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КАТАЛОГ. Живопись
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Живопись Мая Митурича
. Исследователь
творчества Мая Митурича М.А. Чегодаева
пишет: «Живописные вещи Мая Митурича соз-
дают совершенно особый мир, поэтический
и светлый; абсолютно-реальный – и волшебно-
чудесный, освобождённый от всего тёмного,
мрачного, преходящего…
Поэтическая сказочность пронизывает
и одухотворяет написанные с натуры скром-
ные веточки «Зимнего натюрморта» (1999),
дробные листья жасмина («Два жасмина»,
1993). На портрете Л.Н. Дилекторской «Ста-
ринное платье» сидящая на фоне призрачных,
переплетающихся стволов изящная женская
фигурка в необъятно широком, раскинув-
шемся во всю поляну «бабушкином» платье
обретает облик какой-то таинственной лесной
феи, словно бы возникшей из этих деревьев,
из серебристых листьев, кружева ветвей.
Совершенно уникальна в творчестве М. Миту-
рича подаренная им Астрахани большая кар-
тина «Золотой век» (1996). Три светлые, лёг-
кие как воздух фигуры простирают руки
к белому диску светила, поют ему гимн…»
(Чегодаева М.А. Май Митурич-Хлебников.
Живопись и графика из Астраханской коллек-
ции. Издательский дом «Астраханский универ-
ситет», 2005, 111 с.).
Painting by Vera Khlebnikova.
The ‘Khlebni-
kov Collection’ includes the artist’s painting works
performed in different periods of her life.
Let us note her “Self-Portrait” out of the chil-
dren’s and youth works. It depicts Vera’s head, full-
face, against a blue grey background. There is the
following inscription made with a dark paint on
the reverse side: “Vera Khlebnikova, 12–14 years
old”.
“Portrait of Mother in Interior”. A half-length
portrait of Y. Khlebnikova (back view) at a green
desk lamp; the background is brown. The work is
dated by 1902–1906.
The famous paintings of already mature artist
are included in the “Room of Painting by Vera
Khlebnikova”, on a regular basis. It is known that
a number of her paintings are kept in the Natio-
nal Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery and
the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. However, only
in Astrakhan, the connoisseurs of painting can see
such masterpieces as:
“Self-Portrait” (1910). A thin, beautiful full-
face surrounded by wooly hair. A delicate pink-
nacre color… She was nicknamed “a damsel with
small squares” for this portrait. Indeed, young
Khlebnikova’s craving for such latest schools as cu-
bism and impressionism can already be felt in it.
That was the reason for her departure to France
where she entered the studio of famous van Don-
gen. “About two years of hard work, – he said, –
and you would be one of the top artists in Paris”.
“The Mermaids” (1920). With some curiosity
and admiration, the mermaids’ eyes concentrate
on a drowned knight from the East. The work is
different from the whole Khlebnikova’s creative
work by its light tones. The outstandingly rich
white shading creates an impression of a nacre sur-
face. The colors of “The Mermaids” are refined
and exquisite. You can feel some influence of the
touch of Vrubelj and Nesterov.
“The Old and the Young” (1923). A sitting old
woman in a hooped skirt which seems to be occu-
pying the whole space apparently swallows up and
suffocates a little, flexible and aerial girl. The pic-
ture motif is dedicated to the eternal problem of
confrontation of the new with the traditional, the
old with the young, without the struggle of which
there is no evolution of life.
“Passage of the Herring” (1934). “An excellent
5-meter panel picture is filled entirely with a shoal
of the passing herrings. Like a metal shield scale,
like a noble black, the unnumbered fish bodies gli-
sten like silver. An almost monochrome but a rare
picturesque iron-grey color range prevails here”
(M. Chegodayeva).
The painting by Petr Miturich
is represented
in the ‘Khlebnikov Collection’ by just one work:
“The Studenets” (1956), created by him in the lat-
ter days of his life. Petr Miturich is much less
known to us as a painter than as a graphic artist.
His painting was not appreciated to the right de-
gree by his contemporaries. However, in a recently
published monograph by S. Miturich (the artist’s
grandson. –
A.M.
) – “The Unknown Petr Miturich.
Materials for the Biography” (Moscow: Tri Kva-
drata, 2008) – such brilliant painting works by Petr
Miturich as “A Horse Gussar Study” (1912),
“A Posthumous Portrait of M. Vrubelj” (1910),
“A Child (A Portrait of My Son Vasya)” (1916) were