Zanaveshanniya kartinki

This is a rare TAMIZDAT copy of an even rarer edition of homoerotic poetry by the legendary Russian symbolist Mikhail Kuzmin (1872-1936). The original book was printed in Petrograd in 1920 and was limited to 307 copies. Featuring 36 pages of provocative and absolutely naked verses, the imprint noting Amsterdam as the place of publishing played into the ironic games popular in the former capital of the Russian Empire, devastated by Bolsheviks and hunger. Vladimir Milashevskii (1893-1976), a whimsical illustrator and an early follower of Oscar Wilde and Konstantin Somov, later became a loyal creator for the Soviet propaganda machine. The book was reprinted by the famous American publishing house "Ardis," specializing in publishing books forbidden by the communist regime. The text is in Russian. 26,5x20,5cm. 36 pp. Unpaginated. Monochrome illustrations. Paper wrappers sunburned and beaten by the bug. Near fine condition.