bearing areas in the Urals and Bashkiria, called the “Second Baku”. Academician N.I. Vavilov collected the world's largest unique collection of cultivated plants from five continents for study and practical use. Particularly significant were the scientific developments of physicists - A.F. Ioffe, S.I. Vavilov, D.S. Rozhdestvensky, P.L. Kapitsa, I.E. Tamm, I.V. Kurchatov, L.D. Landau and many others who worked for defense. In 1933 the study group jet propulsion(GIRD) created and launched the first Soviet rockets. This group included the future creator of the world's first jet weapon (Katyusha) AT. Kostikov and the future chief designer of spacecraft S.P. Korolev. The beginning of the study of the stratosphere by Soviet scientists dates back to this time. In 1933, the first Soviet stratospheric balloon “USSR” rose to a height of 19 km. In 1934, the second stratospheric balloon “Osoaviakhim-1” with its crew rose to a height of 22 km. The second space exploration ended in the death of the crew, but this did not stop scientific developments.

A special page in the scientific chronicle of the 30s. entered by Arctic researchers led by O.Yu. Schmidt. In July 1933, he led a scientific expedition across the Arctic Ocean on the ship Chelyuskin, which soon fell into ice compression and sank in February 1934. In the distant Chukchi Sea, on a drifting ice floe, polar explorers created the “Schmidt camp”. It was only in April that they were removed from the ice floe. For heroism in saving polar explorers, the Soviet government awarded the title of Hero for the first time Soviet Union pilots In 1937, the study and development of the Arctic was continued by I.D. Papanin, E.T. Krenkel, E.K. Fedorov, P.P. Shirshov. In 274 days, the four polar explorers drifted on an ice floe in the ocean from the North Pole more than 2,500 km. Reference weather and radio stations were created in the North Pole area. Thanks to them, in 1937, pilots V.P. Chkalov, G.F. Baidukov and A.V. Belyakov made the first non-stop flight across the pole to the United States along the shortest straight line.

The Soviet aircraft industry also achieved significant success (development of the design of an all-metal aircraft by A.N. Tupolev and others), but in the late 1930s. many scientists, including aircraft designers, were arrested. Some of them continued their work in custody in special laboratories of the NKVD system.

In the field of social sciences, special importance was attached to a new reading of history communist party. The work of historians was closely followed by J.V. Stalin personally, who demanded that Trotskyist concepts be eradicated from historical party science. In 1938, under the editorship of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, with the participation of I.V. Stalin, "A short course on the history of the CPSU (b)", which for many years became the main reference point for socio-political research.

In 1937-1938 The scientific historical school of Academician M.N. Pokrovsky, who died in 1932, was sharply criticized. His name was removed from the name of Moscow state university, which in 1940 was named after M.V. Lomonosov.

In the second half of the 1930s. The process of politicization and ideologization of Soviet science sharply intensified. Political labels have begun to be actively used in scientific discussions. Opponents were often deprived not only of work in their specialty, but also of freedom and life. The President of VASKhNIL N.I. Vavilov was removed from the leadership of the academy in 1935 and was soon arrested. Two subsequent presidents were shot, and VASKHNIL was headed by T.D. Lysenko, who promised Stalin to solve the grain problem by breeding branched wheat.

Literature and art

The development of literature and art in the 1930s was determined by the decree of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks “On the restructuring of literary and artistic organizations” (1932). All associations of the creative intelligentsia were liquidated, and the process of creating unified “industry” organizations of a republican and all-Union scale began. In 1932, the Union of Soviet Architects, the Union of Soviet Writers, and republican unions of Soviet composers and artists were created. A major event in the cultural life of the country was the First Congress of Soviet Writers, held in August 1934, which elected A.M. Gorky as chairman of the board of the Writers' Union. Gorky, who finally returned to his homeland in 1931, became an active propagandist socialist realism, which was proclaimed the main artistic method. Socialist realism required combining the historical specificity of the artistic depiction of reality with the education of workers “in the spirit of socialism.”

In 1936-1937 The struggle against formalism in literature and art began. Innovation in musical and theatrical art was condemned; modern drama, satire, love poetry were actually prohibited; non-political topics were curtailed. The military theme dominated in books, films, plays, and music.

Among the most important achievements of Soviet literature of the 1930s. include the novels “The Life of Klim Samgin” by A.M. Gorky, “Virgin Soil Upturned” by M.A. Sholokhov, “How the Steel Was Tempered” by N.A. Ostrovsky, “Peter the Great” by A.N. Tolstoy, books for children by A.P. Gaidar, etc. The poetic creativity of A.A. .Akhmatova, B.L.Pasternak, O.E. Mandelstam. It should also be noted the dramaturgy of N. Pogodin, L. Leonov, Vs. Vishnevsky and others.

The largest phenomena in musical life were the works of S.S. Prokofiev (music for the film “Alexander Nevsky”), A.I. Khachaturian (music for the film “Masquerade”), D. D. Shostakovich (opera “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk”, banned in 1936 “for formalism”). The songs of I. Dunaevsky, A. Aleksandrov, V. Solovyov-Sedoy gained wide popularity.

Cinematography has made a significant step in its development (films “Chapaev” by S. and G. Vasilyev, “Baltic Deputy” by I. Kheifits and A. Zarkhi, “Alexander Nevsky” by S. Eisenstein, comedies by G. Alexandrov “Jolly Fellows”, “Circus” ").

Historical and revolutionary themes were actively developed in painting (“Death of a Commissar” by K. Petrov-Vodkin, “Defense of Petrograd” by A. Deineka, “Trumpeters of the First Cavalry Army” by M. Grekov, etc.), as well as the portrait genre (works by M. Nesterov , P. Korina, etc.). The most outstanding sculptural work of the 1930s. became the monument to V. Mukhina “Worker and Collective Farm Woman”.

CULTURAL REVOLUTION It was aimed at: The Cultural Revolution provided for: In the USSR in 2010. XX century The Cultural Revolution occurred. It was aimed: 1. To change the social composition of the post-revolutionary intelligentsia, 2. To break with the traditions of the pre-revolutionary cultural heritage. The Cultural Revolution included: 1. Elimination of illiteracy, 2. Creation socialist system public education and enlightenment, 3. Development of science, literature, art under party control.

Fine arts In the 1930s, significant changes took place in the visual arts. Despite the fact that the Partnership of Traveling Exhibitions and the Union of Russian Artists continue to exist in the country, new associations appear in the spirit of the times - the Association of Artists of Proletarian Russia, the Association of Proletarian Artists, artist F. Shurpin 1930, artist G. Klutsis

Socialist realism By the mid-30s. The method of socialist realism (the depiction of reality not as it is, but as it should be from the point of view of the interests of the struggle for socialism) was declared a generally obligatory artistic method for Soviet art. Decisive events in this sense were the creation in 1934 of the Union of Soviet Writers and a number of ideological campaigns. Nikolaev K. "Laying a railway track in Magnitogorsk"

M. Grekov. "Trumpeters of the First Cavalry Army", 1934 Tikhova M. "Sculpture laboratory of the Lomonosov porcelain factory"

POSTER ART During the period of the civil war and intervention, the political poster was completely separated from other types of artistic graphics (advertising, posters, political drawings). The poster is characterized by a striking visual image, prompt response, and accessibility of the content. This was very important for a country in which most of population was illiterate. KUKRYNIKSY Efimov B., Ioffe M., 1936

EASEL PAINTING Soviet easel painting has a craving for monumental, significant forms and images. Painting is becoming increasingly broader in subject matter and less sketchy in style. “Heroic generality penetrates into the easel painting” One of the most significant representatives of easel painting of this period is Boris Ioganson. He introduces “new revolutionary content in tune with the era” into his works. Two of his paintings are especially popular: “Interrogation of Communists” (1933) and “At the Old Ural Factory” (1937). “Interrogation of communists” “At the old Ural plant”

MONUMENTAL PAINTING In the 1990s, monumental painting became an indispensable element of the entire artistic culture. It depended on the development of architecture and was firmly connected with it. Pre-revolutionary traditions were continued at this time by Evgeniy Lanceray, who painted the restaurant hall of the Kazansky railway station (1933), demonstrating his desire for a flexible baroque form. Deineka also made a major contribution to monumental painting at this time. His mosaics of the Mayakovskaya station (1938) were created using modern style: sharpness of rhythm, dynamics of local spots of color, energy of angles, convention of depicting figures and objects. Favorsky, a famous graphic artist, also made a contribution to monumental painting: he applied his system of form construction, developed in book illustration, to new tasks. His paintings of the Museum of Protective Motherhood and Infancy (1933, together with Lev Bruni) show his understanding of the role of the plane, the combination of frescoes with architecture based on the experience of ancient Russian painting.

LANDSCAPE A variety of stylistic directions is achieved: In the 1960s, the era of the grounded method of socialist realism in art in general, and painting in particular, began in the USSR. A variety of stylistic directions is achieved: 1. Lyrical line of landscape painting, 2. Industrial landscape.

PORTRAIT GENRE The development of pictorial portraiture in the avant-garde style of the “first wave” had exhausted itself by the 1930s. In the portrait genre, the techniques and stylistics of a realistic solution to the image of a contemporary were again in demand, while the ideological, propaganda function of the portrait was declared as one of the main tasks. M. Nesterov “Portrait of Academician I.P. Pavlov” 1930 Nesterov M. “Portrait of the artists P.D. and A.D. Korinykh.", 1930

RESULT: Results of the transformations of the first years Soviet power in the field of culture were far from ambiguous. On the one hand, certain successes were achieved in eliminating illiteracy, there was a rise in the activity of the creative intelligentsia, which was expressed in the organization of new and the revival of old societies and associations, and the creation of values ​​in the field of spiritual and material culture. On the other hand, culture became part of state policy, coming under the control of the party and government apparatus.

The 30s are one of the most interesting pages in the history of the Soviet state. This is the time of conquest of the Arctic, the assault on the stratosphere, the time of the first five-year plans and unprecedented victories in labor, the time of gigantic construction unfolding throughout the country. Back then they built a lot, firmly and beautifully. The outlines of the buildings conveyed the businesslike and courageous mood of their builders. New buildings appeared on the map of the Union, the centers of old cities were bordered by new districts. Factories and workers' settlements were built, and numerous rivers were blocked by hydroelectric dams. Stadium bowls grew in city parks. Among the old houses on vacant lots stood buildings designed by the will of time and the talent of architects to change the traditions of past life. One of the striking examples of this entire huge construction project is Moscow.

Let's take a trip around Moscow in the 1930s and see how many changes happened in it over the course of several years. Throughout the city territory, the waters of the Moscow River and Yauza were dressed in granite. The city center has completely changed its appearance: the squares have expanded and are freed from old, dilapidated buildings. In the very center of the capital, on the corner of the former Okhotny Ryad and Gorky Street, the house of the Council of Ministers of the USSR was built according to the design of the architect A. Langman. The strict proportions of the building, reminiscent of a slender parallelepiped, and the clear and rhythmic relationship between the window openings and the planes of the walls give the building a business-like and calm appearance. Wide vertical stripes of white stone cladding on the smoky facade create an impression of solemnity, emphasizing the national significance of the building.

The first stations of the Moscow metro are strict and expressive in decoration. Above some

high ceilings rest calmly on tetrahedral columns across platforms; bright vaults span over others. A steady electric light bathes the polished stone cladding. Glass, ceramics, metal, and wood with their forms give the architecture of the underground metro lobbies airiness, elasticity, and warmth. The stations are all different, although they are similar in style.

The arch of the Airport station (architects V. Vilensky and V. Ershov), like an open canopy of a parachute, is cut through by swift white lines - slings. The multifaceted white columns of the underground vestibule of the Kropotkinskaya station (formerly the Palace of the Soviets, architects A. Dushkin and J. Lichtenberg) expand under the arch, forming bowls in which light sources are hidden. Thanks to this, the internal space seems to increase, and the appearance of the station becomes stricter. Almost all Moscow metro stations of these years are attractive due to the expediency of their strict, business-like architecture. There is nothing superfluous in them; almost every architectural detail solves both artistic and technical problems at the same time.

In the 30s, many of our architects sought to subjugate appearance buildings for their functional purposes. Here is the building of the editorial office and publishing house "Pravda" by architect P. Golosov. Its walls are cut through with wide strips of windows: after all, for both the literary employee and the printer, light and sun are a great help in their work. The glass lines of the windows made the bulk of the plant slimmer and more welcoming.

Everyone has it architectural structure has its place in the city ensemble. Visible far away, hiding or emphasizing the appearance of the surrounding buildings, is the openwork silhouette of the Crimean Bridge over the Moscow River by architect A. Vlasov. This handsome bridge connects the surface of the river, the massif of the Central Park of Culture and the panorama of the city. His body is suspended on two garlands of steel plates, energetically and freely cutting the air, and this makes the bridge seem weightless, as if it is woven from thin shiny threads.

Palace of Culture of the Moscow Automobile Plant named after. Likhachev, created by the architects the Vesnin brothers, is located in a park turned into a sports town, near a steep cliff descending to the Moscow River (see article “Architects Vesnin brothers”).

Construction in Moscow was then carried out according to a single plan for the reconstruction of the capital, adopted in 1935. For other cities of the country - Leningrad, Novosibirsk, Sverdlovsk, Kharkov, Baku, Tbilisi, Yerevan, Dushanbe, etc. - their own master reconstruction plans were also developed.

And of course, the architecture of these years could not do without its constant “companions” - sculpture and painting. In the ensembles of metro stations, the Moscow Canal, the All-Union Agricultural Exhibition in Moscow big role monumental sculpture and painting played. Mosaics by A. Deineka on the ceiling of the Mayakovskaya metro station seem to tell about one day in the country (see article “A. A. Deineka”).

E. Lanceray made a significant contribution to the development of monumental painting. His paintings of the ceiling lamps of the Moscow Hotel restaurant create the illusion of a large space: it seems that not the ceiling, but the high vault of heaven opens up before the eyes of a person in the hall.

Among the works of monumental painting of the 30s

years, the paintings of the Moscow Museum of Motherhood and Infancy, made by V. A. Favorsky and L. A. Bruni, stand out. In them, the artists embodied the harmony of the new man, the earthly beauty of his feelings. The sculptures of V. I. Mukhina placed in the museum were also in tune with the paintings.

Many architectural structures of the 30s cannot be imagined without sculpture. The symbol of this commonwealth was the famous sculptural group by V. I. Mukhina “Worker and Collective Farm Woman” (see illustration, pp. 328-329), which decorated the Soviet pavilion at the World Exhibition in Paris.

In the 1930s, numerous sculptural monuments arose and were included in the ensembles of squares and streets in different cities. The sculptors V. I. Mukhina and I. D. Shadr (see articles “V. I. Mukhina” and “I. D. Shadr”), S. D. Merkurov and M. G. Manizer (1891) worked on the projects of the monuments - 1966), N.V. Tomsky (b. 1900) and S.D. Lebedeva (1892-1967). In the 1930s, the widespread implementation of the plan of monumental propaganda that was conceived by Lenin and began to be implemented in the first years of the revolution began.

The development of monumental art and the idea of ​​synthesis of all types of art also influenced easel forms of painting, sculpture and graphics. Even in small easel works, artists sought to express great content and create a generalized artistic image.

The canvas by S. V. Gerasimov “Collective Farm Holiday” (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow), as if in focus, contains the characteristic features of painting of those years. The sun generously sends rays from the cloudless sky. Nature is imbued with serene peace and joy. There are tables with rich treats set right in the meadow. Apparently, an excellent harvest has been collected. Gerasimov paints the people of the new collective farm village: smiling women, a guy with a bicycle, a heroine girl, a Red Army soldier on vacation. Gerasimov’s painting style also contributes to the mood of joy: he paints a picture with light colors, with a wide brush movement, achieving the impression of lightness, a feeling of airiness (see article “S. V. Gerasimov”).

A. A. Deineka came with his own established tradition in the 30s. He conveys a sense of modernity with both new subjects and a new pictorial form. Full of health, his guys exude the joy of life in the film “Lunch Break in Donbass” (Museum of Latvian and Russian Art, Riga). His boys in “Future Pilots” live with a premonition of great things to come (see illustration, pp. 304-305). In these paintings, Deineka’s painting, as before, is spare and laconic, it has strict and clear rhythms, sharp color contrasts.

Imbued with “Deinekov” sentiments, but softer is the painting by Yu. I. Pimenov (b. 1903) “New Moscow” (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow). A woman drives a car along a rain-washed Sverdlov Square. The center of the new Moscow opens up before her. And together with her we admire our capital.

A. A. Deineka, Yu. I. Pimenov and G. G. Nissky, who was just beginning at that time, conveyed new feelings and impressions of life in genre paintings and landscapes. The then old artist M.V. Nesterov approached solving new problems in his own way. He sought to create a typical image of a creative person for those years. In his portraits, he captured people who were completely passionate about their work, who went in search of

scientific and artistic truths (see article “M. V. Nesterov” and ill., p. 306).

In the historical genre, B.V. Ioganson came to broad artistic generalizations, creating the truly monumental canvases “Interrogation of Communists” (see ill., pp. 312-313) and “At the Old Ural Factory.” Both of these paintings were perceived by contemporaries as a symbol of the road of struggle traversed by the people. The images created by Ioganson are heroic and significant (see article “B.V. Ioganson”).

With all the general aspiration towards a generalized and monumental image, painting, sculpture and graphics of the 30s were created by artists with different styles. Their works differ from each other in artistic means and degree of psychological depth, as well as plots and themes. The plot of V. Prager’s painting “Farewell, Comrade” is extremely sparse (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow). The red detachment, frozen in line, pays its last respects to a comrade who fell in battle. He lies on a stretcher on the snow-covered grass. The colors speak about people's feelings - nobly pure, slightly minor, applied with strict brush movements.

The canvas “1919” by K. S. Petrov-Vodkin is complex in its combination of color and intensity of the pictorial range. Anxiety". A worker peers through the window into the midnight street. An unexpected event awakens his loved ones. The artist deliberately does not finish the plot. Either the whites broke into the city, or a sabotage was committed... The main thing is in the readiness of his heroes to courageously face trouble, in the tense mood of the canvas (Russian Museum, Leningrad; see article “K. S. Petrov-Vodkin”).

The painting by K. N. Istomin (1887 -1942) “Vuzovki” is more “talkative” in the language of painting than the plot. Fragile figures of female students, enthusiastically working at the table, are presented in a unity of green, white, black colors, which convey both the purity of the images and the tension of time.

Original, talented painters worked in the 30s in the union republics: E. Akhvlediani in Tbilisi, III. Mangasarov in Baku, B. Nurali in Ashgabat.

The development of monumental art forms did not interfere with lyrical or deeply psychological genres. In sculpture, for example, portraiture is successfully developed. Great success in this genre was achieved by Sarah Lebedeva (1892-1967), an expert on human characters who knows how to notice barely noticeable movements of the soul. Lebedeva always focuses on the special things that are unique to this model. Her “Chkalov” is a gifted, integral personality who has directed all her strength of character towards achieving the goal of her life. Lebedeva sculpts her portraits very freely: they are not smoothed out, they have the external features of a sketch, but this makes them seem especially alive.

V. Mukhina’s portraits, on the contrary, are always monumental: they are stable in their composition, massive, and energetic.

The sculptor A. Matveev achieved a great depth of understanding of the human personality in his self-portrait. This is a whole autobiography, embodied in an image: wisdom, will, power of thought and great human purity merged in it.

The master of journalistic compositions I. Shadr also created magnificent portraits during these years. The portrait of young Gorky (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow) is full of dynamics, anger towards philistinism and an impulse for freedom, for struggle (Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow). Shadr's female images are very lyrical.

The theme of past and present, so clearly presented in sculpture and painting, was also reflected in graphics. Most artists during these years devoted their drawings and engravings to subjects of construction and labor. A gallery of portraits of outstanding contemporaries appears: figures of science, technology, workers, peasants.

In the 1930s, book graphics experienced a time of prosperity and great change. The need for books is growing more and more. Classic and contemporary writers are published in huge editions. A whole generation of young masters is coming to the book. His students A.D. Goncharov (b. 1903) and M.I. Pikov (b. 1903) work next to V.A. Favorsky. The ranks of illustrators are replenished by the Kukryniksy (see article “Kukryniksy”), D. A. Shmarinov (b. 1907), E. A. Kibrik (b. 1906), A. M. Kanevsky (b. 1898). Shmarinov creates a series of dramatic illustrations for “Crime and Punishment” by Dostoevsky, Kibrik - a series of lithographs for “Cola Brugnon” by Rolland, Kukryniksy-drawings for “Klim Samgin” by Gorky, Kanevsky - for Saltykov-Shchedrin.

Children's books by V.V. Lebedev (1891 - 1967) and V.M. Konashevich (1888 -1966) are designed with casual humor, excitingly and with great seriousness. The images they created are sometimes good-natured, sometimes ironic, but never edifying.

S. D. Lebedeva. Portrait of V. P. Chkalov. 1937. Bronze. State Tretyakov Gallery. Moscow.

The 30s were a difficult period in the life of the country. They had their own historical difficulties. War was coming. These difficulties were reflected in art. But the main thing that defines the art of the pre-war decade is that it finally developed the method of socialist realism. Art had established its martial traditions; it was ready for serious and severe tests.

Despite the totalitarian state control over all spheres of cultural development of society, the art of the USSR in the 30s of the 20th century did not lag behind the world trends of that time. The introduction of technological progress, as well as new trends from the West, contributed to the flourishing of literature, music, theater and cinema.

A distinctive feature of the Soviet literary process of this period was the confrontation of writers into two opposing groups: some writers supported Stalin’s policies and glorified the world socialist revolution, others resisted the authoritarian regime in every possible way and condemned the inhumane policies of the leader.

Russian literature of the 30s experienced its second heyday, and entered the history of world literature as the period of the Silver Age. At this time, unsurpassed masters of words were creating: A. Akhmatova, K. Balmont, V. Bryusov, M. Tsvetaeva, V. Mayakovsky.

Russian prose also showed its literary power: the works of I. Bunin, V. Nabokov, M. Bulgakov, A. Kuprin, I. Ilf and E. Petrov have firmly entered the guild of world literary treasures. Literature during this period reflected the full reality of state and public life.

The works highlighted the issues that worried the public at that unpredictable time. Many Russian writers were forced to flee from totalitarian persecution by the authorities to other states, however, they did not interrupt their writing activities abroad.

In the 30s, the Soviet theater experienced a period of decline. First of all, theater was seen as the main instrument of ideological propaganda. Over time, Chekhov's immortal productions were replaced by pseudo-realistic performances glorifying the leader and the Communist Party.

Outstanding actors who tried in every possible way to preserve the originality of the Russian theater were subjected to severe repression by the father of the Soviet people, among them V. Kachalov, N. Cherkasov, I. Moskvin, M. Ermolova. The same fate befell the talented director V. Meyerhold, who created his own theater school, which was worthy competition for the progressive West.

With the development of radio, the age of pop music began in the USSR. Songs that were broadcast on the radio and recorded on records became available to a wide audience of listeners. Mass song in the Soviet Union was represented by the works of D. Shostakovich, I. Dunaevsky, I. Yuryev, V. Kozin.

The Soviet government completely rejected the jazz direction, which was popular in Europe and the USA (so in the USSR the work of L. Utesov, the first Russian jazz performer, was ignored). Instead, musical works that glorified the socialist system and inspired the nation to work and exploits in the name of the great revolution were welcomed.

Film art in the USSR

The masters of Soviet cinema of this period were able to achieve significant heights in the development of this art form. D. Vetrov, G. Alexandrov, A. Dovzhenko made a huge contribution to the development of cinema. Unsurpassed actresses - Lyubov Orlova, Rina Zelenaya, Faina Ranevskaya - became the symbol of Soviet cinema.

Many films, as well as other works of art, served the propaganda purposes of the Bolsheviks. But still, thanks to the skill of acting, the introduction of sound, and high-quality scenery, Soviet films even today evoke genuine admiration from their contemporaries. Such films as “Jolly Fellows”, “Spring”, “Foundling” and “Earth” became a real treasure of Soviet cinema.

The culture of the Soviet and post-Soviet period is a bright large-scale round of Russian heritage. The events of 1917 became the reporting point in the development of a new way of life and the formation of a new way of thinking. The mood of society in the 19th - early 20th centuries. resulted in the October Revolution, a turning point in the history of the country. Now a new future awaited her with its own ideals and goals. Art, which in a sense is a mirror of the era, also became a tool for implementing the tenets of the new regime. Unlike other types artistic creativity, painting, which forms and shapes human thought, penetrated into people’s consciousness in the most accurate and direct way. On the other hand, pictorial art was least subordinate to the propaganda function and reflected the experiences of the people, their dreams and, above all, the spirit of the time.

Russian avant-garde

The new art did not completely avoid the old traditions. Painting, in the first post-revolutionary years, absorbed the influences of the futurists and the avant-garde in general. The avant-garde, with its contempt for the traditions of the past, which was so close to the destructive ideas of the revolution, found adherents in the form of young artists. In parallel with these trends, realistic trends developed in the visual arts, which were given life by the critical realism of the 19th century. This bipolarity, which matured at the moment of changing eras, made the life of the artist of that time especially tense. Although the two paths that emerged in post-revolutionary painting were opposites, we can nevertheless observe the influence of the avant-garde on the work of realistic artists. Realism itself in those years was diverse. Works of this style have a symbolic, propaganda and even romantic appearance. The work of B.M. absolutely accurately conveys in symbolic form the grandiose change in the life of the country. Kustodieva - “Bolshevik” and, filled with pathetic tragedy and uncontrollable jubilation, “New Planet” by K.F. Yuona.

Painting by P.N. Filonov with his special creative method - “analytical realism” - is a fusion of two contrasting artistic movements, which we can see in the example of the cycle with the propaganda name and meaning “Entering the World’s Heyday”.

P.N. Filonov Ships from the series Entering into global prosperity. 1919 Tretyakov Gallery

The unquestioning nature of universal human values, unshakable even in such troubled times, is expressed by the image of the beautiful “Petrograd Madonna” (official title “1918 in Petrograd”) by K.S. Petrova-Vodkina.

A positive attitude towards revolutionary events infects the light and filled with a sunny, airy atmosphere creativity of the landscape painter A.A. Rylova. The landscape “Sunset”, in which the artist expressed a premonition of the fire of revolution, which will flare up from the growing flame of the judgment fire over the past era, represents one of the inspiring symbols of this time.

Along with symbolic images that organize the rise of the people's spirit and carry them along, like an obsession, there was also a trend in realistic painting, with a craving for a concrete representation of reality.
To this day, the works of this period contain a spark of rebellion that can express itself within each of us. Many works that were not endowed with such qualities or that contradicted them were destroyed or forgotten, and will never be presented to our eyes.
The avant-garde forever leaves its mark on realistic painting, but a period of intensive development of the direction of realism begins.

Time for artistic associations

1920s - the time of creation of a new world on the ruins left by Civil War. For art, this is a period in which various creative associations developed their activities in full force. Their principles were shaped in part by early artistic groups. The Association of Artists of the Revolution (1922 - AHRR, 1928 - AHRR), personally carried out orders from the state. Under the slogan of “heroic realism”, the artists who were part of it documented in their works the life and everyday life of man - the brainchild of the revolution, in various genres of painting. The main representatives of AHRR were I.I. Brodsky, who absorbed the realistic influences of I.E. Repin, who worked in the historical-revolutionary genre and created a whole series of works depicting V.I. Lenina, E.M. Cheptsov - master of the everyday genre, M.B. Grekov, who painted battle scenes in a rather impressionistic manner. All these masters were the founders of the genres in which they performed most of their work. Among them, the canvas “Lenin in Smolny” stands out, in which I.I. Brodsky conveyed the image of the leader in the most direct and sincere form.

In the film “Meeting of the Membership Cell” E.I. Cheptsov very reliably, without contrition, depicts the events that took place in the life of the people.

M.B. creates a magnificent joyful, noisy image filled with stormy movement and celebration of victory. Grekov in the composition "Trumpeters of the First Cavalry Army".

The idea of ​​a new person, a new image of a person is expressed by the trends that have emerged in the portrait genre, the bright masters of which were S.V. Malyutin and G.G. Ryazhsky. In the portrait of the writer-fighter Dmitry Furmanov S.V. Malyutin shows a man of the old world who managed to fit into new world. A new trend is manifesting itself, which originated in the work of N.A. Kasatkina and developed to the highest degree in the female images of G.G. Ryazhsky - “Delegate”, “Chairwoman”, in which the personal principle is erased and the type of person created by the new world is established.
An absolutely accurate impression is formed about the development of the landscape genre when seeing the work of the leading landscape painter B.N. Yakovleva - “Transport is getting better.”

B.N. Yakovlev Transport is getting better. 1923

This genre depicts a renewing country, the normalization of all spheres of life. During these years, the industrial landscape came to the fore, the images of which became symbols of creation.
The Society of Easel Artists (1925) is the next artistic association in this period. Here the artist sought to convey the spirit of modernity, the type of new man, resorting to a more detached transmission of images due to the minimum number of expressive means. The works of "Ostovtsev" often demonstrate the theme of sports. Their painting is filled with dynamics and expression, as can be seen in the works of A.A. Deineki "Defense of Petrograd", Yu.P. Pimenova "Football" and others.

As the basis for their artistic creativity, members of another well-known association - “The Four Arts” - chose the expressiveness of the image, due to the laconic and constructive form, as well as a special attitude to its coloristic saturation. The most memorable representative of the association is K.S. Petrov-Vodkin and one of his most outstanding works of this period is “The Death of a Commissar,” which, through a special pictorial language, reveals a deep symbolic image, a symbol of the struggle for a better life.

Among the members of the “Four Arts” P.V. also stands out. Kuznetsov, works dedicated to the East.
The last major artistic association of this period seems to be the Society of Moscow Artists (1928), which differs from the others in the manner of energetic sculpting of volumes, attention to chiaroscuro and plastic expressiveness of form. Almost all of the representatives were members of the "Bubnovy Volt" - adherents of futurism - which greatly affected their creativity. The works of P.P. were indicative. Konchalovsky, who worked in different genres. For example, portraits of his wife O.V. Konchalovskaya conveys the specificity of not only the author’s hand, but also the painting of the entire association.

By the decree “On the restructuring of literary and artistic organizations” on April 23, 1932, all artistic associations were dissolved and the Union of Artists of the USSR was created. Creativity has fallen into the sinister shackles of rigid ideologization. The freedom of expression of the artist - the basis of the creative process - has been violated. Despite this breakdown, artists previously united in communities continued their activities, but new figures took leading importance in the pictorial environment.
B.V. Ioganson was influenced by I.E. Repin and V.I. Surikov, in his canvases one can see a compositional search and interesting possibilities in coloristic solutions, but the author’s paintings are marked by an excessive satirical attitude, inappropriate in such a naturalistic manner, which we can observe in the example of the painting “At the Old Ural Factory.”

A.A. Deineka does not stay away from the “official” line of art. He is still true to his artistic principles. Now he continues to work in genre themes, and also paints portraits and landscapes. The painting “Future Pilots” shows well his painting during this period: romantic, light.

The artist creates a large number of works on sports theme. His watercolors painted after 1935 remain from this period.

Painting of the 1930s represents a fictional world, the illusion of a bright and festive life. It was easiest for the artist to remain sincere in the landscape genre. The genre of still life is developing.
The portrait is also subject to intensive development. P.P. Konchalovsky writes a series of cultural figures (“V. Sofronitsky at the piano”). Works by M.V. Nesterov, who absorbed the influence of painting by V.A. Serov, show a person as a creator, the essence of whose life is creative search. This is how we see the portraits of the sculptor I.D. Shadra and surgeon S.S. Yudina.

P.D. Korin continues the portrait tradition of the previous artist, but his painting style consists of conveying rigidity of form, a sharper, more expressive silhouette and harsh coloring. Generally, great importance The theme of the creative intelligentsia plays in the portrait.

Artist at war

With the advent of the Great Patriotic War, artists are beginning to accept Active participation in military operations. Due to direct unity with events, in early years works appear, the essence of which is a recording of what is happening, a “picturesque sketch”. Often such paintings lacked depth, but their rendering expressed the artist’s completely sincere attitude and the height of moral pathos. The portrait genre is coming to relative prosperity. Artists, seeing and experiencing the destructive influence of war, admire its heroes - people from the people, persistent and noble in spirit, who showed the highest humanistic qualities. Such trends resulted in ceremonial portraits: “Portrait of Marshal G.K. Zhukov" brushed by P.D. Korina, cheerful faces from the paintings of P.P. Konchalovsky. Portraits of the intelligentsia M.S. are important. Saryan, created during the war years, is the image of academician “I.A. Orbeli”, writer “M.S. Shaginyan" and others.

From 1940 to 1945 the landscape also develops and everyday genre, which were combined in his work by A.A. Plastov. “The Fascist Flew Over” conveys the tragedy of life during this period.

The psychologism of the landscape here further fills the work with sadness and silence of the human soul, only the howl of a devoted friend cuts through the wind of confusion. Ultimately, the meaning of the landscape is rethought and begins to embody the harsh image of wartime.
Thematic paintings stand out separately, for example, “Mother of the Partisan” by S.V. Gerasimov, who is characterized by a refusal to glorify the image.

Historical painting promptly creates images of national heroes of the past. One of such unshakable and confidence-inspiring images is “Alexander Nevsky” by P.D. Korina, personifying the unconquered proud spirit of the people. In this genre, towards the end of the war, a tendency towards simulated dramaturgy is emerging.

The theme of war in painting

In post-war painting, ser. 1940 - end In the 1950s, the theme of war, as a moral and physical test, occupied a leading position in painting, from which soviet man came out victorious. Historical-revolutionary and historical genres are developing. The main theme of the everyday genre is peaceful labor, which was dreamed of during the long war years. The canvases of this genre are permeated with cheerfulness and happiness. The artistic language of the everyday genre becomes narrative and tends toward life-likeness. IN last years During this period, the landscape also underwent changes. In it, the life of the region is revived, the connection between man and nature is again strengthened, and an atmosphere of tranquility appears. Love for nature is also glorified in still life. Interesting development receives a portrait in the works of various artists, which is characterized by the transfer of the individual. Some of the outstanding works of this period were: “Letter from the Front” by A.I. Laktionov, a work like a window into a radiant world;

the composition “Rest after the battle”, in which Y.M. Neprintsev achieves the same vitality of the image as A.I. Laktionov;

work by A.A. Mylnikova's "On Peaceful Fields", joyfully rejoicing about the end of the war and the reunification of man and labor;

original landscape image of G.G. Nyssky - “Above the Snows”, etc.

Severe style replacing socialist realism

Art 1960-1980s is a new stage. A new “severe style” is being developed, the task of which was to recreate reality without everything that deprives the work of depth and expressiveness and has a detrimental effect on creative manifestations. He was characterized by laconicism and generalization of the artistic image. Artists of this style glorified the heroic beginning of harsh everyday work, which was created by the special emotional structure of the picture. The “severe style” was a definite step towards the democratization of society. The main genre in which adherents of the style worked was the portrait; group portraits, everyday genres, historical and historical-revolutionary genres were also developing. Prominent representatives of this period in the context of the development of the “severe style” were V.E. Popkov, who painted many self-portraits and paintings, V.I. Ivanov is a supporter of group portraits, G.M. Korzhev, who created historical paintings. The essence of the “severe style” can be seen in the film “Geologists” by P.F. Nikonova, “Polar Explorers” by A.A. and P.A. Smolinykh, "Father's Overcoat" by V.E. Popkova. In the landscape genre, interest in northern nature appears.

Symbolism of the era of stagnation

In the 1970-1980s. A new generation of artists is being formed, whose art has influenced to some extent the art of today. They are characterized by symbolic language and theatrical spectacle. Their painting is quite artistic and virtuosic. The main representatives of this generation are T.G. Nazarenko ("Pugachev"),

whose favorite theme was celebration and masquerade, A.G. Sitnikov, who uses metaphor and parable as a form of plastic language, N.I. Nesterova, creator of controversial paintings (“The Last Supper”), I.L. Lubennikov, N.N. Smirnov.

Last Supper. N.I. Nesterova. 1989

Thus, this time appears in its diversity and diversity as the final, formative element of today's fine art.

Our era has revealed a huge wealth of the pictorial heritage of previous generations. The modern artist is not limited by practically any framework that was decisive, and sometimes hostile, for the development of fine art. Some contemporary artists try to adhere to the principles of the Soviet realistic school, while others find themselves in other styles and directions. The trends of conceptual art, which are ambiguously perceived by society, are very popular. The breadth of artistic expression and ideals that the past has provided us must be rethought and serve as the basis for new ones. creative ways and creating a new image.

Our master classes on art history

Our Gallery of Contemporary Art not only offers a large selection of Soviet art and post-Soviet painting, but also conducts regular lectures and master classes on the history of modern art.

You can sign up for a master class, leave your wishes for the master class you would like to attend by filling out the form below. We will definitely give you an interesting lecture on the topic of your choice.

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