1. UNIT 8 (2nd part)- 4º Bil
-The Russian Revolutions
-Spain
-Art and Avant-garde

2. 5- Russia: from absolutism to revolution
-Russian History was determined by its condition of isolated
and backward Empire regarding others European
countries.
-It continued to be an absolute monarchy despite the liberal
revolutions in the 19th century in Europe.

3. 5.1. The Tsarist empire
-Russia was an absolute monarchy ruled by a tsar.
-There were no civil rights.
-Economy was semi-feudal, and capitalism could not develop
due to the lack of middle classes.

4. Tsar Nicholas II
-Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until his abdication
on 2 March 1917. His reign saw Imperial Russia
go from being one of the foremost great powers of the world
to economic and military collapse.
-At the beginning of the 20th century the Russian empire
began to experience serious problems.
-In 1898, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party was
formed, and it began to prepared the establishment of a
Socialist State based on Marxism.

5. The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
-In 1903 the party divided into two separated factions:
.The Mensheviks (moderates), led by Martov.
.The Bolsheviks, led by Lenin, who argued for an
immediate revolution (communists).

6. Revolution of 1905
-In 1905 Russia lost a war against Japan, and consequently
they suffered an important economic and social crisis.
-After that, there were protests against the tsar's absolutist
regime, but they were suppressed by the government.
-A revolutionary council (soviet) was formed in response, and
protests and strikes continued.

7. First World War
-From 1914 to 1917 Russia
participated in the WWI with the
Allied Powers.
-It was a national disaster and led
to more protests and discontent
against the tsar regime.
-It was another cause for the end of
the Tsarist empire and the
beginning of the Revolution of
1917.

8. 5.2. The revolutions of February and
October 1917
-In february 1917 a bigger revolution made abdicate Nicholas
II and restored the Duma (Parliament).
-A provisional government was established then, leaded by
Kerenski (menshevik).
-Bolsheviks began the opposition to the provisional
government creating an alternative government based on
the soviets and leaded by Lenin and Trotski.
-In October 1917 the Bolsheviks took the power in another
revolution, and Lenin became the new leader of Russia.

9. Lenin
-He soon decided to sign the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (March
1918) with the German Empire to withdraw from the
unpopular WWI. They had to pay reparations to Germany.
-At the same time a civil war broke out in Russia between
the Whites (counter-revolutionaries) and the Red Army
(Bolsheviks).
-The Lenin Red Army won the war and established the Union
of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1922.
-He approved a constitution based on Communism.
-The ideas of Marxism were put on practice.

10. Treaty of
Brest-Litovsk
Peace treaty signed on March
1918, at Brest-Litovsk, between
Russia and the Central Powers
marking Russia's exit from
World War I.
While the treaty was practically
obsolete before the end of the
year, it did provide some relief
to the Bolsheviks, who were
tied up in fighting the Russian
Civil War, and it affirmed the
independence of Finland,
Estonia, Latvia, Belarus,
Ukraine, and Lithuania.

11. The Communist Party of
the Soviet Union
It was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet
Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the
world.
The Party established the Third International, known as
"Comintern" ("Communist International"), an international
network of communist parties loyal to the Russian
Communist Party, with the aim of fighting "by all available
means, including armed force, for the overthrow of the
international bourgeoisie and for the creation of an
international Soviet republic as a transition stage to the
complete abolition of the State."

12. Activities
Exercises 16 to 20 on page 173.

13. 6- Spain: the reign of Alfonso XIII
-Alfonso was born in Madrid,
posthumously born son of
Alfonso XII of Spain, and
became King of Spain upon his
birth.
-His mother, Maria Christina of
Austria, was the regent during
his minority.
-In 1902, on his 16th birthday,
the King assumed control of
the state.

14. Political opposition
-The two-party system continued but it began its collapse due
to several reasons: industrialization process accelerated,
cities growth, political opposition and so on.
-Political parties organized the opposition:
.PSOE
.Radical Republican Party
.Spanish Communist Party (PCE)
-Regionalist movements increased their demands, such as:
.Basque Nationalist Party (PNV)
.Regionalist League of Cataluña (LRC)
-Regional Associations were created in response to this
Regionalism, for example, the Mancomunitat (Cataluña).

15. Social conflicts
-Working-class movement increased during the reign of Alfonso
XIII, they were better organised and represented. They
continued their protests and strikes to improve their working
conditions.
-Left-wing parties were against the fraudulent electoral system
and began a hard opposition.
-Trade unions (UGT, CNT) achieved important advances:
.8-hour working day and 6-day working week
.pension system for retired workers
.new laws (legalisation of trade unions, regulations for child
and female labour)

17. Colonial problems
-The disaster of '98 meant for Spain the end of the role as
great power.
-Sense of frustration, national crisis and a necessity of
regeneration (Regenerationism).
-Spain tried to recover its international prestige by acquiring
new colonies, a kind of new Imperialism that created more

18. Tragic Week, Barcelona 1909
-They were bloody confrontations between the Spanish army and
the working classes of Barcelona and other cities of Catalonia,
backed by anarchists, socialists and republicans, during the last
week of July 1909.
-It was caused by the calling-up of reserve troops by Prime Minister
Maura to be sent as reinforcements when Spain renewed
military-colonial activity in Morocco on 9 July, in what is known
as the Second Rif War.
-Many of the rioters were antimilitarist, anticolonial and
anticlerical.
-The government, declaring a state of war, sent the army to crush
the revolt.

21. War in Morocco,
1920-26
-The Rif War, also called the
Second Moroccan War, was
fought in the early 1920s between Spain (later assisted by France) and
the Moroccan Berbers of the Rif mountainous region.
-Initially, the Spanish forces were largely composed of Spanish
conscripts. These troops were poorly supplied and prepared, few
had marksmanship skills and proper battle training, and widespread
corruption was reported amongst the officer corps, reducing
supplies and morale. Even with their numerical superiority, they
proved no match for the highly skilled and motivated Rifian forces.
-By late August 1921, Spain lost all the territories it had gained since
1909.

22. The Rif War
-The Battle of Annual was the major military defeat suffered by
the Spanish army on July 1921 at Annual in northeastern
Morocco.
-The defeat, almost always referred to as the Disaster of Annual,
led to major political crisis and a redefinition of Spanish
colonial policy toward the Rif.
-The Spanish lost more than 20,000 soldiers in Annual. German
historian Werner Brockdorff states, that only 1,200 of the
20,000 Spanish escaped alive. Rif Berber casualties were 800.
-This crisis was one of the many that, over the course of the next
decade, undermined the Spanish monarchy and led to the rise
of the Second Spanish Republic.

23. Spain and the First World War
-Spain remained neutral throughout WWI between July 1914
and November 1918, but despite domestic economic
difficulties, it was considered "one of the most important
neutral countries in Europe by 1915". Spain had enjoyed
neutrality during the political difficulties of pre-war
Europe, and would continue its neutrality after the war
until the Spanish Civil War began in 1936.
-Causes of the neutrality:
.the insufficient army
.the objectives of Spain were far from the ones in Europe,
Gibraltar and Morocco.

24. Spain and the First World War
-The situation before the war in Spain was:
.Backward economy.
.After the disaster of '98: no colonies, social crisis,
obsolete army, etc.
.Fraudulent electoral systems.
.Morocco problem
.Tragic week in Barcelona, 1909.
-From 1898 Spain was internationally isolated.
-On 7 August 1914 Alfonso XIII declared Spain neutral by Royal
Decree.

25. Economy during the war
-During the war Spain experienced a good economical
situation with the increase of the arms industry, and as
provider of different products for both military bands.
-Cataluña and the Pais Vasco were the more benefited.
-By 1917 nevertheless the war was ending and the situation
changed. Spain suffered an economic crisis because
demand for its products collapsed.
-The post-war economic crisis forced many factories to
close.

26. Economic and cultural changes
-Overall economy during the reign of Alfonso XIII improved.
-Society became more industrialised.
-Industrial cities grew a lot, people came from rural areas
looking for a job.
-Regarding culture, there were changes such as new habits
like bullfighting or football.

27. The military and Primo de Rivera
-Military were not very appreciated during this period because of
the defeats in Morocco and the role they played in the
protests and strikes.
-Compulsory military service was another source of problems
between poorer classes.
-All of that led to political and social instability.
-The government was overthrown by a military
coup in 1923 led by General Primo de Rivera with
the approval of the king. After the coup, Primo
de Rivera established a dictatorship.

28. Activities
Exercises 23 and 24 on page 173.
Exercise 9 on page 177.

29. 7- Art and the avant-garde
-Avant-garde refers to people or works that are experimental or
innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and
politics.
-The concept of avant-garde refers primarily to artists, writers,
composers and thinkers whose work is opposed to mainstream
cultural values and often has a trenchant social or political
edge.
-Regarding Art, there are a lot of art movements included in the
avant-garde, and their main characteristics are the Freedom of
expression and the use of innovative materials and techniques.
-Historically it was a moment of international tension and war.
Culturally ut was a time of changes and technological advances,
whose main value was modernity.

30. Art and the avant-garde
-We are going to study just some of them, the most famous,
which are:
.Cubism
.Expressionism
.Dadaism

31. Cubism
-Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement
pioneered by Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso, and later joined
by Gris, Metzinger, Gleizes, Delaunay, Le Fauconnier, and Léger,
that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired
related movements in music, literature and architecture. Cubism
has been considered the most influential art movement of the
20th century.
-A primary influence that led to Cubism was the representation of
three-dimensional form in the late works of Paul Cézanne.
-In Cubist artwork, objects are analyzed, broken up and reassembled
in an abstracted form—instead of depicting objects from one
viewpoint, the artist depicts the subject from a multitude of
viewpoints to represent the subject in a greater context.

32. Cubism. Characteristics:
-They did not depict reality, but ideas and concepts, emphasising
what they considered more important.
-Shapes and objects substituted realistic depictions.
-Simple geometric shapes are commonly used to represent figures.
-Paintings had defined areas of colour called facets. There were
colour austerity.
-New techniques were developed, such as collage.
-Disengagement from nature. They didn't want to copy the nature.
-Painting were bidimensional, but inn a new way, each object can
provide a different perspective.

33. Pablo Picasso
-Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer
who spent most of his adult life in France.
-As one of the greatest and most influential artists of the 20th century,
he is widely known for co-founding the Cubist movement, the
invention of constructed sculpture, the co-invention of collage, and
for the wide variety of styles that he helped develop and explore.
-Picasso demonstrated extraordinary artistic talent in his early years,
painting in a realistic manner. During the first decade of the 20th
century, his style changed as he experimented with different
theories, techniques, and ideas. His revolutionary artistic
accomplishments brought him universal renown and immense
fortune, making him one of the best-known figures in 20th-century
art.

34. Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), Museum
of Modern Art, New York

35. Three Musicians (1921), Museum of Modern
Art, New York

36. Guernica, 1937, Museo Reina Sofía, Madrid

37. Las Meninas, 1957

38. Georges Braque
-He was a major 20th-century French painter and sculptor who, along
with Pablo Picasso, developed the art style known as Cubism.
-He practised different art styles during his career.
-Braque's paintings of 1908–13 reflected his new interest in geometry
and simultaneous perspective. He conducted an intense study of
the effects of light and perspective and the technical means that
painters use to represent these effects, seeming to question the
most standard of artistic conventions.
-Beginning in 1909, Braque began to work closely with Pablo Picasso,
who had been developing a similar style of painting.

39. Violin and Candlestick, Paris, 1910, San
Francisco Museum of Modern Art

40. The Candelabra, 1929.

41. Juan Gris
-He was a Spanish painter who lived and worked in France most of his
life. His works, which are closely connected to the emergence of
an innovative artistic genre—Cubism—are among the movement's
most distinctive. Gris began to paint seriously in 1910, and by
1912 he had developed a personal Cubist style.

42. Expressionism
-Expressionism was an art movement originating in Germany at the
beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the
world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for
emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas. Expressionist
artists sought to express meaning or emotional experience rather
than physical reality.
-Expressionism was developed as an avant-garde style before the WWI.
-In 1905, a group of 4 German artists, led by Kirchner, formed Die
Brücke (the Bridge) in the city of Dresden. This was the founding
organization for the German Expressionist movement, though they
did not use the word itself. A few years later, in 1911, a like-minded
group of young artists formed Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider) in
Munich.

43. Expressionism. Characteristics:
-Emphasis of the depiction of emotions and subjectivity.
-Use of simple but dramatic techniques, powerful colours and bold
dynamic images.
-Emotions were shown by deformed faces, hands and other body
parts.
-They used very basic outlines or silhouettes to depict objects or
human figures.
-Compositions tend to be simpler and more direct.
-Portrayal of human terror, haunting anxieties, nightmarish fears,
anguish and so on.

44. Edvard Munch. Precedent
-He was a Norwegian painter and printmaker whose intensely
evocative treatment of psychological themes built upon some of
the main dogmas of late 19th-century Symbolism and greatly
influenced German Expressionism in the early 20th century. One
of his most well-known works is The Scream of 1893.

45. Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
He was a German expressionist painter and printmaker and one of the
founders of the artists group Die Brücke or "The Bridge", a key
group leading to the foundation of Expressionism in 20th-century
art.

46. August Macke
-Macke was one of the leading members
of the German Expressionist group Der
Blaue Reiter. He lived during a
particularly innovative time for
German art which saw the
development of the main German
Expressionist movements as well as
the arrival of the successive avant-
garde movements which were forming
in the rest of Europe. Like a true
artist of his time, Macke knew how to
integrate into his painting the
elements of the avant-garde which
most interested him.

47. Dadaism
-Dada or Dadaism was an cultural movement of the European avant-
garde in the early 20th century. It began in Zurich, Switzerland in
1916, spreading to Berlin shortly thereafter.
-The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature, art theory,
theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics
through a rejection of the prevailing standards in art through anti-
art cultural works. In addition to being anti-war, Dada was also
anti-bourgeois and had political affinities with the radical left.
-Dada is the groundwork to abstract art, a starting point for
performance art, a prelude to postmodernism, an influence on pop
art, a celebration of antiart to be later embraced for anarcho-
political uses in the 1960s and the movement that lay the
foundation for Surrealism.

48. Dadaism
-The beginnings of Dada correspond to the outbreak of WWI. For
many participants, the movement was a protest against the
bourgeois nationalist and colonialist interests, which many
Dadaists believed were the root cause of the war, and against the
cultural and intellectual conformity—in art and more broadly in
society—that corresponded to the war.
-According to Hans Richter, Dada was not art, it was "anti-art."
Everything for which art stood, Dada represented the opposite.
-Dadaist often used collage and photomontage techniques to
produce their works of art.
-Sculptors used miscellaneous objects to create what they called
"readymades".

49. Marcel Duchamp
Duchamp challenged conventional thought about artistic processes
and art marketing, not so much by writing, but through subversive
actions. He famously dubbed a urinal art and named it Fountain.
Duchamp produced relatively few artworks, while moving quickly
through the avant-garde circles of his time.

50. Hannah Hoch
Hannah Hoch was a German Dada artist. She is best known for her
work of the Weimar period, when she was one of the originators of
photomontage.

51. Jean Arp
Shirt Front and Fork, painted wood, 1922, National Gallery of Art and
SRelief, clock, 1914.

52. Activities
Exercises 26, 27, 28 and 19 on page 175.