James Graham

"Settler Constructivism" explores the relationship of architecture, agriculture, and nationality in the Soviet Union. While the study of constructivism and other avant-garde movements has often focused on the industrialization of major cities, these architects were equally involved in shaping landscapes and lives across the Soviet Republics. They were keenly invested in how architecture participates in shaping political subjects—an urgent question in dealing with the immense complexity of the multinational Soviet project. The First Five Year Plan also entailed a vast remaking of agricultural production across the USSR, with climatic and cultural difference being mapped into a system of agricultural specialization.