Intourist, the Soviet travel agency, was established in 1929 to attract foreign visitors to the U.S.S.R. Using the classic elements of early communist graphic design, Intourist managed to entice tens of thousands of foreigners (many from the United States) to special tourist sites set up for them in the Soviet Union.
Given that several of these holiday resorts were located in Ukraine, the idyllic portrayal of these destinations contrasts sharply with the experience of many Ukrainians in the 1930s who endured immense hardship and famine -- known as the Holodomor and causing more than 1 million deaths -- as a result of radical Soviet economic policies.
(Images courtesy of David Levine)
Given that several of these holiday resorts were located in Ukraine, the idyllic portrayal of these destinations contrasts sharply with the experience of many Ukrainians in the 1930s who endured immense hardship and famine -- known as the Holodomor and causing more than 1 million deaths -- as a result of radical Soviet economic policies.
(Images courtesy of David Levine)
