Description
I. Kokiashvili's 1939 illustration "Grandfather Frost" (originally titled "Grandfather Frost in Western Europe") is a sharp political satire reflecting the severe military situation created in Europe at the outbreak of World War II. The drawing depicts a tired, terrified, and melting Grandfather Frost with a sack of gifts on his back and a fan in his hand, trying to cool himself down. Around him, a completely non-festive, destructive scene of war unfolds - military airplanes fly in the sky, artillery cannons fire on the ground, and everything around is engulfed in the smoke and fire of explosions. The illustration metaphorically conveys the "heat" of war and the chaos reigning in Europe. The artwork emphasizes that the arrival of the New Year in Western Europe brings military aggression, bombings, and destruction instead of peace and joy, which is why an unbearable and ruinous "heat" caused by war circulates even on a cold winter holiday.
