It’s a bit surreal when you consider the above fact alongside the likelihood that only a small percentage of Londoners will make it down to see the Rodchenko & Popova exhibition that is running at the Tate Modern until 17 May.

Rodchenko and Popova were some of the founding fathers of constructivism which was an artistic movement loosely based on the premise that art should feature in every strand of life, from political messages to film posters using avant garde methods for the time (early 20th century Russia). This bred an exciting period of Soviet art which merged the mundane of everyday life with abstract and thought-provoking output. Albeit the celebration of which is somewhat subdued by how events transpired afterwards (i.e. Stalin) and the fact that constructivist styles were often used to carry the message of Communism. The style remains influential today across many disciplines. Below is one of Rodchenko’s more famous works, which you recognise as it influenced Franz Ferdinand’s first album cover.

If you are too lazy to pop down and see it, at least check out this 8 minute documentary about Rodchenko and the Russian Avant Garde…

I Love Rubbish.com is a site we have shown the love to before and will continue to do so whilst they keep popping up with awesome photos, stories and gems of the web. In the future of the internet say version 29.0 or something, when websites can take other websites out for cocktails, dinner and a little download time, I Love Rubbish.com is first on our site’s list.

Courtesy of said site, here’s (apparently I have to add probably for legal reasons or lulz, I can’t remember which) Banksy’s latest works popping up in New Orleans. Whilst Banksy has gone through the cycle of cool and now firmly resides in the consciousness and on the coffee tables of the deeply average, you can’t knock the politically risky international stuff he pulls off. I think my favourite Banksy piece was the one he did in Gaza, which you can see here.

Anyway, no further delay, here it is. I’m not sure what I make of his new ‘Gas Off’ slogan, but it is a shame someone has ruined it with that kid playing the trumpet.

Anyway, the hours I spent traveling allowed me to dissect the weekend’s written media content and by Jeebus was there some Toss drizzled with waffle and a side portion of blah. Here’s a snippet of some of the clangers I spotted…

First up, I had to laugh at NME this week. Firstly because they seemingly did a ram-raiding job on our site i.e. drove their shitty little Ford Fiesta of a journalist into our palatial site and brain-raped us! As you will know, we did a review of the Pepys the other week and waxed lyrically about the Nu New Cross scene and low-and-pilferers-behold, NME run an identi-kit article this month.

Secondly, I spotted this comedy gold in the NME Ad section: “Drummer required for London-based punk rock band 18-25. Influences Kings of Leon, The Fratellis and Oasis“. I have only one thing to say to this…

The second publication that I trawled through was Private Eye…whilst the thought of Ian Hislop makes me judder and convulse in disgust, I have to admit that I chortle like a German at Oktoberfest with two wenches on his lap when I read Hislop’s 6th form-esque, finger-pointing and general sarky bastard of a magazine. This issue I particularly enjoyed this tracking of the Daily Mail’s top drawer and consistent reporting:

“Low-energy light bulbs can trigger epilepsy” – Daily Mail 25 June 2007

“Energy-saving light bulbs can cause migraines” – Daily Mail 2 Jan 2008

“Low-energy light bulbs ‘can damage your skin’” – Daily Mail 5 Jan 2008

“Free gifts for every reader – 2 free energy-saving light bulbs” – Daily Mail 19 Jan 2008.

Finally, I turn my attention to Dave Sexton of the Evening Standard (which for those who aren’t in the know, is the bulked out version of the London Lite). Anyway, Mr Sexton made a comment relating to the near record sale of a painting by Francis Bacon at Christies. I doubt Bacon will be losing too much sleep over it in his grave as he already holds the record with another of his paintings. He highlighted Bacon’s quote (apparently albeit this is not a quote that I can find anywhere on the internet), and I paraphrase, that ‘we come from nothing and we die as nothing’ and alluded that to sell a painting for £23.6m is hardly nothing.

Whilst I accept that Sexton’s comment is indirect praise for Bacon’s “violent” work, I think he’s missing the point. I think that if he understood Bacon’s wider thoughts on life and especially wealth, that Bacon would probably be disgusted with some uber-rich tosser buying his work to hang in private, away from the prying eyes of the public. Secondly, on a pedantic note, the fact that Bacon’s dead means that he can hardly dive into the sales proceeds like Scrooge McDuck can he Sexton?

There was an article about the Colony Room (one of Bacon’s favourite haunts) in Timeout the other week, but don’t read that…read this instead, it’s much better on the same topic (it also smells a bit like Timeout may have robbed that site I have linked to for their article!.

Whilst the literature of Tolstoy, Chekov, Bulgakov and Dostoyevsky remain my number 1 Russian cultutal export, Propaganda (albeit a concept not-originating in Russia) and particularly Propaganda posters are my second favourite. They give a great insight into the politics and issues of the time and the relationship between the ruling powers and the general population. Also I think they are aesthetically pleasing, with some really abstract and striking designs.

What’s interesting is that you can visually see the changes in political ideology since 1900 through to 1990s…they are like the lazy man’s Russian political history textbook! Hence why I like them.

It doesn’t stop there, now that you’ve found the Russian posters – why not check out the other side of the coin and the US and UK posters that have been knocking around over the last 100 years (Loose lips sink ships and all that). I’m yet to have it confirmed, but I have a suspicion that George Michael’s Careless Whisper was inspired by said UK political poster…

Also the Chinese, Italian and Spanish posters are all pretty fly as well…

ANYWAY – this website is pretty much for the win, it’s called a Soviet Poster a day (keeps the capitalists at bay?) and does exactly what it says on the tin.