Man in Top Hat

Studying K. Malevich's suprematism, Solomon Nikritin considered it a decisive act of freeing form from content, admiring its geometric simplicity. On the other hand, while appreciating architectural interpretations by the constructivists, he and K. Redko formulated the theory of "Projection" in the early 1920s. According to this theory, the artist must create models and preliminary sketches of their artistic conceptions, upon which art could be developed with the viewer's participation. Within the framework of these theoretical pursuits, he created the artwork "Man with a Tall Hat," which introduced a new representational aspect to painting. The enigmatic depiction of the male figure evolving through various stages invites the viewer's participation in the final completion of the artwork.