Costume design for theatre Moscow 1916

Editor: This costume design for the Moscow theater, made in 1916 by Aleksandra Ekster using mixed media and collage, is striking. The figure seems suspended mid-motion, almost fragmented by the cubist-like forms and the color palette is quite unusual! What can you tell me about it? Curator: It’s a fantastic example of the Russian avant-garde embracing the energy of theater. The Russian avant-garde used design to project ideals. Consider the historical context: pre-revolution Russia was experiencing immense social upheaval, and artists like Ekster were actively engaged in envisioning a new visual language, a new form of collective culture. What do you make of its radical departure from traditional costume design? Editor: I see how the abstraction pushes it away from tradition. It feels almost like a rejection of the opulent, realistic designs typical of earlier theater productions. Was that the intent, to challenge established norms? Curator: Exactly! This wasn’t merely about aesthetics. By creating these deconstructed, geometric forms, Ekster challenged social hierarchy, using clothing design to convey radical ideals of dynamism and progress to large public audiences. What do you make of that strange looping form at the upper-right corner of the painting? Editor: It almost looks like a snake about to strike! It seems to suggest power, maybe even danger. Knowing what I do about the period and artistic avant-garde I think it has to be read as something that is deliberately antagonistic. Curator: It most certainly does. These kinds of pieces offer insights into cultural re-imaginings by contemporary Russian artists of stage costumes, and the extent to which these could contribute to larger socio-political discourses in revolutionary Russia. Editor: This really shifts my perspective. It is interesting how performance and social identity could work so closely together! I’ll certainly remember this. Curator: Precisely! And I'll keep an eye out to understand better the extent to which this influenced broader avant-garde fashion trends.