Untitled 1944

This piece, by the collective Kukryniksy, I reckon was made sometime between 1924 and 1957 with paint on something. The way the painting is kind of flat and graphic makes me think about the power of clear, bold gestures. The sword dividing the image? That’s not just paint; it's a statement. Notice how the red in the background matches the star on the hilt of the sword, creating a visual echo. It's a way of connecting the political message directly to the act of painting. And those broken chains. They don’t just represent freedom, they represent the act of breaking free – that energy, that struggle. This piece reminds me of Philip Guston's later work, that embrace of the cartoonish and direct as a way to talk about serious stuff. Ultimately, art is about communication, and this painting screams. It doesn't whisper.