Crisis of Ugliness: From Cubism to Pop-Art

Mikhail Lifshitz (1905–1983) studied and later taught at the avant-garde art school VKhUTEMAS, where he formulated a Leninist critique of modernism beginning in the mid-1920s. In 1927, he became the first author to write about Marx’s own aesthetic views. His book on the subject (published in Moscow by Gosizdat Khud. Lit. in 1933) first appeared in English as The Philosophy of Art of Karl Marx in 1938 (New York: Critic’s Group) and is still considered a pioneering work in its field.David Riff (1975) is a writer, artist and curator. He was a member of the work group Chto delat and co-editor of the newspaper of the same name from 2003 to 2008. Riff has curated international exhibitions and event programs and has published extensively on contemporary art. He currently lives in Berlin and works as a freelance curator.

• List of IllustrationsIntroduction. Mikhail Lifshitz: A Communist ContemporaryDavid RiffForeword1 Myth and Reality: The Legend of Cubism‘Scandal in Art’Two Appraisals of CubismG.V. Plekhanov and CubismThe Terms ‘Reactionary’ and ‘Bourgeois’The Revolt against ThingsFusion with Objects as an IdealThe Evolution of CubismPainting in the Other World2 The Phenomenology of the Soup Can: The Quirks of TasteThe Economy of PaintingReflection’s MalaiseConclusion3 Why am I Not a Modernist?ReferencesIndexIllustration Section