“Soviet Classical-inspired Style”: Classical Reminiscences in the Works of Leningrad Art Industry Factories

This article introduces, explains, and proposes further analysis of the term “Soviet classical-inspired style” (Rus. «советский антик») in relation to the works of the Leningrad art industry. This term refers to the use of techniques and images from classical works of decorative and applied art in the development of standard images for mass-produced consumer goods. The author points out that the structure of the arts and crafts industry underwent changes in the 1950s. Specifically, artels were transformed into factories, and production was standardised. Concurrently, processes associated with the industrial stage were evolving. These included the growth of cities and the urban population, as well as the emergence of a new lifestyle. Art industry enterprises had to solve new tasks of producing goods of sufficiently high quality while maintaining substantial quantities. At the beginning of the period in question, the main artistic language was the “Triumph style”. This style was based on a wide range of classical references, welcoming splendour and decorative complexity. These dominant features were successfully transferred to the industry, where new materials and demands for cheaper production already played a significant role. The contradiction between “classical style” and “technological innovation” gave rise to the phenomenon of “Soviet classical-inspired style”, represented by three main trends: thematic (reference to classical works of art to decorate consumer goods with their images), technological (the use of cheap materials instead of precious stones and metals), and a stylistic direction that synthesised the first two (copying the techniques and sometimes the overall structure of classical works of decorative and applied art of the eighteenth–nineteenth centuries in standard samples of products intended for mass production).