From Architectural Fantasies to Set Designs (with a Lesson for Fashion Designers): Chernikhov Vs Aelita

Constructivist architect and graphic designer Yakov Georgievich Chernikhov was also the author of innovative texts about architectural design such as Principles of Modern Architecture (translated also as Fundamentals of Contemporary Architecture, Oсновы современной архитектуры, 1930) and Architectural Fantasies (1933). The latter, featuring very inspiring compositions in colour and in black and white, represented a compendium of the forms and principles behind the new architecture and was unanimously considered as the last avant-garde art book to be published in Russia during the Stalinist era.

In Principles of Modern Architecture (you can leaf through it here) Chernikhov reinterpreted principles such as space, harmony, statics, functionality, construction and composition. “Since 1919 I have been conducting experiments in the field of architectural problems”, he wrote. “My book (…) is a series of tests, experiments, and endeavors in which I attempted to find those forms and those paths that might help create a new image. By fundamentals of architecture one should understand the beginning or first-formation of architectural forms, architectural settings, and architectural principles. The fundamentals are built on the principles of asymmetry, rhythm of the masses, the harmony of components, the rhythm of proportions, the shock of the expressivity of participating elements.”

One of the abstract composition included in the book looks like a series of randomly assembled triangles creating an asymmetrical structure that extends vertically (in a way you can easily understand even by looking just at this image why Chernikhov was dubbed "the Soviet Piranesi"). It looks likes an amazing coincidence, but this drawing resembles a lot the constructivist telescope built by Gol, the Radiant Energy Tower Guardian, in Aelita and shows how even a fantastic inspiration can lead to the creation of something tangible and real.

Interested in futurist movements – including the suprematism of Malevich – Chernikhov stated in his Principles of Modern Architecture: "The architect should not limit the sphere of his work with narrow frames and servile imitations, but, where necessary, should overcome obstacles by means of his powerful fantasy and bravely move forward. Those who think that the architect’s activity should embrace only current realistic requirements are thinking incorrectly and falsely.”

Somehow, I think we could apply Chernikhov's words to other fields: fashion could definitely benefit from an injection of fantasy and bravery, after all, didn't we see too many designers bending to the logic of "servile imitations" in the last few seasons?

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