From Constructivism to Futurism
Sorel’s and Mussolini’s and Marinetti’s influence upon Leninist artists of Moscow
Popova, Lissitsky, Tatlin and Rodchenko all viewed art as the destruction of limited narrow bourgeois-elitist perception or at least its displacement into a context which would cause false sentiments to either melt or freeze.
Sentiments such as ideological beliefs and moods, impulses and emotions were believed to “structure” perception, logic, volition and memory and to cause undue emphases as the logos or eros or thanatos holds the whole personality and its choices “in thrall” (enslaved).
The random optioning, of perception especially, because of prior decisions of status, stance, distance, value and need is critically treated even by such early sources as India's and Krishna's Bhagavad Gita.
The constructivists, having read Lenin, Sorel, Gorky, Plekhanov, Engels, and Axelrod, chose a new expressive freedom to combine objects in a real space of revolution and terror.
Marinetti and his Futurist Manifesto of 1924, in association with Gabriello D'Annunzio, stated that anarchy, not facism, was more flamboyant, romantic, authentic, exciting, charismatic, glamourous and speedy – it was a total indulgence aided and abetted by machines.
Did any of the Sorelian Leninists of the Constructivist school in Moscow defect to New York (expressionism), to Milan (Futurism), to Paris (Surrealism) or to Zurich (Dadaism)???
International travel was hardly forbidden (the new planes and cars) but – no - their hearts stayed loyal and true to their Moscow studios and were very glad of artists' functions in the 5 Year Plans.
The terror was declared finished by Stalin in 1925 and thus Malevich (a fervent admirer of Munch.s painting “The Scream”, 1912) decided that his work would henceforward be rejected and that he and his fellow constructivists would be harrassed. Soon eleven of the constructivist brotherhood emigrated to Dessau, Amsterdam, Paris and New York City.
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