In the constellation of Soviet artists and poets, Varvara Stepanova does not occupy the main place, but is quite worthy. The debut of her route in art coincided with the revolution. At that stage, traditions in life collapsed and stereotypes in creativity broke.
early years
Within the Russian Empire, different peoples and religions coexisted peacefully. Contradictions and heated debates arose only among the creative intelligentsia. After 1917, avant-garde became a new trend in painting. Varvara Fedorovna Stepanova, a talented artist and poetess, came under the influence of new ideas and approaches. She had a classical education and practical skills in working with paints and canvas. At the same time, she could not resist the fascination with symbolism. Due to the fact that a purposeful master was next to her, Varvara was able to show her abilities to the full.
The future avant-garde was born on October 21, 1894 in a family of employees. Parents lived in the city of Kovno. My father worked in the mailing department. Mother was engaged in housework. From an early age, Barbara demonstrated her literary and drawing skills. Until the age of sixteen, she studied at a female gymnasium. In 1910, she was sent to relatives in Kazan. Here she comprehended the basics of fine art in an art school. Having received a specialized education, Stepanova moved to Moscow. She wanted to acquire the skills of a designer in the classroom at the famous Stroganov School of Industrial Art.
Creative activity
In 1916, Stepanova and her husband received a suitable room for use, in which they opened their workshop. At that time, Barbara was fond of writing pointless poems. Among the Symbolist poets, this was fashionable. Later, when the artist becomes wise and judicious, she will evaluate her hobbies as "frank rubbish." However, a useful component was present in this rubbish. Famous poets in a narrow circle turned to the artist for help - she was engaged in illustrating and designing books that were being prepared for publication.
The career of the abstract artist was successful, but ended by the beginning of the 20s. Stepanova moved from abstract and meaningless painting to "production" art. Barbara began to create models of clothes, abandoning the dictate of decorativeness. In her program article, which was published on the pages of the magazine Left Front of the Arts, she put convenience and functionality on clothing in the first place. During this period, Stepanova worked closely with the Moscow Printsensitive Factory. The artist created various colors for fabrics.
