Soviet leadership’s policy on the arts and culture

• Introduction

  It is not very accurate / To be unchanged would argue that the extent of government control over arts and culture would have to be consistent.
• Lenin/Bolsheviks

  -artistic expression became increasingly controlled by gov restrictions from 1917-1930s

  -At first, Lunacharsky wanted all working class to participate in art as it was important part of a fulfilling life- he set up the Proletkult following Oct Revolution

  -A cultural movement that nurtured artistic talent - by 1920 it ran 300 studios and published own magazine 'Gorn' -

  -Lenin suspicious of the Proletkult - Oct 1920 it lost its independence and became part of Commissariat of education

  - was a geniune transformation in culture because nature of artists work change from being free to being controlled
• Stalin

  -Stalin had more strong views on art - suspicious of the avant-garde and experimental techniques

  -Argued that soviet art should use traditional techniques therefore initiated socialist realism (realistic) - a radical shift from the Bolsheviks era

  -Such change can be reflected in novels that often followed a plot that people could follow easily i.e Gladkov's 1924 Novel Cement tells story of workers who played a major role in civil war.

  -Also set targets for number of paintings required to produce which focused on promoting or building socialism.

  -Artists were heavily restricted (gov controlled in almost all aspects of life) + demostrates the significant changes between bolsheviks...

  -However the terror led to a new 'creative atmosphere of enthusiasm' among artists.
• Khrushchev

  -Allowed more cultural freedom as arts and cultural expression less restricted

  -1957 the World Youth Festival held in Moscow - young people danced to jazz - cultural innovation

  -However expression went beyond limits K wanted to tolerate as he expressed that freedom could destablise regime

  -cultural policies went through periods of thaws and freezes (degrees of freedom of expression)

  -Boris Pasternaks novel 'Doctor Zhivago' that criticised K's leadership was banned

  -Thaws also did not allow all artists to publish their words - in a way restricted the ability to express

  -Change in government cultural policy as stalins totalitarian hold was largely abandoned and restrictions inconsistent.
• Brezhnev

  -Restriction further changed under Brezhnev as control over expression heightened - critical of K willingness towards expression

  -Approach to art expression became nostalgic = more culturally conservative

  -1966 The Sinyavsky-Daniel Trial found two authors guilty - trial revived stalinist methods showing some unchanged restrictions.

  -1968 Prague Spring led to further hardening of B attitude - sent army to suppress the liberal regime

  -But control not to same extent as Stalin - control fluctuated significantly.