KUKRYNIKSY, 20TH CENTURY Covering the facade of the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow 1941

signed in Cyrillic and dated ‘KUKRYNIKSY 41’ (lower right) watercolor and whitewash on paper 14.5 x 18 cm Kukryniksy, a collective consisting of Russian artists Mikhail Kupriyanov (1903-1992), Porfiry Krylov (1902-1990), and Nikolai Sokolov (1903-?), initially pupils of political satirist Dmitri Orlov, began collaborating in 1924. Transitioning from general illustrators to sharp political cartoonists in the 1930s, they gained renown for their poignant drawings denouncing fascism. Alongside their individual careers, they contributed to numerous propaganda posters, earning high Soviet cultural awards and recognition in national collections.