The Theory and Practice of the Russian Avant-Garde: Kazimir Malevich and His School

Kazimir Malevich, one of the greatest masters of the 20th century, an artist, the creator of the movement of Suprematism and the programmatic work – "Black Square," a thinker and author of theoretical works constructing the utopia of "the world as non-objectivity." The creativity and philosophical concept of Malevich are examined in the context of the artistic life contemporary to him: sources and impulses, parallels, intersections, and rivalries with the relevant art movements of that time. The Suprematism he invented needed further development and transformation into a universal artistic system, and for that, a circle of followers was essential. "I need to grow you so that the oak and oaks can be spread not by words, but by seeds. And the seeds must be spread all over the world," he said to his trainees during classes. The formation of the Suprematist school, the creation of the group "Unovis," and the attempts of its members to find their own path in art – all these became an integral part not only of the creative fates of Malevich and his students but also of the history of the Russian avant-garde.
The book presents a collection of selected articles written and published over the past 20 years by the leading researcher of the Russian avant-garde, candidate of art studies, and chief researcher at the Tretyakov Gallery, Tatyana Goryacheva.