Abstract
Siberia, often perceived as a culturally peripheral region, unexpectedly became a hub for the Russian avant-garde during the 1920-1930s. This study investigates how constructivism and related movements took root in Novosibirsk amid post-revolutionary turmoil, focusing on their impact on design, architecture, and education. Using historical-genetic analysis, the author traces the movement's legacy through archival records, exhibitions, and contemporary reinterpretations. Key findings reveal: Siberia, known as a place of exile, served as a refuge for some disgraced cultural figures and their families. This unpleasant fact, however, led to the formation of small cultural centers, which later gave rise to the paradoxical flowering of the avant-garde movement in Siberia, despite political and economic difficulties, its suppression during the Stalin era, and its revival in the following decades. The study highlights key figures such as El Lissitzky, local publications such as Current magazine, and contemporary efforts to preserve the avant-garde heritage in Novosibirsk.
References
Central Executive Committee. (1925, October 24). Resolution on the enactment of the Regulations on the Siberian Territory [Legal Document].
Fomenko, A. (2021). El-130: Dedicated to the Russian avant-garde. Honest Word [Online newspaper].
https://4s-info.ru/2021/06/08/el-130-russkomu-avangardu-posvyashhaetsya/(Accessed: February 4, 2025)
Khazanova, V. E. (1970). Soviet architecture of the first years of October 1917-1925. Nauka.
Kurilov, V. N. (2025). Constructivism. Problems of architectural expressiveness in the urban environment of Novosibirsk. Bulletin of the Siberian State University of Railway Communications. Humanitarian Studies, 1(24).
Lipin, S. (1928a). What is graphics? Nastoyashche e[Current], 3.
Lipin, S. (1928b). Are we futurists? Nastoyashchee [Current], 4-5.
Muratov, P. D. (2010). The artistic life of Novosibirsk. Idei i Idealy [Ideas and Ideals], 2(4), Vol. 1.
Novosibirsk is 125 years old! (2018). [Photo report]. https://hellonsk.ru/news/novosibirsku-125-fotootchyet/(Accessed: May 14, 2025)
Our reality. (1927). SA [Soviet Architecture], 2.
Pivkin, V. M. (1967). Archive of architect (1935-2010). MIAS named after S.N. Balandin (B/N E52 V.6.3.3). [Archival Record]
Prior, I. (2016). Sophie’s testament. From Hanover to Siberia. The tragic story of Sophie Lissitzky-Küppers and her stolen paintings. Svinyin and Sons.
Rodchenko, A. (2025). Experiments for the future: Diary entries, articles, letters, and memoirs. Ad Marginem Press.
The history of the city: Novonikolaevsk-Novosibirsk (historical essays), Vol. I. (2005). Historical Heritage of Siberia.
The worlds of El Lissitzky: The catalog of the first stage of the Open International competition for the architectural concept of the urban environment of Novosibirsk, dedicated to the Russian avant-garde. (2013). SCSA.
Yarantsev, V. (2008a). “Nastoyashchee” - the journal of unfulfilled hopes. Sibirskie Ogni [Siberian Lights], 3. https://www.sibogni.ru/content/nastoyashchee-zhurnal-nesbyvshihsya-nadezhd(Accessed: May 14, 2025)
Yarantsev, V. (2008b). “Nastoyashchee” - the journal of unfulfilled hopes. Sibirskie Ogni [Siberian Lights], 4. https://www.sibogni.ru/content/nastoyashchee-zhurnal-nesbyvshihsya-nadezhd(Accessed: May 14, 2025)