Aleksandr Rodchenko

Aleksandr Rodchenko was born in late 1891 in Russia, In 1905 his family moved to moved to kazan. At that time rodchenko made the decision to study art. He became an artist and designer of many mediums including painting, photography, sculpture, advertising and packaging. He was influenced by surroundings of the Russian revolution of 191, he is known as one of the prolific constructivist artists of the period. Aleksandr was also a member of the Productivists, which started the art into every day life, a concept that in many ways describes modern day graphic design.

In the beginning he focused on paintings before started his career as a graphic designer, later he would experiment with photography and photomontages. He also worked was for the Russian airline company Dobrolet, producing many various packages, advertisements, logos and posters. His design work for other clients ranged from book covers to bookmarks, photomontages and illustrations, and even set and costume design for different Russian theaters.

Rodchenko left painting behind, proclaiming it’s death in 1921 in the June issue of MoMA, and took up different types of art including photomontages, he exhibited three solid monochromatic canvases, one each, in hues of red, yellow and blue. He deemed that he had reduced painting to its logical conclusion and that there was no reason to continue exploring the medium. This opened his doors for the beginning of a new Utopian way of life, and way of approaching art. Rodchenko's work influenced so many other designers of the early 20th century. Rodchenko continued to do commissions for photography and advertising throughout the rest of his life. He was a part of over 50 art exhibitions before his death in 1956 in Moscow.

Reference

Beazley, M., Aynsley, J., eds., 2004. Pioneers of Modern Graphic Design: A Complete History. London: Octopus Publishing Group Ltd.