Alexander Rodchenko was a pioneering Russian artist and photographer who was a leading figure of the Constructivist movement in the early 20th century. He is known for his innovative photography which featured unusual angles and high contrast to abstract everyday objects, as well as for his non-representational sculptures and paintings made of industrial materials that emphasized form over content. Rodchenko's experimental style had a significant influence on the development of modern art in both Russia and the West.

1. Alexander Rodchenko
Constructivism

2. Alexander Rodchenko
Typographer
Photographer
Painter
Sculptor
Furniture Designer
Poster Artist
Graphic Artist
Interior Architect
Teacher
Set Decorator
Painter

3. Alexander Rodchenko
- Born November 23, 1891, in St. Petersburg, Russia
Painter
- Died December 3, 1956, in Moscow, Russia
- Main field was photography, also focused on painting earlier in his career
- Was influenced by the aspects of Constructivism movement
- Was most famous in the 20th century for his photography
- Leader of Constructivism
- Influenced by Vladimir Tatlin and Kazimir Malevich
- Married to Varvara Stepanova

4. Timeline of Rodchenko’s Life & Achievements
1910: attends school of Fine Arts in Kazan
1915: attends Stroganov School in Moscow where he meets Vladimir Tatlin and Kazimir
Malevich
1918-19: becomes interested in architecture and line structure; joins the Zhivaskulptarkh
– a group dedicated to this form of art
1919: does first collages and is the president of the Federation of Painters of New Art
1921: at “5x5=25” exhibition Rodchenko‟s Pure Colors: Red, Yellow, Blue is shown as his
last easel painting produced
Shukhov Tower by Alexander Rodchenko, 1929.
Artist print

5. Timeline of Rodchenko’s Life & Achievements
1923: does advertising and photomontages, and collaborates with Mayakovsky
1929: many of his photographs are published in magazines (Technology, Life, Novy Lef,
etc…)
1935-40: works on series of books of photos with his wife, Varvara
1940: returns to abstract painting
Novyi Lef cover.
Photography 1928.
Russian Constructivism.
Alexander Rodchenko
Novyi LEF. Zhurnal levogo
frontaiskusstv, 11 Alexander
Rodchenko

6. Rodchenko’s Style of Art & Photography
- Used single lines to construct a simplistic design
- Angles are used to create a abstract look with ordinary objects
- By the use of line, it allowed him to exclude colour, form, and composition
- High contrast lighting in his photographs, creates dynamic shadows and depth
-Majority of his photographs were portraits, landscapes or architecture
Breakthrough:
Alexander Rodchenk
Pioneer Girl, 1930

7. Constructivism :
Refers to non-representational construction of
sculpture and painting. The artists linked art
with concrete and tangible ideas; instead of
abstract ideas.

8. Constructivism :
- A movement in modern art originating in Moscow in 1920
- Materialistic mechanical machine-like art
- Addresses issues about reality and life
- Uses industrial materials such as glass, sheet metal, and
plastic
- Objects are nonrepresentational, and often geometric shapes

9. Rodchenko’s Contribution to Constructivism
- In 1918 and 1921 Rodchenko became interested through the
arrangement of flat geometric shapes on a two-dimensional
surface; he then created three-dimensional sculptures. These
constructions were made from various materials, including wood,
tin, and cardboard.
- In 1920, Hanging Construction was one of
the first constructed sculptures in Russia to
include moving parts. In this work Rodchenko
arranged a series of intersecting and
concentric circles of wood
that hung freely to be moved by air
Alexander Rodchenko.
Hanging Construction, 1920

10. Alexander Rodchenko’s Photography
"One has to take several different shots of a subject, from different points of view and in
different situations, as if one examined it in the round rather than looked through the
same key-hole again and again.”-Rodchenko
- He often shot his subjects from odd angles; usually from high above as an aerial
view or from a low angle, he did this to shock his viewers
- Most of his work was abstract
- His images eliminated unnecessary detail, emphasized dynamic diagonal
composition, and was concerned with the placement and movement of objects
Alexander Rodchenko Dynamo
Soccer Club, Red Square 1935

11. Alexander Rodchenko’s Photography
- He photographed stairs, buildings, and overhead wires that created constructivist
linear structures
-The contrast between light and dark, was also one of Rodchenko‟s approaches
towards photography
Alexander Rodchenko. Fire-escape
ladder, 1925.

12. Rodchenko‟s use of contrast between light
and dark, creates a dramatic photograph
and a chiaroscuro effect in his photographs.
This helped to show the form of his subjects,
and add depth and volume.
Alexander Rodchenko. Young
Woman with Leica, (vintage
gelatin silver print) 1934
Alexander Rodchenko. Staircase, 1930

13. Through the use of both high and low angles, Alexander Rodchenko adds
interest and makes an ordinary object look more abstract. It changes the
approach of our view of how we interpret everyday items and transforms the
ordinary to the extraordinary.
Alexander Rodchenko.
Radio Antenna, 1930
Alexander Rodchenko. House in
Miasnitzkaya Street, 1925

14. Rodchenko uses aerial and „birds eye view‟
photographs to show the relationship that all
elements have to each other.
Alexander Rodchenko.
Courtyard, 1927
Alexander Rodchenko. A Street in Moscow, 1928

15. Rodchenko uses the reflectionto create a
more abstract approach to his work.
Alexander Rodchenko.
Abstract Cutout
Alexander Rodchenko. Nude and Shadow, 1930

16. Alexander Rodchenko. The
White Circle. 1918
Alexander Rodchenko. Black black, 1919

17. Alexander Rodchenko.
Gymnastics, 1932.
Alexander Rodchenko. Construction no
92, 1919

18. Rodchenko and The Leica
-The Leica was introduced to the world in 1925
at the Leipzig Spring Fair
-It changed the course of photography
-It was used for landscape photography as it
was the first practical 35mm camera that used
standard cinema 35 mm film
-Rodchenko was the first Soviet photographer to
use a Leica
-Rodechenko was a photographer for a
magazine company called “Novyi LEF.” Many of
his photographs were published in the 1928
issue and under each of his photographs he
made note that he used the Leica to produce his
images
-It allowed him to use unusual camera
positions, severe foreshortenings of perspective,
and detail
Alexander Rodchenko. The
Moscow-Volga Carnal, 1930

19. Vladimir Tatlin: 1885 - 1953
-Ukrainian sculptor and painter
- In 1914, he became the leader of a group of Moscow
artists who applied engineering techniques to sculpture
construction; a movement which then developed into
Constructivism
-He used iron, glass, wood and wire in the
nonrepresentational constructions that he created
- He inspired Alexander Rodchenko
Vladimir Tatlin. Model for
the third international
tower, 1919-1920

20. Other Constructivism Artists
Constructivism artists,
Naum Gabo and Antoine
Pevsner create sculptures
of non-representational
objects.
Antoine Pevsner. Developable
Surface, (bronze and copper)
1938-1939
Naum Gabo. Linear
Construction No.2,
(plastic and nylon filament)
1970-1971

21. Other Constructivism Artists
Artists, Alexandra Exter and Alexander
Vesnin, show a more abstract approach
to constructivism art.
Alexandra Exter. City, 1913
Alexander Vesnin. Suprematistische
Komposition, (oil on cardboard)

22. Rodchenko’s work in a modern time:
Alexander Rodchenko.
Lily Brik, 1924
The Ex‟s album cover
Franz Ferdinand album cover

23. El Lissitzky. Beat the Whites with
the Red Wedge, 1919-20
Franz Ferdinand album cover