Windows of ROSTA, more precisely - “Windows of Satire ROSTA” - posters created in 1919-1921 by Soviet artists and poets working in the system of the Russian Telegraph Agency (ROSTA). “Windows of ROSTA” is an original type of mass propaganda art that arose during the Civil War and military intervention of 1918-20.
Sharp, intelligible satirical posters with short, easy-to-remember poetic texts exposed the enemies of the young Soviet Republic, covered topical events, and illustrated telegrams transmitted by the agency to newspapers. The posters, with the exception of the first ones, drawn by hand, were made and reproduced using a stencil up to 150 or more copies, then exhibited in shop windows in Moscow and other cities. In “Windows of ROSTA” the traditions of lubok and rayoshnik, etc. were widely used. The drawings “Windows of GROWTH” (in series of up to 12 on one sheet) were distinguished by their emphasized simplicity and laconicism of visual means (expressive silhouettes, coloring in 2-3 colors).
The first “Windows of GROWTH” was performed in October 1919 by M.M. Cheremnykh. Then he was joined by V.V. Mayakovsky, who created bright, accurate drawings and signatures, as well as I.A. Malyutin, D.S. Moor and others. Similar “windows” were also produced in Petrograd (L.G. Brodaty, V. V. Lebedev, A. A. Radakov and others), in Ukraine (B. E. Efimov and others), in Baku, Saratov and other cities.
“ROSTA Windows” played a significant role in the development of Soviet fine art.
Young Vladimir Mayakovsky came to poetry under the banner of the futurists. The futurists entered poetry noisily, with calculated scandalousness. They shocked the reader and listener with the maximalism of their literary manifestos, the unusual names of their program collections (“A Slap in the Face of Public Taste,” “Took,” etc.) and “yellow veil jackets,” and painted faces, and the deliberate scandalousness of public appearances.
Vladimir Mayakovsky, like his other bandmates, also shocked the audience with his yellow jacket, pop sarcasm, and catchy poetry.
Like his other groupmates, Mayakovsky of those years had a heightened sense of personality, which dictated to him both the tragedy “Vladimir Mayakovsky” and such lyrical poems as “The author dedicates these lines to himself, his beloved.” In his poems the author’s “I” was highlighted and emphasized:
Under the influence of the events of the revolutionary years, the tonality of Mayakovsky's poems changed. There was an urgent need to speak to yesterday’s “languageless street” in a new, but certainly understandable, language. Without losing the poetic achievements of the pre-revolutionary years, Mayakovsky persistently searches for new forms, new genres, new themes in revolutionary reality. For him, working on ROSTA propaganda posters becomes not only his form of participation in the revolutionary struggle, but also a laboratory in which he, in his own words, freed verse “from poetic husk on topics that do not allow verbosity.”
As a tireless “laborer of the revolution,” Mayakovsky widely expanded the boundaries of his poetic possibilities, moving towards the simplicity of his verse, his poetic image. Like no other poet of his contemporaries, he felt the pulse of his time, the energy of striving for the future:
My verse, through the labor of many years, will break through and appear weightily, roughly, visibly, just as in our days a water pipeline entered, built by the slaves of Rome.
Many who are superficially familiar with Mayakovsky’s poems are scared away from them by the unusual “ladder” of construction, the heightened, sometimes hyperbolic imagery, and the predominance of oratorical, tribune intonation. However, as you read more of it, you begin to understand such a feature of the verse as the organic fusion of the trumpet bass of the poet-tribune with the confidence of the “quiet” intonations of the lyricist.
The majestic result of the life of Vladimir Mayakovsky, which was tragically cut short at its high end, is a derivative of the poet’s long and complex path, his life and literary biography, his discoveries, his tireless innovative search, the eternal “ride into the unknown,” and the constant feeling of being a “factory, producing happiness."
“WINDOWS OF GROWTH” - daily propaganda posters created in 1919-1921 by Soviet artists and these, ra-bo-tav-shi-mi in the system of the Russian telegraph agent (ROSTA; now not ITAR-TASS).
Pla-ka-you, made by hand, with the help of tra-fa-re-tov (up to 200-300 copies), were displayed in the display cases of ma -ga-zi-new, located in crowded places (hence their name “window”), and turned into their own -different summer-writing of the period of the Civil War of 1917-1922 and inter-ven-tion, when “because of the ti-graph- In such a time-ru-hi we didn’t have any-graphics, paints, boo-ma-gi, specialists in the graphic-de-la and etc.” (P.M. Ker-zhen-tsev). The first “Windows of Growth” appeared in Moscow in 1919, at the initiative of M.M. Che-rem-nykh and zhur-na-li-sta N.K. Iva-no-va-Gra-mena, working in ROSTA, headed by Ker-zhen-tse-vym. Soon V.V. joined them. Mayakovsky, I.A. Ma-lu-tin, D.S. Mo-or. Once upon a time, the “Windows of Growth” appeared in the form of enlarged pages of the sa-ty-ric journal, consisting of several - many self-sufficient productions of different genres. Mayakovsky played a significant role in the creation of posters, taking upon himself the entire literary part and working in the same way as art dozh-nick; he created a new type of “windows of sa-ti-ry”, under-chi-nya ko-zi-tion of one topic and specific propaganda for-yes. The text and ri-sun-ki do-half-nya-li each other. Pla-ka-there, consisting of, as it were, 2-4-6, etc. personnel, was inherent in the “telegraph style” with its clarity, compression, la-ko-low-mom expressive means, based mainly on the vy-ra-zi-tel-no-sti of si-lu-etov and catchy colors in 2-3 colors, using sim-vo-li-ki, traditions of Russian popular print and innovative methods -dov of the Russian avan-gar-dis-ma. Pla-ka-you scattered to all local GROWTH departments. In Petrograd "Windows of Growth" de la V.V. Le-be-dev, L.G. Bro-yes, A.A. Ra-da-kov, V.I. Koz-lin-sky, in Ko-st-ro-me - N.N. Ku-preya-nov, in Sa-ma-re - S.Ya. Ad-li-van-kin, in Kursk - A.A. Come on, in Odessa - B.E. Efi-mov; “Windows of Growth” you did the same in Baku, Sa-ra-to-ve and other cities. In the words of Mayakov, it was “serving a handful of hu-doj-niks, manually, a hundred and five -ti-nice-is-he-but-go-ro-di-sha.” Pla-ka-you should-have-inspired people with the ideas of re-in-lu-tions, to show-call the pictures of the light-lo-bu -duh-sche-go (“Long live the electricity-tri-fi-ka-tsiya!”, “Pa-ha-li so-hoy - for-plow the truck-to-rum”) , fight for the world's revolution and the inter-tional solidarity of the workers, glue the lies -ga (“Here are the enemies of Soviet Russia. Fight with every smoke until you die”), proclaim dik-ta- tu-ru pro-le-ta-ria-ta. The most evil-of-the-day issues of the times are under-mind: the fight against hunger (“So that with hunger deal with the raz-ru-hoy-du-roy, introduce-de-on the Sov-nar-ko-mom premium on-tu-roy"), dis-pro-str-ne-nie all -general literacy and new social culture, equality between men and women (“What is -la-la work-no-tsa and what work-no-tse should be done"), restoration of the national economy. The traditions of the “Windows of Growth” during the years of the Great Patriotic War continued to exist “Windows on TASS”.
4.Russian telegraph agency in the 1920s. Mayakovsky's activities in ROSTA Windows
Russian Telegraph Agency (ROSTA) - the central information organ of the Soviet state (RSFSR, since 1924 USSR) in 1918-1925.
ROSTA's responsibilities included collecting and distributing political, economic, cultural and other information in the country and abroad. ROSTA had branches, agents and correspondents throughout the country and abroad; entered into agreements with government and companies. organizations and individuals. The work of ROSTA was led by a council appointed by the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. In addition to disseminating information via telegraph channels, ROSTA in 1918-20 printed its own publications: the newspaper “AgitROSTA”, the magazines “Red Star” and “Red Journalist”, which were published once or twice a week, as well as large-circulation wall newspapers.
Another area of ROSTA’s activities was visual propaganda, which was mainly carried out through the distribution of satirical posters, the so-called “ROSTA Windows”). They were posted at train stations, squares, in shop windows, in institutions, etc., and they were also supplied to propaganda trains and ships. One of the authors of both the poems and drawings of the ROSTA Windows was V.V. Mayakovsky. On December 12, 1920 it was subordinated to Glavpolitprosvet.
After the creation of the Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union (TASS) in 1925, ROSTA functioned as a news agency of the RSFSR. In March 1935 it was liquidated and its functions were transferred to TASS.
Windows of ROSTA, more precisely - “Windows of Satire ROSTA” - posters created in 1919-1921 by Soviet artists and poets working in the system of the Russian Telegraph Agency (ROSTA). “Windows of GROWTH” is a distinctive type of propaganda-mass art that arose during the Civil War and military intervention of 1918-20. Satirical posters, made in a sharp and accessible manner, equipped with laconic poetic texts, exposed the opponents of the young Soviet republic. “ROSTA Windows” were dedicated to topical events and were illustrations for telegrams transmitted by the agency to newspapers.
In his work “Terrible Laughter,” Mayakovsky wrote about them this way: “This is a protocol recording of the largest three years of revolutionary struggle, conveyed by spots of paint and the ringing of slogans. These are telegraph messages, instantly transferred to a poster, these are decrees, immediately published on ditties, this is a new form, derived directly from life, these are the posters that the Red Army soldiers looked at before the battle, going on the attack, going not with prayer, but with the chanting of ditties.” .
With the exception of the first, hand-drawn posters, the posters were produced and reproduced using stencils to 150 or more copies, and then displayed in shop windows in the capital and other cities - usually in empty grocery stores.
The first “Windows of GROWTH” was performed in October 1919 by M.M. Cheremnykh. Then he was joined by V.V. Mayakovsky, who created bright, accurate drawings and signatures. Similar “windows” were also produced in Petrograd, Ukraine, Baku, Saratov and other cities. The themes of the posters were the fight against Wrangel and typhus lice, starving people, etc.
“Their specificity was their immediate response to the most pressing issues and facts. The texts of “Windows of ROSTA” were distinguished by the simplicity and accuracy of their characteristics, coming from the traditions of folk popular prints and ditties. Mayakovsky’s talent as a publicist found its clear expression in these texts. ROSTA posters, as a rule, have multiple subjects. They developed and typified a certain spirit of characters moving from poster to poster: worker, Red Army soldier, peasant, capitalist, priest, kulak.”
Young Vladimir Mayakovsky came to poetry under the banner of the futurists. The futurists entered poetry noisily, with calculated scandalousness. Mayakovsky persistently searches for new forms, new genres, new themes in revolutionary reality. For him, working on ROSTA propaganda posters becomes not only his form of participation in the revolutionary struggle, but also a laboratory in which he, in his own words, freed poetry “from poetic husk on topics not
permitting verbosity."
Example: If at the call of the party week
millions will come from factories and arable lands -
the worker will quickly prove in practice,
that no one is afraid of communists.
Rosta No. 5
“Windows” were first conceived as enlarged pages of a satirical magazine, hung in the windows of empty shops. It was Mayakovsky who gradually developed the type of propaganda-oriented “Window”, where all the drawings are subordinated to one theme, consistently revealed in the poetic text.
The exact number of “Windows” created by the poet is not taken into account - the work of ROSTA text writers and artists was anonymous. In total, about 1,500 posters were produced (from October 1919 to February 1922). It is believed that Mayakovsky wrote about 80% of the tests and drew about 400 posters.
Together with Mayakovsky, the following people worked on “Windows”: Mikhail Cheremnykh, Ivan Malyutin, Amshey Nyurenberg, Kazimir Malevich, Aristarkh Lentulov, Ilya Mashkov, Kukryniksy and others.
“My work at ROSTA began like this: I saw the first two-meter poster posted on the corner of Kuznetsky and Petrovka, where Mosselprom is now. Immediately I turned to the head of ROSTOY, comrade. Kerzhentsev, who brought me together with M. M. Cheremnykh, one of the best workers in this business.
At first, Comrade worked on the text. Gramen, then almost all the topics and texts are mine; O. Brik, R. Wright, Volpin also worked on the text...
I remember - there were no rest. We worked in a huge, unheated, freezing cold (later a potbelly stove that eats away the eyes with smoke) ROSTA workshop.
When he came home, he would draw again, and in case of special urgency, he would put a log of wood under his head instead of a pillow when going to bed, with the expectation that you wouldn’t get much sleep on the log and, having slept exactly as much as you needed, you would jump up to work again...
Machine speed was required of us: sometimes, telegraph news of a front-line victory would already be hanging along the street like a colorful poster in 40 minutes to an hour.
“Colorful” is said too chicly, there were almost no colors, they took any, stirring it a little with saliva. This pace, this speed was required by the nature of the work, and the number of new fighters depended on this speed of posting news of danger or victory...
Outside of telegraph, machine-gun speed, this work could not have happened. But we did it not only with the full strength and seriousness of our skills, but also revolutionized taste, raised the qualifications of poster art, the art of propaganda.”
V.V. Mayakovsky