8. Alexandr Nikolaevich Samokhvalov, author/illustrator.
Vodolaznaia baza [Deep-sea Diving Base].
Moscow: Gosudarstvennoe izdatel'stvo, 1928.
This famous Soviet picture book describes deep-sea salvage operations. Although Samokhvalov romanticizes the work of these divers, his highly stylized representations of the bulky equipment they wore can’t conceal how awkward it must have been to swim in it for any period of time.
Like many artists during the early Soviet period, Samokhvalov (1894-1971) tried his hand at poster design and children’s book illustration. The Cotsen Children’s Library has six of his children’s books and their subjects range from a biography of the Revolutionary war hero Kano to the story of a stubborn camel. For a brief account of his career with a portrait of the artist, you can visit the Russian Artists Biography Database. Some of his posters can be viewed at Plakaty.
