early years

 

Alexander Liberman was born in 1912 in Kiev into the family of rich timber merchant Simon Liberman and theatrical actress Henrietta Pascar. After the Bolshevik Revolution, Simon took a post of economic advisor at the Soviet government and sent his son to an English boarding school. “If you can survive that, you can conquer anything,” Alexander would recall of this period. Then he moved to Paris to study mathematics, architecture, philosophy, and painting.

all art is solitary and the studio is a torture area. —alexander liberman

 

Alexander Liberman stands in his studio with a recent work of welded and painted steel

Alexander Liberman stands in his studio with a recent work of welded and painted steel. Photo via Getty Images.

 

 

formative time

 

Liberman’s early work life in France was diverse: he designed stage sets, briefly worked as an illustrator, and assisted to poster designer Cassandre. Aged eighteen, Alexander started his publishing career with VU, one of the world’s first illustrated periodicals. There he collaborated with renowned photographers, including Brassaï, Man Ray, and Robert Capa. Eventually, Alexander rose to managing director at Vu, but left it in 1936.

 

VU magazine cover, March 1933. The cover features End of Civilization photomontage by Marcel Ichac under the art direction of Alexander Liberman.

 

VU magazine cover, March 1933. The cover features End of Civilization photomontage by Marcel Ichac
A spread of Vu magazine, featuring Drunkenness of Movement photo essay

A spread of Vu magazine, featuring Drunkenness of Movement photo essay.

 

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