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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 23, 1982)
Photo by Erich BoeketheiOe Ernst Neizvestny Soviets fear own artists By Charlene Bell Of ttf Emtrmfd The Soviet Union — a country with advanced defense capabilities, a sophisticated intel ligence agency and the largest group of propagandists in the world, has come to fear the impact of the small, unregulated Soviet artist, said Soviet emigre sculptor, Ernst Neiz vestny. "At times I considered myself a Luxembourg within a bigger nation. Any minute I could be taken over. I had to defend my right for exi xistence as if I belonged to some political opposition," Neizvestny said Neizvestny spoke on, ‘Human Rights and the Arts in the Soviet Union,' Wednesday as part of a four-day symposium sponsored by the University Russian and East European Studies Center and other University groups Neizvestny was one such "unregulated artist." He said he emigrated from the Soviet Union in 1976 because the Communist leadership is stifling the Soviet artist by heeding the haunt ing words of Stalin, ‘In our country there are no people who cannot be replaced.' The evening included a slide-show of Neiz vestny’s works. The slide show, produced by former students in Moscow, had been confis cated by KGB agents, but later it was smuggled into the West. Afterwords, panelists, including University professors, Paul Buckner, Albert Leong, Sher win Simmons, Frum Yurevich, and Reed Col lege professor Lena Lencek, discussed Neiz vestny’s work While in the Soviet Union, Neizvestny con sidered himself "nonpolitical" and refused to follow the lead of the "petty bourgeois" Rus sian artists of the 1920s. Thus the party leadership considers his massive, powerful works unrestrained and dangerous. Neizvestny and fellow artists who managed to “maintain their own intelligence," had a saying for the artistic works of commission hungry artists "It’s not important what you did, but who unveiled it," he said. After the “thaw" under former Soviet premier Nikita Kruschev when the party leadership permitted artists a guarded level of freedom and considered Neizvestny irre placeable, he said His busts of Soviet composer Dmitri Shosta kovich, former Soviet Premier Nikita Kruschev, as well as the large ’bas relief' for the Aswan Dam in Egypt, earned the artist international acclaim At one Soviet exhibition of the artist’s works, Kruschev remarked that Neizvestny's sculp tures were fit only to decorate outhouses Neizvestny's reply to the late premier was candid “Comrade Khrushchev," he began, "you are premier of the Soviet Union But here, at this exhibit. I am premier.” Ironically, following the Soviet premier's death, the Kruschev family commissioned Neizvestny to design the monument for the leader's grave The result was a controversial monument that Soviet authorities allowed to be erected after a three-year fight, he said The symposium continues through Satur day Designer eases life for Third World countries By Dan Maize Of (A* Emerald Victor Papanek, noted de signer and self-described "gadget-maker,” explained his Third World designs and crit icized wastefulness in Amer ican design Wednesday even ing in the EMU Ballroom. The Survival Center brought Papanek, the J.L Constant Dis tinguished Professor at the University of Kansas at Law rence, to the University as part of the Earth Week activities. He has written five books, in cluding Design for the Real World which has been pub lished in 23 languages and his latest, Design for Human Scale Papanek has worked with ar chitect Frank Lloyd Wright, received an Alternative Nobel DUFFY’S One of Portland’s finest R & R bands Prize nomination and lived and worked in 15 developing coun tries, including Bali and New Guinea Most of the items Papanek and his staff designed for developing nations 'were de signed in that Third World country over a three to five-year stay, not just a visit,” Papanek said The items usually can be constructed by resident labor using raw materials found in that country, Papanek added Papanek has designed a chemical refrigerator, which can be constructed in any na tion that he has visited, a "talk ing teacher" — a cassette player that eases the governments' tasks in Nigeria and Tanzania of informing the people and a diagnostic medical kit for developing countries, which combines an accurate scale, a Safer Streets! The West University Neighbors Parry St • Eugana. Ora 97401 ♦ 967 5366 blood-pressure unit, a urinalysis device and a tape measure in one package Papanek noted that by having the kit available the "residents of these countries know as much about themselves as we do " He showed examples of na tive technology, including a Brazilian oil lamp made from used American light bulbs The natives remove the socket and filaments, fill the bulb with oil and stick a bottle cap and wick where the socket was, then hang the lamp upside down "Brazilians just can't under stand why we need electricity to power light bulbs when we could use oil," he said He's had a tough time selling his domestic ideas — such as a vertically-adjustable bathroom sink and a chair designed for elderly people — to U S busi RESUME PERSONALIZED COVER LETTERS! Ken Warren/Greg Wasson 345-5858 ANYTIME (M-Sat) JjO ® MlO nessmen, he said Companies have turned him down, only to find they have developed a similar product at a later date, selling for a price much higher than what he would've charged them, he said Because of this, he said he makes his plans available to the public free "The solutions to many of the world's problems are in student portfolios, being carried around from office to office while look ing for a job,” Papanek said, drawing laughter from the audience of predominately ar chitecture students American design often is wasteful, Papanek said For ex ample, a "picnic car" designed in the 1950s by General Motors assumed the average American family would have five or six cars, all for different purposes The car was a low-slung station wagon with a refrigerator, stove and kitchen sink in the back Survivors to talk on Hiroshima Two survivors of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Miyoko Matsubara and Kasui Ishii, are in Eugene this weekend to promote world peace and the abolition of nuclear weapons The talk will be at Grace Lutheran Church, Saturday at 6:30 p.m For more information, call Jan Donald at 746-8041 or 686-5426 staff in* uragon oany tmaran n puolttn*d Monday through Friday axcapt during final* waak and vacations by tha Oragon Dally Emar*Id Publishing Co. Maw* $06-5511 Advarhting / Butinas* $$6-3712 Cla**mad* $86-4343 Production $86-4381 Pam 2 Section A Editor Sally Hodgkmson Managing Editor Gabriel Boehmer Newt Editor Harry E sieve Assistant News Editor John Healy Photo Editor Bob Baker Graphic* Editor Max DeRungs Editorial Page Editor Cor1 Fernald Sport* Editor Steve Spatz Asaoclate Sports Editor Jail Dickerson Entertainment Editor Matt Meyer Night Editor Debbie Howlett Associate Editor*: ASUO Dane Claussen Community Marian Green Departments and School* Debbie Howlett Feature* Sandy Johnstone Higher Education Ann Portal Politic* / Environment Hon Hunt General Staff. Advertising Director Production Manager Darlene Gore Ann Peterson C la sal tied Advertising Controller Sally Otter Jean Ownbey
