El Lissitzky was an early twentieth century Russian artist and designer. Born 1890 in the small Jewish town Pochinok as Lazar Markovich Lissitzky, he learned to draw at the age of 13 from a local artist. At 18 he begin studying architectural engineering at the Darmstadt University of Technology in Darmstadt, Germany. El Lissitzky returned to Russia at the outbreak of World War I and finished his degree at the Riga Polytechnic Institute in Moscow.
In 1917, the Russian Revolution ended Nicholas II's reign and marked the beginning of the USSR. The tzar's rule had been openly anti-Semitic; Jews were not allowed citizenship and the printing of Hebrew letters was illegal. When decrees like these were lifted, Russian Jews experienced a cultural revival. El Lissitzky was a major contributor during this period. He worked closely with the recently formed 'Kultur-Lige', a society for promoting the growth of secular Jewish culture.
Amongst his work in this period, El Lissitzky illustrated a number of children's books such as the following book cover from Had Gadya, or "One Goat" drawn in 1919:
The stylized Hebrew and geometric composition are signatures of his work in this area. Another theme that begins here and persists through the remainder of his career is promoting change through art. His stylization of the Hebrew writing is a proud declaration of the Jew's newly found freedom from the Tsar's regime. Also, he focuses on children's publications. One can imagine the joy of the Jewish people when the tsar's laws were lifted, but for parents that had grown up with oppression and anti-Semitism coming from their governing body, the relief at having their children grow up in a society that didn't openly shun them in their laws and creed must have been immense. El Lissiztky's illustrations very likely brought more pleasure and meaning to the Jewish adults than the children that read the stories.
In 1919 a new art school was formed in the region of Vitebsk and Lissitzky was named head of the graphic arts, printing, and architecture workshop. It was at this school that Lissitzky met Kasimir Malevich. Malevich had founded Suprematism in 1915-1916. Suprematism was an abstract style, featuring typically straight edges two-dimensional shapes on a white background. It's named derived from the fact Malevich claimed the style was based on the "supremacy of pure feeling".
Lissitzky adopted the style of Suprematism whole-heartedly, leaving behind his previous exploits in Jewish art. His main utilization of Suprematism was as communist propaganda. In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution a civil war was fought between the "Reds", communists, and the "Whites", monarchists. It was in support of the "Reds" that El Lissitzky created one of his first pieces of Suprematism, a 1919 poster "Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge":
The poster's simple geometries of solid color concisely represent the call to action. The red wedge calls for a united and focused "Reds" party. The white symbol of the monarchists is disrupting the solid black structure of society. The circularity of the symbol suggests feebleness, as if they were a bubble waiting to be popped by the wedge of communism. There is no mistaking the intent. El Lissitzky said of his work "The artist constructs a new symbol with his brush. This symbol is not a recognizable form of anything that is already finished, already made, or already existent in the world — it is a symbol of a new world, which is being built upon and which exists by the way of the people."
Not long after adopting Suprematism, El Lissitzky evolved his own incarnation of it he dubbed "Proun", which derives from a Russian acronym that translates to "Project for the Affirmation of the New". Like Suprematism, Proun is composed of abstract geometric shapes. Proun is influenced strongly by Lissitzky's background in architecture, exhibiting two and three dimensional shapes that highlight spatial relationships. The Proun pieces do not have solid definition however, a testament to Lissitzky's constant willingness to constantly evolve and seek new goals and direction with his art.
The following piece is from 1922-1923:
The piece does not have a name. There is no precise meaning to the piece. It is a study in shape and space. This piece looks considerably complex, but it is composed completely of rectangles, circles, and lines. The silhouette of the main structure suggests movement along the horizontal axis, perhaps a suggestion of gravity or of erection depending on the direction of the movement. El Lissitzky typically did not reference the natural in his Proun pieces, so it is perhaps more likely that it is the erection of a complexly balanced object composed of simple geometric shapes on an oddly skewed plane. It is an abstract idea that could fit many natural ideas given the proper imagination. These ideas of construction can very easily be related in general to the restructuring of the Russian government, where new ideas and practices abounded.
In late 1921, Lissitzky left Russia for Germany to seek better working conditions and to spread the artistic and cultural ideas that had been developing in Russia. Although Lissitzky had been mostly creating Proun before leaving Russia, his interest in illustration and typography had not diminished. One of his first works released in Germany was a children's book called Of Two Squares. The illustrations are very much in the style of Suprematism and Proun, as can be seen on the cover:
The story described the cooperation of a black and red square to overcome the forces of chaos to create order. Children that read the story were encouraged to follow along by drawing the story or using blocks and toys help tell it. Lissitzky is giving the children a story that does not have details from the natural world involved. He is seeding an abstract idea in the children's minds that they can perhaps use to clarify or understand real world problems and events.
During his time in Germany, Lissitzky also begin experimenting with photography. One of his most famous pieces is the Constructor:
The basis of the pictures is El Lissitzky's self portrait. Half his face is shadowed, and the lit half has a hand super-imposed over his eye. Socialist themes can be found here. He is shadowing his identity because it is not the important part of the constructor. He only reveals enough of himself to see what he works with, but the super-imposed hand reminds that it is for his creative purposes. The hand stretches out to letters and shapes, the abstractions of ideas that the creator uses to realize his work.
During this same period, Lissitzky turned his attention to architecture. His goal was a real-life fulfillment of his Proun pieces. One such structure that he designed he called the Wolkenbugel, or "Cloud Irons". The Wolkenbugel was essentially a sideways skyscraper. He argued that it was a fit for the existing urban landscape, so that the space above squares would not be wasted. In actuality these structures were not economic and were never built. However, a rendering was created that simulated their existence in Nikitskii Square in Moscow:
Starting in 1926, El Lissitzky did notable work creating public exhibitions. Lissitzky wrote in his autobiography, "1926. My most important work as an artist begins: the creation of exhibitions." In 1927, Lissitzky was a major contributor at the All-Union Printing Trades Exhibition in Moscow. His success led to his next project, an exhibition in Cologne, Germany for
Pressa, another international publishing event held in 1928
. Lissitzky's main contribution was the design of the entrance hall:
Lissitzky led a group of artists in the creation of the exhibit. The sculpture as a whole represents the basic principles of the Soviet constitution.
The large flat ellipse at the top of the sculpture represents the Russian land which the Russians proudly note accounts for one-sixth of the Earth's dry land.
The lettering on the underside of the ellipse is Russian for "Workers of the world, unite!".
The six balls hanging below the plane account for each of the six republics of Russia.
Thin wires connected all the structures signify the rule of the Congress of Soviets affecting all parts of Russia.
The large star composing the base of the structure houses a three dimensional representation of the hammer and sickle, implements of the worker that form the heart and backbone of Soviet Russia.
Again, we see Lissitzky's signature styles here; the combination of simple geometric shapes and architecture used to promote a cause.
Although Lisstitzky had thought exhibitions were going to be some of his most important works, he later said that his work at
Pressa was "in essence just a stage set". This sentiment echoed his new desire to create something of practical use. He attempted to accomplish this task from many angles: urban planning, architecture, furniture design, exhibition installations, typography, book layouts, theater design, and stage design.
Between 1928 and 1931 he worked in all of these areas. This was during the time of Russia's First Five Year Plan. This was a plan to catch up with the rest of the world industrially and technologically in the span of 10 years composed of two 5 year stages. The increased activity in the country enabled Lissitzky to work in all these different areas.
One of his most notable contributions was a design for an apartment. The central element of the apartment was a rotating partition in the middle of the apartment so the division of the room would most suit the current occupant. His main motivation was to create a living space that focused on flexibility and reusability.
From 1931 to his death in 1941, Lissitzky shifted the bulk of his work to creating Soviet propaganda. One of his final works was, translated to English, "Give Us More Tanks!":
The message was to create more tanks to fight the Axis powers. The message is concise and simple, totally embodying the message without any fluff.
During the time of his propaganda phase, Lissitzky was slowly succumbing to tuberculosis while supporting a wife and three children. The propaganda market was lucrative at the time and Lissitzky utilized it to cover his increasing expenses. According to Margarita Tupitsyn, "this economically based fact is rarely mentioned, because it places Soviet image makers surprisingly close (perhaps, too close) to their Western counterparts."
Lissitzky's motivation for the subject of his art was often motivated by external factors. He often catered to whatever the cause of the moment happened to be. He only created Jewish art when the anti-Semitic laws were lifted. When Russia turned into a communist country, he created art to further Soviet Russia's cause, while not being a particularly avid supporter of communism himself. It is difficult to appreciate that supports a cause when the artist is not convincingly supportive of his work's message or is mainly creating to finance himself and his family.
Lissitzky created a prolific amount of work while continually attempting new techniques and styles. His creations bolstered his country and culture. While his motivations might have been more fueled by personal gains and recognition, his art still was on the cutting edge of Russian art and design and provided powerful messages to a rapidly evolving people and country.
References
Tupitsyn, Margarita.
El Lissitzky : beyond the Abstract cabinet ; photography, design, collaboration / Margarita Tupitsyn ; with contributions by Matthew Drutt and Ulrich Pohlmann. New Haven ; London : Yale University Press, c1999.Lissitzky, El. El Lissitzky. Maler, Architekt, Typograf, Fotograf. Erinnerungen, Briefe, Schriften. Übergeben von Sophie Lissitszky-Küppers. Dresden, VEB Verlag der Kunst, 1967.
Nisbet, Peter. El Lissitzky, 1890-1941 : catalogue for an exhibition of selected works from North American collections, the Sprengel Museum Hanover and the Staatliche Galerie Moritzburg Halle / [exhibition and catalogue were prepared by Peter Nisbet] ; Harvard University Art Museums, Busch-Reisinger Museum. Cambridge, Ma. : The Museums, c1987.
"El Lissitzky". ibiblio. University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. 2 Dec 1999.
