Girl with an Oar

The Girl with an Oar (Russian: Девушка с веслом) is an archetypal example of Socialist Realism in outdoors architecture of the Soviet Union, "an idiom of the Soviet kitsch".[1] Numerous gypsum alabaster versions authored by Ivan Shadr[2] and Romuald Iodko adorned Soviet parks of culture and recreation, and young pioneer camps.

A kitsch replica of the Girl with an Oar in Gorky Park, Moscow.

Seen as a symbol of Soviet erotica and totalitarianism today, it was part of the monumental propaganda of sports, a model of a healthy person, ubiquitous in Soviet arts of late 1920s–1930s.[3]

The first Girl with an Oar by Shadr was that of a naked girl. It was heavily criticized for being "too vulgar". It was destroyed and known only from a single photo. The second one was naked as well, "more chaste" but still naked.[4] Initially installed in Gorky Park, Moscow, it was criticized as well and eventually "disappeared", and Shadr made another copy to be installed in Luhansk, Ukrainian SSR.[5]

The popular stereotype of the Girl with an Oar is the one in a swimsuit, created by Romuald Iodko.[4]

1930s in Gorky Park

See also

References
  1. "The Oar Girl Returns to Moscow, in Her Natural State"
  3. "The Girl with a Paddle as a symbol of Soviet totalitarianism and erotica"
  4. "Чем новая «Девушка с веслом», которую поставили в ЦПКиО, отличается от старой"
  5. "Девушка с веслом" in "Encyclopedic Dictionary of Winged Words and Expressions, by Vadim Serov


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