Leningrad, Gosudarstvennoe Izdatel'stvo, 1925
An excellent example of this incredibly scarce and sought-after children's book illustrated by renowned Soviet artist Alexander Samokhvalov (1894-1971). Samokhvalov was born in Bezhetsk in Tver Oblast and moved to St Petersburg in 1914 to study at the Imperial Academy of Arts. It was here that he first encountered Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin and Vasily Shukhaev and he quickly adopted their novel approach to perspective. Samokhvalov began exhibiting with the Mir Iskusstva group and in 1921 travelled to Samarkand with Petrov-Vodkin.
The illustrations for Pro dikovinnykh zverei perfectly demonstrate the relationship between traditional Russian popular prints (lubki) and the avant-garde style which erupted at the beginning of the twentieth century. Samokhvalov uses bold lines, flattened figures (or in this case animals), borders and bright colours, all of which are similar to cheaply printed lubok woodcuts. Much like Petrov-Vodkin, Samokhvalov was also influenced by religious art and worked on the restoration of frescos in Staraya Ladoga in 1926.
The Mir Iskusstva group believed that book illustration should be considered an art form in itself and each design aspect should be carefully considered. It is in this vein that the typography perfectly reflects the overall aesthetic of the book and the illustrations work in harmony together across a double-page spread. This holistic approach was espoused before the revolution but was now being taken in a new direction by Soviet artists working for the state publisher.
As the 1920s progressed, Samokhvalov turned more to the official Soviet realist style and started to gain recognition for his portrayals of young subjects as heroes of labour and sport. Many of these are held by the Tretyakov Gallery and the Russian Museum; his most famous canvas 'Girl in a sports fair' (1932) gained a gold medal at the World Fair in Paris in 1937 and was hailed as a 'Soviet Mona Lisa' by critics.
We have not been able to trace another copy to ever come on the market and there are no copies in Worldcat.
First edition, 4to (26.2 x 19.5 cm); 12pp., illustrations in colour throughout by Samokhvalov; original printed wrappers, minor repairs to spine, a fine copy.
The illustrations for Pro dikovinnykh zverei perfectly demonstrate the relationship between traditional Russian popular prints (lubki) and the avant-garde style which erupted at the beginning of the twentieth century. Samokhvalov uses bold lines, flattened figures (or in this case animals), borders and bright colours, all of which are similar to cheaply printed lubok woodcuts. Much like Petrov-Vodkin, Samokhvalov was also influenced by religious art and worked on the restoration of frescos in Staraya Ladoga in 1926.
The Mir Iskusstva group believed that book illustration should be considered an art form in itself and each design aspect should be carefully considered. It is in this vein that the typography perfectly reflects the overall aesthetic of the book and the illustrations work in harmony together across a double-page spread. This holistic approach was espoused before the revolution but was now being taken in a new direction by Soviet artists working for the state publisher.
As the 1920s progressed, Samokhvalov turned more to the official Soviet realist style and started to gain recognition for his portrayals of young subjects as heroes of labour and sport. Many of these are held by the Tretyakov Gallery and the Russian Museum; his most famous canvas 'Girl in a sports fair' (1932) gained a gold medal at the World Fair in Paris in 1937 and was hailed as a 'Soviet Mona Lisa' by critics.
We have not been able to trace another copy to ever come on the market and there are no copies in Worldcat.
First edition, 4to (26.2 x 19.5 cm); 12pp., illustrations in colour throughout by Samokhvalov; original printed wrappers, minor repairs to spine, a fine copy.
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