Я. Миллер. J. Miller (=Nikolai Zabolozki).

Маслозавод. Maslosawod (Butter factory).

Illustrator: Павел Басманов (Pavel Basmanov)

Moskva, Gosudarstvennoe izdatelʹstvo,, 1931

12 unnumbered pages with color illustrations.

19 x 17,5 cm. Original wrappers.

EUR 750

Behind the pen name Я. Миллер (J. Miller) lies the Russian avant-garde poet Nikolai Zabolozk(1903-1958)  (a member of the absurdist literary group OBERIU). He deliberately used this pseudonym for his children’s book.

The book follows the Soviet trend of the time to use play to introduce children to modern production facilities, kolkhozes (collective farms), and industrial processes as part of the Five-Year Plan. Zabolozky’s rhymes describe the journey of milk from the pasture to the finished butter.

Pavel Ivanovich Basmanov (1906-1993) was a prominent Soviet graphic artist, painter, and book illustrator whose style was deeply rooted in the Russian artistic tradition. Basmanov grew up in Siberia. He later moved to Leningrad and was strongly influenced by Kazimir Malevich’s Suprematism and, in particular, by Vladimir Sterligov. His drawings for “Maslosavod” break with the strict Socialist Realism that was emerging at the time. Instead, they employ an almost naive, flat perspective and delicate textures. The cows and landscapes appear almost as if they were carved from wood or lithographed, reflecting the influence of Russian folk art (lubok).

OCLC list two copies: Vassar College and University of Chicago Library

I was able to find the following sources: https://www.togdazine.ru/article/3169  This website reproduces all pages of the publication

Condition: The cover has slight staining, the paper clip is slightly rusted.