Here's the picture that interested me the most from Werckmeister's collection:
http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/May_25_1999/1 512.jpg ... because it shows three alternate versions for the sculpture commissioned for the roof of the Soviet pavilion at the 1937 Paris Expo. Why did the jury of selection reject these three -- in favor of the design offered by Vera Mukhina ? The one on the left -- by Andreev -- is the most Classical -- stately, dignfied -- almost a variation on Bertholdi's Statue of Liberty. This was the style of the early leaders of the Soviet sculpture -- like Matveev -- who had international recognition before the revolution. The one in the middle -- by Matvej Manizer -- exemplifies the new, Socialist Realism style -- more earthy and fleshy -- less like aristocratic, classical, or modernist ideals, and more like cartoonish super-heroes. The one on the right -- by Ivan Shadr -- looks like a couple of scrawny factory workers actually posed for it. Shadr is one of my favorite Soviet sculptors -- his figures seem like they're about to explode out of desparation -- but Vera won it -- I'm guessing - because her figures are the only ones moving (rather than just pointing) forward. Her figures are risking their lives -- and what could be more dangerous ? http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/March_30_1999 /ParisExpo2.jpg http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/March_30_1999 /Mukhina.jpg http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/April_13_1999 /Mukhina.jpg http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/May_6_1999/10 23.jpg ..... while, up close, these workers look like they themselves were made in a factory -- like killer robots. http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/May_6_1999/10 24.jpg http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/art-history/werckmeister/May_6_1999/10 25.jpg All of which would lead me to conclude that, like their Nazi sculpture counterparts -- these statues are revealing rather than masking the horror of their regimes. Can only a sane person notice this ? (as William suggests) I suppose -- but doesn't every theory of art assume a viewer who is intelligent and healthy? ____________________________________________________________ Free quote and debt consolidation information. Click Here. http://thirdpartyoffers.netzero.net/TGL2231/fc/Ioyw6ijmNTxFFrv3IF6G3JpmQvUjhe iQ5SrSXeCOLMao5rp539Vw0E/
