The Futurist poets and painters in Russia professed that a sweeping subversion of the world as we know it is necessary in order to open the way to a brighter future. They believed that the abolition of old values and axiomatic principles will enable humanity to revisit its relation with the universe and with nature, and consequently to obtain limitless potential. When the world has turned into chaos, they would assert in 1913, “new, unexpected and invisible connections” will be revealed. Their model of the man of the future - the Futurist hero - was the aviator, the man who succeeded in overcoming nature’s limitations and achieve the ultimate freedom by flying in the air. Aleksei Morgunov’s “Standing Figure (Aviator)” belongs to this series of visual and literary avant-garde works of art, which support the Futurist belief that after a historic reorganization of the order of the world, humanity will emerge stronger. [Aleksei Morgunov, “Standing Figure (Aviator)”, 1912-1913, Oil on canvas, MOMus -Museum of Modern Art-Costakis Collection]