Crocodile (Крокодил), 1975. Covers of the soviet satiric magazine.



Lord Tachanka



"Woah, really good idea, kid"





Vacancies::

1. Weilder - 2

2.Molder - 3

3.Assembler - 2

4.Football player - 5

Officially, there was no professional sport in USSR. The sportsmans were a workers who was doing their sport activities in free time and their team was attached to a specific organization - plant, collective farm or some local government institute (for example city's militia usually had their football, basketball, hockey or voleyball team). But in fact, while being on the staff, these people did not work at all - just doing their respective sport activity. This poster is mocking this situation.





Do you have the same boots but imported?

Soviet textile and leather industry after the late 60's and was not in a good state, so people wanted to buy imported boots and clothes - mainly from Czechoslovakia, Poland, East Germany and Yugoslavia.









We need to save this comrade immediately. We can't sign an acceptance certificate without him!





Don't show me your beard, show me your passport!

Written on the sign: "Children under 16 not allowed"





Hello, may! ( Just a may day poster not a satire)





Grand opening of the new tourist trail.





Don't stumble over, there's water pipes somewhere.

Sometimes in the rural areas during extremely cold winters water supply system was freezing, so people used water-well holes to refill their water supplies.





Agreements, contracts and personal obligations backslided to just a formality on a number of enterprises.

Written on a sign: Mestkom (local commitee of a professional union)

Written on the papers: obligation





Quiet! The Boss is thinkking!





Unexpected visitors (as in the Ilya Repin painting with the same name).

Written on a sign: "clothing factory takes the following obligations"

Written on the coats: "REFUND"

Again, this poster is adressing the issues in the textile industry.





Sir, why are you wearing gloves? To hide your fingerprints so no one will know who built the house?

This poster is mocking loss in quality in the construction industry. Khrusthevkas and Brezhnevkas (the common names of the housing projects of the Khrustchev and Brezhnev eras) was much worse in terms of quality than the houses built in Stalin's era.

-You used to be on time for work

-I didn't have a car before





Thirty years later. Guards squadron in the air (not a satire, just a victory day poster)





Senior mechanic returns from a buisness trip (as in Rembrands painting)

Written on the papres: "Repair parts request: DENIED"

The mechanized farming equipment belonged to a collective farm. This poster is mocking the disorder that happened in the machinery supplying after the Kosygin reforms.

Spring-and-summer fashion season.

Written on the sign: "Clothing factory"

Written on the girls(from top to bottom, from left to right):

"plan", "productions of tunics incoming", "we promise you a blouses", "and skirts", "plan for hats production", "we are planning to produce beaching suits".

Again, the mockery of the failures of textile industry. Apparently this was a thing in 1975.

Mybe you'll put a skirt at least for a holiday?

Generation that went through the war and hunger was humble and kinda conservative, they were not pleased with a leisure way of life of young people. The same problems was in the west.

-Do you need an assistant?

Not sure what is the message behind this poster. Probably something to do with the faceless bureacracy or something.

They took measures.

Red letters: "No swimming of fishing"

Top-left sign: RAISOVET (Area council)

Top sign: "Shop"

The common problem in Russia: the snow that fell during the winter is melting and the water is flooding the streets. Also, the rivers are flooding because of the snow. People asking the government to take some measures, but the goverment do nothing. Hence the sign with a letters and the name of the poster.



































