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According to the Villalobos reading, faktura was a specific way in which materials were manipulated to create a work of art. Faktura’s focus was more on the emphasis of the actual means of production itself, and didn’t necessarily place a strong emphasis on the actual finished art form. Another interesting facet of faktura is that it can be interpreted in many ways depending on the artist or country. Focusing on Tatlin and Soviet Union interpretation, Tatlin believed that “materiological determination meant that the reliefs would not respond to a preconceived metaphor or subject matter – but it would neither mean that the gathering of materials was arbitrary. The reliefs would allow materials to speak for themselves” (Villalobos, 11).

Tatlin’s interpretation of faktura can be seen in several of his reliefs, such as his counter reliefs he created for “Zero Ten”. These pieces were described as achieving “a new level of material heterogeneity, as metal, wood and rope now incorporate in their dialogue the physical forces that act upon them. Mass is arranged in dialogue with the void. Furthermore, as faktura denoted a dynamic process of material handling, it is congruent for the work of art to be set into a state of physical strain. Suspended in equilibrium, the counter-reliefs become performances of faktura” (Villalobos, 16). Thus, it can be seen that Tatlin did not just throw materials together and proclaim it art, but instead he incorporated very particular materials together in way that hinted at their physical functions in real life.

Tatlin’s view of faktura can be seen vividly in many of his art pieces. However, rather than discuss his many reliefs and other art pieces that are already known for being examples for faktura, I believe that I can apply Tatlin’s definition of faktura to his largest constructivism project in his career, “Monument to the Third International”. I believe that the idea of Tatlin’s Tower in itself is a prime example of faktura, because it involves the manipulation of various materials on a very large scale. His tower was not “responding to a preconceived metaphor”, that being of traditional buildings of the time period. But instead it paved the way for the constructivism art movement, engineers, and architects as a new way of thinking. The fact that the tower was never finished also has an important element of faktura; not focusing on the final product. Although obviously most pieces of art do get finished, it is interesting that this massive monument was essentially a giant art piece that was so caught up in the methods and means of production, that it was never produced.

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