Devastation and the Army of Labor. Panel 1). The emblem of bondage has been smashed by the hand of the proletariat yet a shadow still surrounded the Soviet emblem. DEVASTATION is frightening, and with the legacies of tsarist rule, a fierce fight remains yet in front of us. Panel 2). Its offspring are savage COLD and HUNGER, and the creeping PESTILENCE fed on us among the filth. [Partial translation]
In the history of Soviet political posters, Nikolai Mikhailovich Kochergin is considered one of its pioneers. In 1918, Kochergin graduated from the Stroganov Central Industrial Art College where he later ventured into the professional world of graphic design. During the Russian Civil War, he supervised a poster publishing house and workshop in Kharkov, Ukraine. He was also one of the primary organizers of the Baku, Azerbaijan ROSTA (Russian Telegraph Agency) artist group that circulated posters throughout the Caucus region.
In May 1919, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee created the State Publishing House of the RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic), Moscow. The State Publishing House had its origins in Imperial Russia as the Royal Print Yard in St. Petersburg. As the Red Army controlled more provinces and cities in former Imperial Russia, the State Publishing House developed offices outside St. Petersburg. The State Publishing House, Moscow is sometimes cited in historical references as the "State Publishing House, RSFSR" signifying its location in the Russian Republic.