Patriotic propaganda postcard with verse by Vladimir Mayakovsky

The Patriotic propaganda postcard with verse by Vladimir Mayakovsky, created by Kazimir Malevich in 1914, is a significant early example of the artist's engagement with political and popular culture during a pivotal historical period. Executed as a lithograph, this piece falls under the classification of an Illustrated Book, suggesting it was part of a serial publication or portfolio intended for wide, mass distribution. The year 1914 marks the immediate outbreak of the First World War, an event that temporarily diverted many figures in the Russian avant-garde toward nationalist themes.

The work functions explicitly as wartime propaganda, utilizing powerful, simplified graphic design characteristic of the folk lubok style, coupled with accompanying verse supplied by the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky. This collaboration demonstrates how leading figures of the Russian Futurist movement lent their considerable talents to the war effort, producing accessible and immediate visual media. Malevich’s adoption of a simplified, almost intentionally crude aesthetic ensures the patriotic message is direct, easily reproducible, and rapidly digestible by a broad audience unfamiliar with sophisticated modernist techniques.

As a lithographic postcard, the object was designed for quick circulation, leveraging the format of inexpensive prints to proliferate nationalist sentiment during the initial fervor of the conflict. This temporary strategic pivot by Malevich toward commercial and political illustration offers valuable insight into his evolving relationship with mass production and accessible art, predating his definitive shift toward Suprematism. This crucial historical document resides within the collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), preserving a convergence point between the Russian artistic avant-garde and popular political media of 1914. Although the original is held securely by the museum, reproductions of such historical prints are often made available through public domain initiatives, ensuring continued access to this era of production.