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!

Nu Pogodi (Just You Wait!). Remix video with Russian pop standards

Nu Pogodi (Just You Wait!) was a popular Soviet-era cartoon series. Here, old clips from the series are matched with Russian pop/rock standards. I think that this is the Russian equivalent of the Road Runner and the Coyote… and my Nicky agrees with me!

Vinni Pukh, Chast 1 (Winnie the Pooh (Russian-style), Part 1)

Here’s a different take on Winnie the Pooh, it’s not the yellow Disney bear! He’s a dark-brown Mishka-like character, and Piglet is rather skinny, to be sure. Again, you need no facility in Russian to follow the fun!

Poliklinika Kota Leopolda (Leopold the Cat Goes to the Polyclinic)

A sweet little Russian cartoon about Leopold the Cat and his two mouse adversaries. you need not understand Russian to get in on the fun! They are at the polyclinic, and all sort of mayhem ensues.

Marc Chagall. Birthday. 1915

Birthday (Marc Chagall, 1915)

I thought that a fun piece from Chagall would fill the bill (no pun  intended, Bill, I heard that crack!), and this is just a plain ol’ romp from one of the greats. I LIKE this piece, and that is all there is to say.