Constructivist Suprematism was an artistic phenomenon that changed the way people viewed and perceived art and its purpose in society, particularly in Russia around the very early 20th century.
Constructivists were artists, photographers, engineers, assemblers, sculptors, writers and philosophers. Their belief was that art should be expressive and organic, humanized and given life!
Constructivists such as Alexander Rodchenko aimed to produce work that directly engaged with its witness and encouraged that person to actively participate in the piece.
Often the pieces produces consisted less of realistic images and more geometric shapes, lines, curves and bold highly contrasting colours and shades.
The work of this era was utilized mainly for industrial campaign posters and propaganda flyers but also was greatly displayed through the use of photography and photomontage. Jagged lines and abstract lighting would ensure a feeling was conveyed before any direct link to an already established image could be defined. They key was to make art more ‘human’ more accessible and to inspire and engage the viewer directly.
One major influence during this movement was an artist called Alexander Rodchenko. Working primarily as a painter he moved into the realms of photomontage in order convey the feeling of motion on a 2d plain. He later went on to produce paintings that challenged the common aesthetic. Monochromatic works that “reduced painting to its logical conclusion”.
