Saturday, 31 May 2008
Friday, 30 May 2008
Marc Chagall. Wedding. 1910
Lisa was talking about painting a wedding on her site, and that inspired me to put this up, for she had a small reproduction of Chagall on her post. That other one was mousey, here’s something that’s got some size to it. Marc Chagall was from Byelorussia, so, of course, I got files of his work in my collection.
Larissa Zvezdotchotova-Rezun. Two in a Boat. A Diptych. no date (2000s?)
Two in a Boat. A Diptych (Larissa Zvezdotchotova-Rezun, no date (2000s?))
I simply LIKED this piece. Also, I enjoyed putting up a piece by an artist that BIll cannot pronounce her name sober, let alone with a slug or two in ‘im. If it is any consolation, it is tongue-twister for we Russians, as well.
(scene: the side of the road) “I AM sober, officer! YOU try pronouncing it, sir!”
Could you imagine an Alabama state trooper trying to say such a name? I would PAY to see such.
Mikhail Nesterov. Lelya Prakhova. 1894
Lelya Prakhova (Mikhail Nesterov, 1894)
Many consider Nesterov the greatest 20th century Russian artist (just as Repin was such in the 19th century). I feel that you can best gauge an artist not by their large set-pieces, but, rather by their more intimate productions. This drawing shows Nesterov’s skill at its finest, at a relatively early point of his career.
Pavel Filonov. A Portrait of Iosif Stalin. 1936
A Portrait of Iosif Stalin (Pavel Filonov, 1936)
There is something CREEPY in this portrayal. It is not obvious… yet, one feels that one is the presence of a completely amoral monster with absolutely no scruples whatsoever. If I were to choose a word to describe this portrait, it would be lupine. Of course, Filonov was a world-class artist, and could pull off such a stunning characterisation. Virtually all of his works hang in museums in St Petersburg, but, when they come onto the market (RARELY), you can understand that they fetch MILLIONS… and I don’t mean pazoozas or grekels, I mean the REAL THING.
Pavel Filonov. Faces on an Icon. 1940
Faces on an Icon (Pavel Filonov, 1940)
Note the date for this piece… it was painted at the height of Stalin’s repressions. If there is one emotion portrayed by this canvass, it is PAIN. Incidentally, Mr Filonov was to die of starvation in the siege of Leningrad the very next year. If one senses foreboding and a sense of imminent doom, I have no doubt that is there as well. This would be my choice for the work of art that is best suited to be a memorial for all who died in the repressions. Study it well… it shall reward you.
Thursday, 29 May 2008
A New Head of Steam…
A Portrait of E. G. Mamontova Reading (Ilya Repin, 1879)
Over the last few months, I seemed to run out of “inspiration” for new postings. I did not wish to post “empty wind”, nor did I desire to bore anyone with pointless verbiage. Well, I needed some fresh input. I realised that I had let my reading slide. If there were no new challenges, of course, the well would run dry. Today, I started to read an exciting book on Russian cultural life by Solomon Volkov, The Magical Chorus (ISBN 978-1-4000-4272-2, 2008, $30 hardcover). Mr Volkov is quite controversial, you must take some of his assertions with a block of salt, and I do not recommend this book for an absolute beginner in the topic (a rank novice should start with Natasha’s Dance by Orlando Figes, a more balanced work).
However, for those of us with a knowledge of the oeuvre and the dramatis personae, it is a bracing read. Yes, he trots out the old warhorse claim that Rimsky-Korsakov was a flaming atheist. Not so. I would not call him a conventional believer, but, to call him an atheist is going further than the attested facts allow. It often leads to, ”Why is he saying THAT?” In short, it gets the creative juices FLOWING.
The most interesting observation for us as Orthodox Christians is his short discussion of the émigré intellectual current known as Eurasianism. To put it in its most concise form, this school of thought believed that Russia had a special mission in the world because of its combination of both European and Asian elements. Some of its exponents were secularists, others, such as George Florovsky and Prince Trubetskoi were Orthodox. This is especially important for those in the OCA as Alexander Schmemann claimed to be the intellectual protégé and continuer of the work of Rev Florovsky in particular. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Schmemann spent his life distancing himself and his teaching from genuine sources of Russian Orthodoxy. Therefore, how could he be the disciple of Professor Florovsky? I do not recommend Florovsky to beginners, for it is academic theology that is fully understandable only by one who has lived the Orthodox life in its fullness for some time. His work contains nothing vital to salvation. There is nothing wrong in it, just understand that he is an intellectual talking about the faith, he is not an elder speaking from the heart. That being said, if one reads Florovsky and one also reads Schmemann (NOT recommended), the difference between the two becomes obvious with time.
Therefore, be wary whenever an SVS sort trots out George Florovsky (or G. P. Fedotov) as intellectual backstops to Schmemann’s fancies. I can assure you that these two very Orthodox scholars would have blanched at the Renovationism and American phyletism expounded at SVS. Do NOT argue with such sorts, for it is counter-productive, but, know what they peddling is pure Hooey.
I better keep reading. If I don’t, I’ll go dry again. May God Bless. Bog blagoslovit.
Vara Drezhlo
Thursday 29 May 2008
