While looking at the late Soviet and post Soviet art, I was particularly struck by the New Wave art and how the broad exploration of new aesthetic techniques demonstrates free will and individualism in this new era. Unlike much of the art we have previously studied, the identity of the subjects and images in the art were not overtly clear. While visually nonsensical, these pieces all convey a clear message of nonconformity and the transition into a modern era. Andrei Bartenev’s work is a great example of this theme, his absurd and avant-garde pieces expand into new realms of expression through his whimsical color palettes and nonsensical imagery. In his The Flower of the Snow Queen (ballet) Bartenev used food packaging as a form of fashion. This piece and the avant-garde movement make a bold statement of nonconformity and carves a new definition for fashion and even the concept of beauty itself. Self-Portrait in the Wedding Attire of the Bird of Paradise was aesthetically very different from The Flower of the Snow Queen, yet both pieces are whimsical and combine disparate inanimate objects to create figures of living beings. The subjects of these artwork and even the artwork themselves do not objectively fit into any rigid category of art or fashion. The art makes an assertive statement that in the absence of ability to create their own styles and paths for creativity and beauty.
These artwork create a new space for self definition and expand the limits of conventional beauty and acceptable forms of self expression.
I kind of saw these pieces as a continuation of the avant-garde movement that was popular in the beginning of the Soviet Union in the sense that artists combined shapes and colors into a seemingly disorganized piece with a sense of purpose and significance. It’s sort of a return to form for artists who had their creativity limited for a long time under the Soviet Union, and that return to form seems so drastic because of the decidedly dull and state-serving nature of the art we had seen last.
I agree with Gabe’s comment that these works of art represent a shift back to a time where strict uniformity and conformity were not required. The ability to express oneself again, I think, results in the “nonsensical” art that you describe. These pieces of art are a great example of how the government influences art and how drastically the art itself changes once the artists are free.
This discussion is very thoughtful and perceptive, and I agree with everything you all are saying!