Exploding Tongues: Language, Art, and the Russian Avant-gardeMain MenuBack to Futurism: Russian Artist BooksIntroductory Page by Chris GilmanBookENDS: A Working Theory of Textuality as Cultural Dominant, 1912-An Introduction and Conclusion to a Semester's Investigation into the Book Arts as an Avant-garde PracticeBook Case StudiesCollaborative Research by Case StudiesBig Bang: Timeline of Russian Avant-Garde Book Arts and Their Cultural ImpactsA Timeline of Russian Avant-Garde Book Arts and Their Cultural ImpactsCoaRse CaLIBrationARTS 227 "Introduction to Letterpress Printing" (Pedersen) and CSLC134/RUSN334 "Exploding Tongues" (Gilman)NthOlogyA limited edition collaborative book arts project by students of ARTS 227 (Pedersen) and CSLC 134/RUSN 334 (Gilman), Spring, '17MANIFESTERS (AB & Kelly): A portfolio of process and productsAppendix: A Path Through Russian Avant-Garde BooksChristopher Gilman1985b99a2acd541caa12a10c3ebf6896565283abDexter Blackwell92e005ca94195f836c6089cf147faff4c74fa79eZoe Foster-La Duc1c8954189fb3ee4ab6e36bfb90fae86777eab97Stephen Heim7069d17c035042745c96bc6c7619096cd7b33da4Kelly Kirklande1805e502570d093d70f00df18f145c99290d0a3Ian Lehineb028c384a69e4b92166e7791b002fa3f2cee5818Timothy Lewis13880d3d99b4b71ce85be63e69a6d44e38853d68Jmedina29ac3fc10003fb639ac412984b59b01a5b826e161Taylor Robinsonaa08dd3939f1f1c6162c5518ae531385e51659afEvan Sarafian042e10782d9a6d3f0001a4b35abb02f58ad84684Craig Dietrich2d66800a3e5a1eaee3a9ca2f91f391c8a6893490ILiADS (Institute for Liberal Arts Digital Scholarship)
12017-02-23T10:56:27-08:00Lines, Rotation, Text16Utopians, Prospectus! Foster-La Duplain2017-03-14T10:19:13-07:00There is a story that Wassily Kandinsky discovered one of his paintings laying on its side, and suddenly it became unrecognizable. This inspired him to delve into the realm of abstract work. Many abstract works, in this same notion, do not have a set orientation in which to view them. Rotating them allows us to view a piece of art in a new light, perhaps drastically changing the meaning we originally gave it. The geometric nature of suprematist paintings allows for this sort of rotation without too much strain on the imagination. The process of rotating a painting in order to see it differently implies that we read paintings in a certain way, specifically from left to right, similarly to how languages stemming from Latin read text.
The Gutenberg style of printing introduced certain features of text that remain true today; for example linear text that does not allow for multidirectionality, no variation from copy to copy, and a lack of “non-type set features, such as illustration” (Janecek 42). Any variation from these norms would appear as defects in the book. Klutsis’ piece to the right brings together both suprematist style geometric shapes and text. Both the rotation of the text and the addition of art counter the Gutenbergian style of printing. Although Klutsis was not in the industry of bookmaking, the subversion of our internalized processes of reading is nonetheless important. Similarly, the piece to the left demonstrates how lines can be used to disrupt the left to right reading process.