Gruppirovki sovetskoi arkhitektury [Soviet architectural organisations] by Mikhailov, A[leksei]

Moscow-Leningrad: OGIZ-IZOGIZ, 1932. Octavo (21 × 15 cm). Original illustrated wrappers; 133, [2] pp. Eleven photo-illustrations. Light discoloration to wrapper edges and chipping to spine; internally very good. Published at a critical moment in Soviet architecture, shortly after the project for the "Socialist reconstruction of Moscow" was announced by the Central Committee in 1931, this book by architectural critic Aleksei Mikhailov (born 1904) intends to set the tone for this reconstruction. Voicing the newest party line, the author presents Formalism and Constructivism as bourgeois, an argument that would eventually lead to the rise of Stalinist Neoclassicism as the architectural standard. "Materialist" Constructivism, Formalism, which claims to be "anti-bourgeois", and Eclecticism, which poses as "loyal to the Soviets", are presented by Mikhailov as the stylistic enemies of the truly proletarian architecture. Mikhailov was a member of the All-Union Organization of Soviet Architects (VOPRA; 1929-1932), which was ideologically close to Proletkult. Like other VOPRA affiliates, Mikhailov argues for the creation of a new proletarian architecture based on standardization, mechanization, and the newest technological developments - architecture that is "proletarian in form and content." The text also critiques other contemporary architectural organizations such as ASNOVA, an avant-garde architectural association with ties to INKhUK, and OCA, an association of Constructivist architects connected to VKhUTEMAS. The construction of the famous Palace of the Soviets (an administrative center of the Soviet Union that was to be the tallest building in the world) also commenced in 1932, and Mikhailov closes this book by discussing the conceptual incompatibility of other architectural schools and associations with this ideologically charged building project. Ironic for its anti-constructivist tone, the text is presented in attractive constructivist-inspired wrappers by an unknown artist. <br/><br/>As of December 2019, KVK and OCLC show eight copies in North America.