Artist Kazimir Malevich's– “Wilhelm’s Carousel” (1914) – Museum-Authorised Facsimile – Palace Editions, 2004

A museum-authorised facsimile of Wilhelm’s Carousel (1914) — one of the most visually arresting works from the Segodnyashnii Lubok (“Today’s Lubok”) series, produced at the outbreak of the First World War by Kazimir Malevich in collaboration with poet Vladimir Mayakovsky. The series reimagined traditional Russian folk prints as vehicles for sharp political satire, and this composition is among its most dynamic entries.

Malevich turns his gaze toward Kaiser Wilhelm II, portraying him at the centre of a chaotic “carousel” of war. German forces spiral in confusion and disarray, rendered as exaggerated, almost puppet-like figures caught in a relentless cycle of motion. The composition is intentionally distorted — flattened space, compressed perspective, bold rhythmic forms — amplifying the sense of instability and satire. Malevich’s emerging geometric language — simplified bodies, sharp angles, colour blocks — foreshadows the Suprematist revolution that would follow just a year later.

The rhyming couplet at the bottom provides Kaiser Wilhelm’s “voice” as he watches his army crumble: «Подъ Парижемъ на краю Лупятъ армію мою, А я кругомъ бѣгаю Да ничего не сдѣлаю» — “At the very edge of Paris, they are thrashing my army, and I just run around in circles, doing nothing at all.”

This facsimile was produced in 2004 by Palace Editions in collaboration with The State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg — a rigorously produced, institution-backed reproduction preserving the integrity of the original 1914 chromolithograph.

Publication Details

Artist: Kazimir Malevich (1878–1935)
Text: Vladimir Mayakovsky
Original Year: 1914
Edition: Museum-authorised facsimile, 2004
Publisher: Palace Editions, St. Petersburg
Produced in collaboration with: The State Russian Museum
Series: Segodnyashnii Lubok (Today’s Lubok)
Medium: Chromolithograph reproduction on archival-quality paper
Size: 56 × 38 cm (22.0 × 15.0 in)

Condition

Overall: Excellent

Wear: Minor handling wear along the top edge and slight corner softening. Very light edge rippling that will settle once framed.

Details: Strong, high-quality paper stock with a clean off-white tone. Rich, unfaded colours throughout.

Please review the high-resolution photographs for a full and accurate representation. What you see is what you receive.

Shipping & Packaging

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Handling: Dispatched within 1–3 business days from our Sarajevo studio
Packaging: Rolled in acid-free tissue paper and shipped in a heavy-duty reinforced mailing tube — no folding, no creasing, no edge damage
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Framing

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