“In Celebration of October Revolution: Natan Altman, New Realism, and the Mythic Space”

University of Illinois at Chicago. In/Between Annual Research Conference, University of Illinois at Chicago. Panel: Revolutions

Feb. 2021

This paper focuses on the relationship between the urban space and the avant-garde notion of New Realism in Natan Altman's decoration of the Petrograd Palace Square for the mass celebration of the first anniversary of the October Revolution in 1918. Theorized by Russian formalist Boris Arvatov, the notion of New Realism allows for a deeper appreciation of Altman’s designs. Situated at the moment of break and transition from old to new, Altman’s designs mobilize the architectural elements of the Palace Square and allude to abstract unity, creating a no-place both particular and universal, anchored in a specific temporality and claiming a triumphant eruption into a utopian infinity.

Natan Altman, Decoration of the Palace Square, general view design, 1918.