Kazimir Malevich and Olga Rozanova Igra v Adu by Velimir Khlebnikov and Aleksei Kruchenykh 1914

Identification
Title
Igra v Adu by Velimir Khlebnikov and Aleksei Kruchenykh
Production Date
1914
Object Number
2016.282
Credit Line
Collection Pérez Art Museum Miami, acquired from The Sackner Archive of Concrete and Visual Poetry, with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Gift of Ruth and Marvin A. Sackner
Copyright
Public Domain
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Physical Qualities
Medium
Softcover book with lithograph pages
Dimensions
7 1/8 x 5 1/4 x 1/2 inches
Visual Description
Igra v Adu by Velimir Khlebnikov and Aleksei Kruchenykh by artists Kazimir Malevich and Olga Rozanova is a softcover book with lithograph pages made in 1914. Lithography is a form of printing that involves using oil and water to transfer ink to a flat surface. The book measures about seven inches tall and five inches wide, with a half inch of depth. This size book could easily be held by an adult hand. It is light brown, or tan in color. If one could touch it, it would have a similar texture to brown paper grocery bags. The edges of the book cover are frayed, with small pieces torn and peeling back on the front cover, giving it a dated and worn look.  While this artwork is a lithograph, the letters and images look handwritten and hand drawn in black crayon or charcoal. Along the top of the book cover, are the first initials and last names of the two authors mentioned in the title, A. Kruchenykh and V. Khlebnikov. They are written in the Cyrillic alphabet, a writing system used primarily for Russian and other Slavic languages. The letters are uneven and wobbly, unlike traditionally printed letters and words. Beneath the two names, and taking up the majority of the cover, is a rectangle with a black outline. This rectangle frames a large abstracted human figure, posing as the books cover image. Along the bottom edge of the rectangle are two smaller figures. The dominant figure on the cover stands bare-chested, with their face turned to the right in profile. They have two banana-shaped hairs coming out the top of their head, crested backward. Their one visible eye looks off to the right, with a small curve under the eye indicating a cheek, while their mouth is slightly open. Their neck widens into a triangle that meet their shoulders, which are formed by a perfectly straight black line, angled slightly upward toward the right. The figures arms rest at its sides, and are further abstracted. They are colored-in totally in black, as opposed to an outline, and shaped like lightning bolts. Instead of a bend at the elbow, the upper arm is separated by the forearm by another sharp angled straight line, giving them a jagged, interrupted appearance. Around the figure’s abdomen is a large circle, with a small twig-like shape resembling a belly button at its center. The smaller figures are on either side of the larger, central figure, also looking to the right, their smaller heads also seen in profile. Their bodies are curved extensions of the central figure’s torso. The bottom quarter of the cover bears the remain part of the title, also written in cursive-like Cyrillic, Igra v Adu.
Kazimir Malevich and Olga Rozanova
Kazimir Malevich and Olga Rozanova — Kazimir Malevich (b. 1878, Kiev, Ukraine; d.1935, Saint Petersburg, Russia) and Olga Rozanova (b.1886, Melekin, Russia; d. 1918, Moscow)
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