Convenient though they may be, the more e-readers and tablets we collect, the more we appreciate the fine design work and craftsmanship that went into the printed products of old — especially those from other countries, which seem ever strange and fresh to our eyes. This week, Christopher King at MobyLives pointed us towards Russians Without Russia, an archive created by designer Fiodor Sumkin, who has collected and scanned a series of newspapers and magazines published by Soviet exiles in Paris, Berlin, Harbin, and Constantinople in the ’20s and ’30s. A little weird and a lot beautiful, if these don’t have you hunting around for an indie journal instead of that iPad, we don’t know what will. Check out a few of our favorites after the jump, and then head straight over to the Russians Without Russia archive for more.
Frontier #15, April 4th, 1936
Satyricon #15, July 11th, 1931
Satyricon #2, April 11th, 1931
Swallow, #5, March 4th, 1933
The Firebird (Jar-Ptitza) #4, December 1st, 1921
The Firebird (Jar-Ptitza) #1, August 1st, 1921
Oukwat #2, May 1st, 1926
Oukwat #3, May 15th, 1926
Spolokhi #5, March 1st, 1922
Satyricon #14, July 4th, 1931