Art and Propaganda: Experiments of the Russian Revolution

This one-day course will explore the relationship of art to politics and the methods of public persuasion before advertising was widely used and social media had been invented.

The course is available in four formats:

• Campus
• Clients office
• Online (virtual classroom) with live tutoring
• Bespoke (group or 1:1 coaching)

For additional course dates, please visit our Eventbrite.

100% of AIR income, beyond operational expense, is used towards education and research. Read more…

 

When Lenin came to power in October 1917, his party (the Bolshevik party) comprised of at best 350,000 people in a country of 140 million. Quickly the ruling party, the Bolshevik victory in Russia needed significantly greater support to assume the mantle of sovereign legitimacy – previously claimed by the provisional government and before that by the Tsars. One of Bolsheviks’ solutions was the use of the power of mass propaganda in order to establish:

• That the Revolution was a large-scale, mass event
• That the (proletarian) people had participated, and were participating in it.

In addition, they had to unite into the proletariat the still-religious and largely self-employed peasantry with the wage-dependent urban working population, and to overcome the problem of very significant illiteracy.

The above explains in part why Lenin’s Plan for Monumental Propaganda, street theatre performances and decorations as well as early Soviet films were considered to be so vital.

These will be used as case studies, and we will consider various forms of Socialist experiments in propagating the new ideology, and in some cases re-writing history.

In this course you will learn about:

• What happens when artists work on behalf of a political program?
• When does art become propaganda?
• Is art tainted, diminished, or elevated by its political content?
• Which artistic style is best suited for propaganda?
• Mind influences.

Is this course for me?

This course is suitable for students and members of general public interested in art, propaganda and persuasion, psychology, political studies, history, and sociology.

The course is directed by Dr. Natalia Murray, who is one of the world’s leading specialist in the history of Russian art. She is a visiting lecturer at the Courtauld Institute of Art and a Senior Curator. In 2017 she curated a major exhibition Revolution. Russian Art. 1917-1932 at the Royal Academy of Arts in London and is currently working on exhibition of Malevich and Kandinsky in Paris. Her books and articles extend across the wide field of 19-20 century Russian art, and she has featured in films dedicated to the Hermitage museum and the Russian revolution and in programmes for BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service. Natalia is also trustee of the Russian Avant-Garde Research Project - a UK-based charity which shares one of her aspirations to reduce the number of fakes on the Russian art market.

Her most recent book Art for the Workers. Proletarian Art and Festive Decorations of Petrograd. 1917-1920 was published by ‘Brill’ in May 2018.  In autumn 2018 the Russian translation of her 2012 book The Unsung Hero of the Russian Avant-Garde will come out; and The Life and Times of Nikolay Punin will be published by ‘Slovo’ in Moscow.

This course can be best complemented with the 1-day course: The Psychology of Decision Making.

Campus Courses - VAT-free: Our venues are in central London (Senate House) and in New Cross. You can select your preferred location by choosing the date available.

Virtual Classroom Courses - VAT-free: Live tutoring brings all the benefits of face to face training and, in addition, improves skills for ‘digital’ participation. There is an increasing need for online activities in all areas of life – making ‘digital’ participation an essential skill of the 21st century. 

Bespoke Courses:  If you are interested in a tailor-made Public Speaking course option: 1-1 coaching or bespoke group training, please contact us using the email or phone number provided below.

Fees

Please see booking page for fees.

Goldsmiths offers a 15% concession rate on short courses to Lewisham Local cardholders, Students and Goldsmiths Alumni.

Booking information

Please note our short courses sell out quickly, so early booking is advisable.

Location

All courses in 2020 will be delivered online.

 

Check the booking page for course locations in 2021. Three options:

• Online
• Goldsmiths' main campus, New Cross
• Goldsmiths' Senate House venue, Bloomsbury

Enquiries

Find out more about all of the AIR courses available to you.

For all enquiries, and to be regularly updated on upcoming AIR courses, please email: air (@gold.ac.uk). For anything urgent, or if emailing is not a good option for you, you can also call us via WhatsApp or phone on +44 (0)7908 566 949.

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Disability Support

We are committed to providing reasonable teaching adjustments for students with disabilities that may impact on their learning experience. If you require adjustments, please complete the relevant section on the booking form and also contact us at shortcourses@gold.ac.uk so we can respond to your requests as soon as possible. 

Refund policy: See AIR courses main page