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[THE STRUGGLE OF COMMUNIST SOCIETY THROUGH THE EYES OF SOVIET ARTISTS] Za sotsialisticheskuyu rodinu: (Al’bom reproduktsiy kartin, risunkov, plakatov) [i.e. For the Socialist Motherland: (Album of Reproductions of Paintings, Drawings, Posters)]

Lebedev, A.

Item #2000

Moscow; Leningrad: Isskustvo, 1940. 112 pp., 17 plates (13 color and 4 black-and-white): ill., portraits. 22x31 cm. In original publisher’s cloth binding with giltlettered title, gilt-tooled and blind-stamped ornaments on the front cover. Edges rubbed, otherwise near fine.

Extremely scarce with only one copy found in the Library of Congress. First edition. 1 of 3,000 copies. Editor G. Bandalin. Artist L. Litvak. With 13 color, four black-and-white plates, and numerous black-and-white illustrations throughout. A pre-World War II album of ca. 170 paintings capturing the Soviet people, the Red Army, and the Navy in their struggle for socialist rule.

The album showcases work by a variety of Soviet artists and includes five black-and-white reproductions of paintings by Mikhail Sokolov (1885-1947) and Pyotr Neradovsky (1875-1962). At the time of the publication, both artists were enduring terms in forced labor camps on charges of denunciation. While Sokolov tragically passed away shortly after his release, Neradovsky enjoyed a long and fruitful career spanning nearly two decades more. Another notable artist featured in the edition is Alexander Gerasimov (1881-1963), Stalin’s favored painter, whose once canonical works were removed from museum exhibitions during Nikita Khrushchev’s reign. The album comprises four reproductions of his paintings, two in color and two in black-and-white: “V. I. Lenin at the Tribune,” “I. V. Stalin and the Tribune,” “I. V. Stalin and K. E. Voroshilov in Kreml,” and “I. V. Stalin.” Other artists presented are Irakli Toidze, Pyotr Vasilyev, Georgiy Savitsky, Apolon Kutateladze, Nikolay Samokish, Mitrofan Grekov, etc.
Thematically, the album is divided into two sections. The first segment depicts pivotal events of the Great Socialist Revolution, while the second part portrays the Red Army during peacetime, showcasing activities such as combat training, political studies, leisure, maneuvers, and border protection. Topics covered range from Lenin’s visit to Petrograd to the Volochaevsky battle, Stalin’s arrival to the First Cavalry Army, and a mountaineers’ protest against German invaders. Serving as a significant visual documentation of early socialist
history, the album offers a comprehensive insight into the societal and military dynamics of the era through the eyes of ideologically controlled Soviet artists.

Worldcat shows 1 copy in the Library of Congress.

Price: $1,950.00