Exploding Tongues: Language, Art, and the Russian Avant-garde

CoaRse CalLIBration

During the middle third of the Spring, '17 Semester, two classes at Occidental College (ARTS 227 "Introduction to Letterpress Printing (Pedersen) and CSLC 134 / RUSN 334 "Exploding Tongues: Language, Art and The Russian Avant-Garde") collaborate on a book making project, with printed submissions of text and design compiled in a miscellany volume inspired by the Russian Avant-garde. Through creative making of their own products in English, students explore historical literary phenomena, such as "zaum," or "trans-sense" language, a nullification or distortion of meaning through invented words, and abstraction, neo-primitivism, "Rayism," "Suprematism," "Prouns," and other visual innovations that manifest as illustrations and cover and page designs.

The collaboration begins with a two-part meeting, Backwording with Booksters, with presentations by CSLC 134 / RUSN 334 students on Russian Avant-garde art, literature and book arts, followed by a spontaneous book-making activity at the Letterpress Studio, (Dis)Attachment Anxiety, based upon the "exquisite corpse" model. 

Many have noticed that the genius of external beauty is highest of all, so that if anyone likes best of all the way, say, Te le li is written (from the painterly aspect) but not its meaning (toothless meaning, of which, by the way, there is none in zaum’ either), then it seems that such a reader is right and not a ruffian at all.
    The word (letter), of course, has undergone a great change here; perhaps it has even been replaced by painting, but what does a “drunkard of paradise” care about all this prose? And I have already met persons who bought Te li le without understanding anything about dyr-bul-shchyl but who admired its painting.
       On the matter of instantaneous writing:

  1. The first impression (by correcting it 10 times we lose it and perhaps therefore lose everything).
  2. By correcting, thinking over, polishing, we banish chance from art that in a momentary art of course occupies an honored place, by banishing chance we deprive our works of that which is most valuable, for we leave only that which has been experienced and thoroughly acquired, and all of the life of the unconscious goes to pot! 
                                                                                                    -Alexei Kruchenykh


 

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