What does revolutionary art look like? What is the role of the artist in building a new society? This course explores a wide variety of artistic forms and experiments undertaken over the history of the Soviet Union, including those of the early avant-garde, socialist realism, and underground art. Looking at projects in diverse mediums, from easel painting to performance art to film and architecture, this course will think about the different questions posed by explicitly political art and the efforts to revolutionize life at every level. We will consider work created in Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucuses, and examine Soviet culture in an internationalist frame. Some topics considered include: the relationship between abstract art and propaganda; documentary film and photography; monumental art; and the built environment of socialism, constructed and imagined. 

No previous art history knowledge required. 

This course fulfills the following Major requirements: Geographical area (A) and Chronological period (III).

*This course will not meet for discussion section.