Dusty Work: The Metamorphoses of Dirt and Noisy The Prodigy

What secrets do Moscow mansions of the early 20th century hide, why did The Prodigy become so popular, and why did surrealist photographer Man Ray dress up his models in masks? The answers to these questions are in Martha's books. We have already introduced readers to a number of important novelties in our new section, where we publish fragments of upcoming publications. Here we will tell you about other releases that Izvestia also recommends not to miss.

Dust. The history of the modern world in a million specks of dust

Jay Owens

Could dust be the theme of the book? How do you write about such a seemingly insignificant, mundane and at the same time ephemeral phenomenon? The work of Jay Owens shows that it is, on the contrary, excellent material for... not even a study, but a free, detailed essay on how microscopic, shapeless particles turn out to be perhaps the most permanent, omnipresent element of our fickle lives. Like these particles themselves, seemingly chaotic, but forming something significant, sometimes frightening and dangerous, Owens' work, composed of a whirlwind of scattered curious facts, becomes a fictional portrait of entropy.

Some time ago, a genre emerged in English-language nonfiction literature that seemed to balance between the objectivity of a scientific and educational text and the subjectivity of a personal diary, memoirs, and artistic reflection. A prominent representative of this trend was Olivia Lang, whose books ("The Lonely City", "The Garden against Time. In search of paradise for all") We've told you more than once. So Jay Owens follows in her footsteps, stringing a wide range of information onto a first-person narrative about a journey from America to Central Asia.

Experiments for the future

Alexander Rodchenko

When talking about the Russian avant-garde and constructivism, Alexander Rodchenko's name is mentioned among the first. Every year, an exhibition dedicated to him opens, and Rodchenko's works are constantly featured in group exhibitions. Moreover, both his photographic heritage and his pictorial work are receiving attention.

This is largely due to the efforts of the heirs: famous art historians — the grandson of the genius Alexander Lavrentiev and the great—granddaughter Ekaterina Lavrentieva - purposefully explore and popularize the figure of their outstanding relative and his wife, the artist Varvara Stepanova. This fully applies to archival materials. In 2023, the Lavrentievs released letters, poetic experiments and Stepanova's notes (the publication was called "A Man cannot live without a Miracle"), now it's time for Rodchenko's diaries. The authors emphasize that the two books should be perceived as a dilogy.

Yes, Experiments for the Future has already been published before (as early as 1996), but the new publication has been significantly expanded, supplemented with scientific equipment and reproductions. Interestingly, Rodchenko's notes, made for himself, are juxtaposed here with letters and even manifestos. But all this together forms the image of an extraordinary personality who changed the history of art — and unwittingly reflected the history of the state: from the pre-revolutionary years through the violent enthusiasm of the 1920s, the fears of the 1930s, right up to the military and post-war hardships.

Behind the front doors. Moscow mansions in photos and stories

Elena Krizhevskaya

Which architecture is Moscow primarily associated with? The Kremlin? Cathedrals? Stalin's skyscrapers? Perhaps. But there are also a number of buildings of a different plan — created not by the state, but by private forces: merchants, industrialists, and high-ranking officials. These are mansions of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the era of Russian Art Nouveau. Many people have heard about the houses of Ryabushinsky, Morozov, Berg (although, of course, not everyone has been inside), but a number of other equally remarkable buildings remain out of sight of the general public. The book by Elena Krizhevskaya, a blogger and expert on the architecture of the capital, tells about all of them.

The genre of this publication is quite difficult to determine. Before us is a book-journey, a book-immersion. And this is an opportunity not only to learn more about the history of the buildings we regularly pass by, but also to look inside. It's also a "time machine" that takes us back to old Moscow and introduces us to its elite. A book about houses turns into a book about people: the details of the interior and the plans of the designers interest the author no less than the fate of the tenants. Although nothing prevents it from being perceived simply as a tourist's guide and a beautifully illustrated guide that allows you to admire even those views that are difficult to access (for example, many of the described mansions are now used as embassies of foreign countries).

The Prodigy. We live by the rhythm. The band's first-hand history

Martin James

Martin James, the author of the book, admits that he met Liam Howlett, the leader of The Prodigy, at a rave when the band was still not there at all. And then I watched their gradual rise to the very top of show business, hanging out and having the opportunity to learn everything first-hand. As a result, the narration turned out to match the music itself: noisy, reckless, and sometimes hooligan. And this is a story not so much about superstars as about rebellious boys who are still on their way to world fame. More than half of the book is devoted to the events before the release of The Fat of the Land album, the band's main achievement. And it all ends in 2004, when Howlett, almost alone, without comrades, releases Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned. The entire subsequent story— including the tragic death of Keith Flint — remains behind the scenes.

The original English-language title reads: Part One (part one). And the translated edition, of course, desperately lacks the second volume. But maybe we'll wait for him one day. Anyway, this is a great gift for The Prodigy fans. It is recommended to read under Firestarter!

Female images in Man Ray's surreal photographs

Svetlana Sadygova

Cultural critic and collector Svetlana Sadygova has been collecting works of photographic art for a long time, hunting for copyrighted or authorized prints. She demonstrated a small part of her treasures in the new exhibition "Private Choice. Man Ray, Kertesz, Blumenfeld" at the Lumiere Gallery, and just before the start of the exhibition, she released a monograph album about perhaps the most famous hero.: This is the surrealist Man Ray.

The most valuable thing in this edition is the balance between text and illustrative material. You can verify the validity of the author's conclusions without going online, but immediately by looking at large reproductions. And vice versa: contemplation of black-and-white masterpieces should be complemented by reading explanations about the artist's method.

This is not to say that this is an exhaustive study — the book does not pretend to be one. Rather, it is intended to be the first step towards a meaningful acquaintance with the work of Man Ray— a contemporary of Salvador Dali and Andre Breton, who managed to translate the ideas of surrealism into the language of photography. But it is important that its author is not just a scientist, but a person who comes into direct contact with artifacts and, therefore, is immersed in the history of the issue as deeply as possible.