The Tom and Jeri Ferris Russian Collection
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Our Road to Communism was inspired by Pieter Bruegel’s The Tower of Babel (c. 1563) in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. Here it takes the form of a crumbling Tower of Socialism. Each level is marked with a significant date in Soviet history. The year 1917 references the October Revolution; 1937 notes the height of Stalin’s repressive Great Purge; 1953 marks Stalin’s death; 1975 alludes to the Helsinki accords, which would improve the relationship between the Communist Bloc and the West; and 1991 indicates the year in which the Soviet Union collapsed. On ground level, people carrying red flags are entering the tower; at the second level, with the year 1937, the red flags turn into blood dripping from the tower. The ship in the lake is the Aurora, which fired the first shot of the October Revolution in 1917.
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The poster depicts a partially completed structure of a large metal dove with a rocket launcher for a beak, and military tanks and guns crowded around its bottom. All around the lower half of the dove’s body are red banners bearing slogans such as “Glory to work, Our work is for you, the Party” and “Our work — the cause of peace.” The image of a dove, the international symbol of peace, is here made up of gray metal pieces rather than the usual white feathers.The year the painting was made brought change and political turmoil as the Soviet Union fell apart.
Alexei Rezaev, Our Road to Communism, 1990
Alexander Lozenko, Dove, 1991
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The massive steel ship set in a smoke-filled sky symbolizes the state. The ship came ashore a long time ago, but its captains believe that they are still sailing to a delightful future. The ship is crumbling and falling apart. Houses and factories are visible in the background because the ship’s lowermost deck has been completely removed, exposing its structural beams. Party slogans reference the unity between the Party and the people. The ship’s anchor, which no longer serves a purpose, has the shape of a hammer and sickle. Alexander Lozenko, Ship, 1991
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