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[EARLY SOVIET CINEMATOGRAPHY] Kino i kul’tura = Kino und Kultur = Cinema and Culture #7/8 for 1929, 11/12 for 1930

Moscow: Teakinopechat’, 1929-1930. Item #1437

25,5x18 cm. In original constructivist wrappers. Fragments of spines lost, small hole in back cover and last leaf of #7/8, some pale stains in #11/12, minor scratches on front cover of #7/8, otherwise very good.

Print runs are 1200 and 2200 copies. Edited by politician and screenwriter Pavel Bliakhin (1886-1961) who is well-known as an author of a novel ‘Krasnye d’iavoliata’, a base for an adventure silent film ‘Red Devils’ (1923). Since 1925, Bliakhin headed various organizations related to Soviet cinematography, including a publishing house ‘Kinopechat’’, an organization ‘Sovkino’, the Union of Cinematographers of the USSR, the script department of a studio ‘Mul’tfilm’.
Two issues of a Soviet social, political, scientific and technical magazine. Only 8 issues were published in 1929-1930. Later it was merged with the periodical ‘Kino i zhizn’’ to form the magazine ‘Proletarskoe kino’ (1931-1932).
The same design for most issues was produced by artist I.M. Kovner who followed the constructivist style of Solomon Telingater. The famous book constructor designed the first two issues of this magazine.
Among articles published in #7/8 are V. Pudovkin’s ‘Art of Filmmaker’ advocating experiments in film production; ‘X-ray Cinematography’ by psychoneurologist L. Sukharebskii (1899-1986) who actively used cinema in needs of medicine, in this text he suggested to observe dynamics of a diseased organ via X-ray moving pictures. Despite this method had been invented in the 1900s, the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union didn’t adapt it and occasionally practiced projectional radiography only. Sukharebsky’s article was illustrated with film stills and images of equipment used by inventors. One of the most relevant issues of that time was color cinematography and four articles were dedicated to various aspects of this topic.
In contrast, the issue #11/12 was more devoted to movies, their audience and the filmmaking process itself. For example, ‘On Methods of Processing Sound Films in a Cinema Laboratory’ by N. Spiridovskii or ‘Filming Lighting’ by Veisenberg. Also, a list of articles published in 1929 issues was printed.

Copy of #7/8 is located at Princeton University.

Price: $500.00