a catalogue from the days of the first rediscovery
I was looking for a children's book I loved from years ago on Alibris the other day. A browsing detour led me to this exhibition catalogue, which I could not pass up for the $10 asking price.
It is from a show that opened in February of 1971. It includes the text of Kenneth Frampton's 1968 essay "The Lost Avant Garde," which went miles in bringing the experimental arts of the early Soviet Union to a wider audience in the West, who were, of course, then searching for alternative models and histories high and low. Just imagining socially-engaged artists of the day, fueled by the cultural and political explosions of '68 and and after, seeing this work for the first time, puts one in a heady state.
The slim, now-fragile volume includes some terrific images I've never seen before. As is usual for me, I'm most interested in the graphic work. But there are some amazing pics of architectural work and theater sets, as well. Check the image below.
