Anonymous. Meeting the Guest of Honour. 2009

Meeting the Guest of Honour (Anonymous, 2009)

This was an incident during the visit of Patriarch Kirill Gundyaev to Solovki in August 2009. It was on a Live Journal site, http://nixette.livejournal.com/ Apparently, it was scanned from the November/December 2009 issue of Russian Life (which is available at Barnes & Noble in the north-eastern USA, I can’t speak for other regions), which is still on sale, I’ll warrant.

The clergy lined up in anticipation of the patriarch’s arrival, then, a mutt strolled out of the crowd, moved amongst the priests, sniffing the air happily. It caused smiles all around, but, no one moved. After sowing such cheery confusion, the dog sauntered leisurely back into the crowd.

Theodor Kittelsen. En Uheldig Bjørnejakt (A Bear-Hunt Gone Wrong). 1908

En Uheldig Bjørnejakt (A Bear-Hunt Gone Wrong) (Theodor Kittelsen, 1908)

Not a work by a Russian artist, but, “bears” are an archtypical “Russian” subject, so, I offer no excuses for this romp into “bearishness”. Don’t mess with the bear! You might be sorry!

By the way, my Nicky LOVES this picture… you can see why, of course!

For the curious, this painting is Danish… so… a bow of respect to Fr Peter Olsen, rector at St Basil Russian Orthodox Church in Maplewood NY, one of the finest priests and human-beings I have ever met. God keep you, Batiushka Peter!

Valery Busygin. A Cat. 1992

A Cat (Valery Busygin, 1992)

This cat reminds me of one of our cats, Poochie, a grey tomcat. No, his fur is not matted, but, he is as every bit as inquisitive and bold. Nicky named him Poochie because “he acts like a dog”, in his words. That is, Poochie is very protective and “guards the house”. It is interesting how this cat came into Nicky’s life. Nicky heard a scratching at the door, and, when he opened the door, Poochie meowed, walked in, and made himself right at home. That was ten years ago…

Andrei Drozdov. Fyodor the Groom. 2003

Fyodor the Groom (Andrei Drozdov, 2003)

Nikolai Bogatov. It Frightened Him. 1896

It Frightened Him (Nikolai Bogatov, 1896)

Happy New Year… Hic! …s Novym Godom, Y’all!

Looks like Sir Rabbit has been hitting the ol’ Mousecatel again! Where else but Russia would you find an image of a tiddly coney for New Year’s?

Cheers! Prosit! ¡Salud! Na stroviya! Down the hatch, y’all! Now, where did I put that corkscrew… Nicky!

s Novym Godom! To the New Year!

N. Samokish. A Troika. circa 1930

A Troika (N. Samokish, circa 1930)

Konstantin Vasiliev. The Falcon. 1969

The Falcon (Konstantin Vasiliev, 1969)

Konstantin Vasiliev. The Burning Fire (an étude). 1973

The Burning Fire (an étude) (Konstantin Vasiliev, 1973)

Konstantin Vasiliev. The Burning Fire. 1973

The Burning Fire (Konstantin Vasiliev, 1973)