6. Sportsmen 1923

Curator: El Lissitzky's piece, simply titled "6. Sportsmen," presents a fascinating, almost diagrammatic take on athleticism. Editor: There's a starkness to it, a sense of movement frozen mid-action. Those black circles really command attention against the minimalist background. Curator: Lissitzky, deeply involved in the Russian avant-garde, often used geometric abstraction to convey complex social ideas. The "sportsmen" here could represent the idealized Soviet citizen, embodying strength and collectivism. Editor: The shapes are intriguing. The red stripes evoke a uniform, but the faceless forms... they remind me of ritualistic figures, powerful archetypes stripped down to essential symbols. Curator: Precisely! The artist aims to build a new visual language, one where shapes and colors communicate beyond the literal. Editor: It's a bold statement, a vision of human potential distilled into pure, almost alien forms. Definitely makes you rethink how we define "sports." Curator: Indeed, art as a tool for reimagining society—that's what Lissitzky was after. Editor: Well, it certainly sticks in the mind, doesn’t it? A lasting visual echo.