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[IN THE HEART OF CONSTRUCTIVISM] Ezhegodnik MAO. #5. (Yubileinyi vypusk) [i.e. Yearbook of Moscow Architecture Society. #5. Anniversary Issue]

Moscow: Izd-vo Moskovskogo Arkhitekturnogo Obshchestva, 1928. Item #230

VIII, 135, [6] pp.: ills., photographs, plans. 33х26 cm. In original wrappers and illustrated dust-wrapper. Very good. Front cover not attached to the text block and the spine, tiny tears of the top and bottom of the spine, spots, tears and losses of the dust-wrapper.

Rare. One of 2000 copies.
With advertisement slip by Victor Kokorin (Moscow, [1927]. 4 pp. 24,5х17 cm. Near fine, restored tear of the spine). Both the dust-wrapper and the slip are of constructivist style.

Title page, table of contents, introduction, captions and authors’ names in Russian and German. Dust-wrapper designed by Nikolai
Kolli. Bilingual feature of this edition considered as an evidence of international nature of architecture and the bold creative experiments that would be interesting not only in USSR but abroad.

Among presented in this edition are design projects by architects Vesnin brothers, Shchusev, Ivanitsky, Zholtovsky, Kokorin, Barkhin, Razov, Golosov, Chernyshev, Voinov, Fridman, and others.

Moscow Architecture Society was founded in 1867 and was the first Russian professional union of architects and constructing engineers. They studied architecture, organized exhibitions and competitions. They first began to hold open architecture design competitions in 1868, and in 1920s these competitions played an important part in creating an advantageous atmosphere for architectural designing and for developing of avant-garde. Interesting that during the forming years (1920s) there was a small number of architects. But even this small group wasn’t occupied with real projects (constructing was rare during Civil war and for some time after it). So 1920s became the era of architectural designing and pre-projecting. As a result a small group of architects formed a creative reserve, unrealized heritage, which held large shaping potential. In the late 1920s state constructing started to bring some of those projects to life but many of them were considered too avant-garde.

In the beginning of the 20th century Moscow architectural look was rapidly changing, and MAO Yearbooks are a great evidence of that metamorphosis.

Even though it’s called ‘yearbook’ there were only 6 such editions with first printed in 1909. This is an anniversary issue (60 years of the society) and the first in 10 years a public printed material with information on the society’s activities and architectural competitions, results of the art process and construction.

WorldCat locates 6 copies in US libraries (Princeton, Art Institute of Chicago, Harvard, Getty, Arizona State University, Columbia).

Status: On Hold