THE REVOLUTION not only liberated the Russian population politically and economically, it also gave a massive boost to the arts and culture.

There was a creative explosion in the visual arts, film, theatre, ballet, poetry, literature and music and in sport and fashion, accompanied by a massive improvement in working people's access to, and participation in, the arts and other cultural activities.

Progressive educational policies were linked to bold, imaginative attempts to connect the masses to culture, an example being the agit-trains and agit-boats carrying the political art of Vladimir Mayakovsky, El Lissitsky and Kasimir Malevich to hundreds of thousands of workers and peasants.