Sculpture – Russian Federation

Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina occupies a central place in the history of sculpture. Born in 1889, she produced work that became emblematic of Soviet public art while remaining connected to modernist trends in European sculpture.

Best known for the stainless-steel group Worker and Kolkhoz Woman (1937), Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina combined a dynamic sense of movement and modern materials with the political iconography that defined official Soviet art. Her figures often demonstrate a sculptural economy of plane and mass, rhythmic treatment of limbs and drapery, and a sense of purposeful forward motion.

In 1937, the sculptor conceived her signature work, Worker and Kolkhoz Woman, for the Soviet pavilion at the Exposition Internationale in Paris. This towering sculpture consists of two figures: a worker wielding a hammer and a collective-farm woman raising a sickle. Together, their raised tools form a hammer-and-sickle emblem. The figures are linked in forward motion, striding dynamically as if cutting through space, expressing confident forward movement and symbolising partnership between city and countryside.

The monument's surface and silhouette were optimised to be easily visible from a distance and to catch the light dynamically. The overall effect combined modernist monumentalism with ideological messaging. Following the exhibition, both the sculptor and the sculpture gained significant renown at national and international levels. Over the decades, Worker and Kolkhoz Woman became a defining symbol of Soviet identity.

Mukhina's work also addresses the theme of gender. Her portraiture and smaller works explored character and type, often emphasising strength, clarity, and social function rather than introspective individuality. The Kolkhoz Woman is a prime example of this concept, as it is not regarded as a passive allegory, but rather as an active, striding presence.

Following the Paris Exposition, Mukhina worked on public monuments, bas-reliefs, portrait busts, and stage and architectural sculpture, contributing to civic projects across the Soviet Union. She also participated in exhibitions and engaged in teaching activities. Her career reflects the complicated relationship between state patronage and artistic autonomy: official commissions brought resources and visibility, but also required adherence to the themes and visual rhetoric approved by the regime.

From an artistic perspective, Mukhina is a characteristic example of how modernist forms can be adapted for large-scale public art. She produced one of the 20^th century’s most recognisable sculptures, combining aesthetic innovation with the iconography of a political project. Art historians have observed that Mukhina reconciled avant-garde dynamism with the demands of mass communication and ideological clarity in her sculptural language. Culturally, her career exemplifies the challenges faced by artists working under state patronage. Her work remains a key starting point for discussions about the interaction between form, material and ideology in public sculpture.

For more information on Mukhina’s life and works, please click here: https://www.culture.ru/persons/9382/vera-mukhina?ysclid=mhlz7ea3a815900131

To view Mukhina's exhibitions online, please open the following links:

https://raharchive.ru/mukhina

https://rusmuseumvrm.ru/reference/classifier/author/muhina_vi/index.php?lang=en

Image No 1: Portrait of Sculptor Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina, by Mikhail Nesterov

Image No 3: Worker and Kolkhoz Woman sculpture, by Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina

Courtesy of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation

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