Alexander Rodchenko (Russian, 1891–1956). Rodchenko announced, “I reduced painting to its logical conclusion and exhibited three canvases: red, blue and yellow. I affirmed: It’s all over.” (Nouril, 2016) The death of painting in 1921, as it was to him, heralded a new age of the constructivist movement, and this included his work in photography. His photography 'allowed him to easily experiment with the composition of images. He framed the world from new points of view—from above, below, and at other unexpected, sharp angles—encouraging the viewer to see familiar things in new ways.' (Nouril, 2016)
What?
What is in the photograph, and what are your first impressions?
This is a portrait of a Mother, it could be Rodchenko's own Mother, as it seems to state in the title. In this image, the woman's life-worn face fills the frame. She looks tired, perhaps rubbing her eyes. Not only can we see her face, but also her weathered hands and the gold ring she wears on her little finger. Perhaps this is her wedding ring or her own mother's ring, but now it is hers, as a remembrance. She seems to be wearing a large black hat and a smart coat, perhaps made of fur. It seems to be winter, cold and fresh. The woman's face is concentrated, perhaps she is trying to see properly or read something, and she is taking her glasses off or putting them on. What is most important is everything about this woman, this frame is her.
Who?
Who is in the photograph? How do you feel when looking at the people in this image?
Do you feel part of the image, or do you feel you are just looking on?
As discussed about the woman is his Mother or perhaps a representative of all Mothers. This close-up uses a high angle just above the subject. What does this suggest? It could be that the photographer was just taller and caught this shot as he tilted the camera down, or it was intentional and he was 'looking down' upon the Mother. Also, Mother herself is looking down, so the whole suggestion of the shot is looking downwards. Looking down suggests sadness, dejection, weariness or, as I suggested previously, concentration/tiredness. I don't feel part of this image, I feel I am looking into a private moment. I am a voyeur; I am glimpsing a moment that would have been lost to time without this image.
When?
When was this image taken?
What does that mean in terms of historical information?
This image was taken in 1921, this was a period between to first and Second World Wars, and art was flourishing. The Constructivists in Russia, Dadaism, Surrealism and the avant-garde, through Europe, Rodchenko, 'On a trip to Paris in 1925 he bought a handheld camera, which allowed him to easily experiment with the composition of images.' (Nouril, 2016) A new wave of art and experimentation had begun, and Rodchenko really experimented with his camera, and he often used geometric patterns, and even with people, there was a constructivist mindset. The Constructivist manifesto stated, 'The material formation of the object is to be substituted for its aesthetic combination. The object is to be treated as a whole and thus will be of no discernible ‘style’ but simply a product of an industrial order like a car, an aeroplane and such like. Constructivism is a purely technical mastery and organisation of materials.' (Tate, 2017) These images are the product of the industrial and technological revolution. Now, as images are just pixels, materiality has gone and as Baudrillard, what really does exist anymore?
Why?
Why did Rodchenko take this image?
Why is the photograph important?
It is unclear why Rodchenko took this image, but he was experimenting with the camera, and this close-up really shows that he was trying to get to the heart of what the camera could reveal in a person's face. Rodchenko did believe that photography was art and had surpassed painting. 'The Russian formalists, including Viktor Shklovsky, who was photographed with Rodchenko, called [one of their] techniques ostranenie - or making strange.' (Raine, 2008) The idea was that you take something familiar and then you defamiliarise it through the photographic technique. her is an example below with Pioneer with a Trumpet, look at the unfamiliar angle and we see the pattern of the man's face and the trumpet from below. Again, like the image of 'Mother', the face fills the frame.
How?
How has the image been taken?
What technical points can you discuss?
How has your view changed after researching the image?
What do you now understand the image to mean?
As discussed, the image was taken from a high angle, and the face filled the frame. High contrast of the black hat and white skin, making the details all the more poignant and drawing the viewer's attention to the eyes, darkened and worn. Rodchenko may have used a Debrie Sept camera and also a Leica camera. The Debrie Camera, imported from Paris, included a Zeiss lens, and Rodchenko would also have used a tripod and imported film stock.
Alexander Rodchenko is an interesting figure in Photography and after relative freedom for a while a change in the Soviet State, his work came under scrutiny for being too Western and avant-garde, and as times changed, 'Rodchenko’s output was used repeatedly to make a state-sanctioned Soviet reality visible. In the wake of this, other official commissions began to arrive, from photograph albums of Civil War heroes or further examples of Soviet prowess, from parades and gymnastic displays to parachute jumps. The state needed Rodchenko after all,' (Lowe, 2023)
Conclusion
Rodchenko created great photography, and without him and his way of seeing, photography would be missing a seminal and important figure who was admired by other photographers around the world. The state-sanctioned images may have changed his output, but in photographic terms, he was one of the greats who led the way for so many others.
References
Raine, C. (2008). Craig Raine on the Russian avant-gardist photographer, Alexander Rodchenko. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jan/26/photography [Accessed 27 Apr. 2025].
Lowe, P. (2023). Aleksandr Rodchenko’s Photography: Seeing Things Differently. [online] Izba Arts. Available at: https://www.izbaarts.com/aleksandr-rodchenkos-photography-seeing-things-differently/ [Accessed 27 Apr. 2025].
Nouril, K. (2016). Aleksandr Rodchenko | MoMA. [online] The Museum of Modern Art. Available at: https://www.moma.org/artists/4975-aleksandr-rodchenko [Accessed 27 Apr. 2025].
Tate (2017). Constructivism. [online] Tate. Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/c/constructivism [Accessed 27 Apr. 2025].
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