Rodchenko biography
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Born in 1891, Rodchenko was active during a period marked by the Russian Revolution, which played a significant role in shaping his approach to art and politics. Building on from her art history knowledge that began in high school, art has always been a particular area of fascination for her. As a working class young man, he witnessed firsthand the social injustice of Tsarist Russia.
That year he was conscripted to serve as a medical orderly in the army. From 1916 to the end of life - in personal and creative Union with the artist Varvara Stepanova. In 1921-24 he worked in Moscow. Rodchenko’s commitment to this ideological and aesthetic framework was evident in his abstract yet functional approach to art.
Alexander Rodchenko (1935) by Isaak Brodsky; Isaak Brodsky, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Rodchenko’s artistic innovations and philosophy were integrally connected to the political and social context of his time.
There he continued his career as an artist until his death in 1956.
Smena Magazine Advertisement (1924) by Alexander Rodchenko; kitchener.lord, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, via Flickr
Influence on Modern Art
Rodchenko’s art was pivotal in the shift towards abstraction in the early 20th century.
The free-spirited avant-garde aesthetic was now actively suppressed by the state. Between 1928 and 1930 the artist designed stage scenery and costumes for Moscow theatres. EVERY, head. He viewed the revolution as an opportunity to radically reform the way art interacted with the everyday life of citizens, aligning his ideologies with the tenets of the Constructivist movement that sought to abolish the traditional artistic concern with composition and replace it with ‘construction.’
Photomontage Dedicated to Vladimir Mayakovsky (1930) by Alexander Rodchenko; Antonio Marín Segovia, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, via Flickr
Association With Kazimir Malevich
While never a student of Kazimir Malevich, Rodchenko was deeply influenced by Malevich’s work and ideas.
In this regard, his career is a model of the clash between modern art and radical politics. Here, he juxtaposes the motif of a woman with a child against the stern geometry of the man-made environment. The composition is typical of his use of photomontage in the period (the combination of photography and text).
In the 1930-ies the works of masters like forks.
Their work not only introduced modern design into Russian advertising, but it attempted to sell the values of the Revolution along with the products being promoted. He explored abstract visuals in his photography, bending the traditional representations of subjects into a novel, modern context.
Gears (1929) by Alexander Rodchenko; kitchener.lord, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, via Flickr
Abstract Works
Rodchenko’s abstract works, particularly his series of Black on Black paintings, were a response to, and a development of, the non-objective art movement.
Compositions such as this were an important influence on New Vision, the modernist photography movement that gripped Europe in the 1920s and '30s.
Gelatin-silver print - Private Collection
Biography of Alexander Rodchenko
Childhood
Alexander Rodchenko was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a working class family.
His father, Mikhail Rodchenko, was a theater props manager and his mother, Olga, a washerwoman. He continued his work as a photographer throughout the Stalin years, until his death in 1956.
The Legacy of Alexander Rodchenko
As a key figure of the Russian modernist movement, the art of Alexander Rodchenko helped redefine three key visual genres of modernism: painting, photography, and graphic design.
This particular union of modern design, politics, and commerce has occasionally inspired advertisers in the West since the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Rodchenko's early years demonstrated his artistic talent and quest for innovation.
Petersburg, Russia
Alexander Rodchenko emerged as a pivotal figure in the Russian avant-garde movement during the early 20th century.