Alexander Rodchenko

Alexander Rodchenko was born in St Petersburg in 1891. In 1905 his family moved to Kazan, and in 1910 he enrolled in art school, where he was to meet his future wife, Varvara Stepanova, in 1914. In 1915 he moved to Moscow, and exhibited his first designs the following year. In 1918 he joined Profsoiuz, the artists' union. From 1920 to 1930 he taught 'Constructionism' at the Vkhutemas. He also designed covers for the magazine LEF. In 1923 he worked with the poet Mayakovsky, and in 1924 he began to take photographs. In 1925 he designed the poster for Eisenstein's film The Battleship Potemkin, and in 1928 he bought himself a Leica. In 1933 he photographed the controversial construction of the White Sea Canal for the magazine USSR in Construction. He died in 1956.

Information from 'Bringing the Great Photographers into Focus' Photo Box, Thames & Hudson