Alexander Mikhailovich Rodchenko (1891-1956) was a Russian abstract painter, sculptor, photographer, and industrial designer who, as an early pioneer in Russian Constructivism, believed that art must serve as an agent for social change.

Alexander Mikhailovich Rodchenko was born in St. Petersburg (Leningrad) on November 23, 1891. Rodchenko was of humble origin. His father, Mikhail, was a theater craftsman while his mother, Olga Yevdokimovna, was a laundress. Little is known concerning Rodchenko's early childhood. It is believed that he left school in 1905 before finishing his formal education.

In 1910 Rodchenko enrolled at the Kazan School of Art in the city of Odessa. His earliest works from this period are figurative and exhibit a marked influence from European trends, particularly the flat decorative quality found in the art of Aubrey Beardsley. Rodchenko's earliest subject matter was derived from the world of the theater, where his father worked, and the circus. Within a short...