Memory of the World; 2012 - unesdoc - Unesco

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Russian posters of the end
of the 19th and early
20th centuries
Inscribed 1997
What is it
A collection of Russian posters from the second half
of the 19th and the early 20th centuries.
Why was it inscribed
The largest single collection of Russian posters in the
world, these are considered of central importance in the
study of Russian art, culture and history of the period.
Where is it
Russian State Library, Moscow, Russia
The collection of posters in the Russian State Library is
part of the library’s graphic collection and is a central
resource for the study of Russian art, culture and history.
The collection was begun in the mid 19th century when
Count N.P. Rumyantsev, the Russian chancellor, gifted
his collection of books, manuscripts and other materials
to the state; this compendium formed the basis of the
Russian State Library. In subsequent years, the library
also acquired posters by legal deposit, by purchase and
by bequest.
The later 19th century was a period of growth in poster
art across Europe as a whole, thanks to developments in
chromolithography and colour printing. The poster was an
art form in Russia since that time, so the library’s collection
covers the genre from its beginnings.
412 Russian posters of the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries
With their origins in placards and shop signs, posters
were used in Russia as a way of advertising business,
services and announcements. However, during the first
Russian revolution in 1905, posters and other graphic
art forms became campaigning vehicles, expressing
the immediacy of contemporary political ideas.
The First World War brought a new subject matter in
1914, with advertisements for the sale of war bonds. But
the February Revolution of 1917 was a catalyst for an
explosion of artistic output and the work of the poster
artists, with their ability quickly to capture and display
fast-moving ideas and events, became a main means of
expressing the central political, social and artistic questions
of the day.
Political campaigning with posters was seized on by
the new Bolshevik revolutionary government which was
fighting a civil war that lasted for three years. The Russian
Telegraph Agency (Rosta) was the government’s news
agency from 1918 to 1935. Between 1919 and 1921, Rosta’s
own poster department began producing posters known as
‘Rosta Windows’, initially for display in the shop windows
of Moscow, although they later spread to other centres.
These provided a government slant on current affairs and
demonized and satirized the Bolsheviks’ opponents. The
Rosta Windows drew on the popular Russian graphic art
form of the lubok, with powerful coloured illustrations
overshadowing the text.
The period after the civil war once more brought a
change in poster material as the government recognized
its value as a vehicle for communication and propaganda.
� Russian posters from the late 19th and early
20th centuries. � �