Le soldat N.3 1967

This striking 1967 poster by Viktor Koretsky, one of the most influential Soviet poster artists, revisits a moment of intense historical symbolism: the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in 1945, and the storming of Berlin. With its stark imagery, dramatic contrasts, and potent use of red, this piece exemplifies Koretsky’s mastery of visual propaganda charged with emotional realism and ideological fervor.

At the center stands a monumental Soviet soldier—heroic, impassive, and commanding—clutching a submachine gun and cloaked in a sweeping military cape. Behind him, the shattered façade of the Reich Chancellery looms, bullet-riddled and graffitied, its partial text (“REICH KANZ…”) a haunting echo of a defeated regime. Koretsky disrupts the composition with vertical bands of grayscale slicing through the red dominance, symbolizing perhaps both memory and revelation—how history is preserved, uncovered, and dissected.

Koretsky (1909–1998) was known for merging realist photomontage techniques with surreal, almost cinematic drama. His posters were not just calls to action, but visual sermons—seeking to shape collective memory and national pride. Here, the soldier becomes more than a man: he is a symbol of Soviet might, moral righteousness, and sacrifice. The red palette—both the color of communism and of blood—intensifies the emotional weight of the image.

Produced by Izogiz, the Soviet state’s official publishing house for propaganda posters, this work was part of a larger effort in the late 1960s to reinforce patriotic memory of the Great Patriotic War. At a time when post-war generations were coming of age and the Cold War remained tense, such imagery served as a reminder of Soviet heroism and legitimacy.

Today, “Berlin 1945” stands as a potent artifact of visual statecraft—where art, history, and ideology intersect. It embodies the power of graphic design as political memory, where the past is not only remembered, but ritualistically reenacted through image.

USSR - Propaganda - Russia

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