Line, colour and space are the main components of Rodchenko''s painterly technique. In 1918 in the Anarchy newspaper, he wrote that he was "persistently studying projection into depth, height and breadth, opening up the endless possibility of constructing beyond the bounds of time". The artist called his works "compositions of coloured movements and projected parts". The impulse that led Rodchenko along this path was clearly provided by Kazimir Malevich. Unlike Malevich, however, Rodchenko was a true materialist. He was, in essence, closer to Vladimir Tatlin and his relationship with art as a handicraft and the process of creation as one of invention. It was this that later helped Rodchenko to achieve such unique results in design, architecture and photomontage.

Rodchenko Alexander

Rodchenko, Alexander Mikhailovich
1891, St Petersburg - 1956, Moscow
Painter, graphic artist, sculptor, author of spatial constructions, photographer, designer, theatrical designer. Studied at the Kazan School of Art (1910-1914) and the Stroganov Central School of Art and Industry in Moscow (1914-1917). Contributed to exhibitions (from 1913). Joined Department of An, People's Commissariat of Education (1918), directed the Museums Office and worked for its first purchasing commission (1918-1921). Founding member of the Institute of Artistic Culture in Moscow (1920-1924). Taught at Moscow Proletcult (1918) and the Faculties of Woodwork and Metalwork, Higher Art and Technical Studios(1920-1930). Took courses in photography at the Moscow Institute of Polygraphy (1930s). Collaborated with various magazines (1920s).