Mikhail Roginsky (Михаил Рогинский, 1931–2004) was a leading figure of Soviet nonconformist art, often called the “father of Russian Pop Art” for turning, in the early 1960s, to the blunt objects of everyday Soviet life. He studied at the Moscow Art School, worked as a provincial theatre designer, and returned to Moscow in 1960.
The Red Door
His Red Door (1965) — a plain painted door presented as a painting — became a milestone of the postwar unofficial scene. Roginsky painted “portraits of things”: a Primus stove, a pot, matches, trousers, Metlakh tiles, and wall fragments assembled with real switches and sockets. He emigrated to Paris in 1978 and painted there until his death.
Collections
His work is held by the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum and the Centre Pompidou.