The legendary George Costakis describes the story of how he acquainted one of the most important works of Liubov Popova (1889-1924), who was his favorite artist: “Liubov Popova’s brother, Pavel Sergeievich [from whom George Costakis acquired the majority of Popova’s works] had a stepson who lived in Zvenigorod, outside Moscow. Pavel Sergeievich once suggested me to visit him... So I went ... We walked to the garden. I noticed that the window of the storage house was nailed with a plywood. On the plywood I could read a number and below the signature: ‘Popova’. I entered the storage house and I saw the other side of the plywood. It was a great painting! ‘No, I can’t give it to you. If it rains the warehouse will be wet. Bring me a plywood and only then I will give you the painting’. I had to go to Moscow and look for a plywood. I didn’t find the dimensions needed so I bought two smaller pieces and brought them to Zvenigorod. In return, the landlord gave me the wonderful painting.” This turned to be the most important painting of the series “Space-Force Construction”, a series Popova worked between 1920 and 1922 together with her partner and friend, the constructivist architect Aleksandr Vesnin, which defines the theoretical basis of her constructivist and productivist period and – tragically – the last period of her life. [Liubov Popova, Space Force Construction, 1921, Oil and wooddust on plywood, 71×63.9 ©MOMus - Museum of Modern Art-Costakis Collection]