Shchusev

SHCHUSEV’S PSKOV EXPEDITIONS

Sergei Koluzakov

Magazine issue: 
Special edition "St. Anastasia Chapel in Pskov. An Artistic Collaboration Between Alexei Shchusev and Nicholas Roerich"

In 1910, upon the recommendation of Igor Emmanuelovich Grabar, the Pskov zemstvo (local elected government) turned to Alexei Viktorovich Shchusev, who was the only person able to manage the difficult undertaking of creating a design for the chapel (St. Anastasia Chapel - S.K.) in the Pskov spirit. And indeed, Shchusev had, by then, earnt a reputation for having a thorough knowledge of the Novgorod and Pskov architecture and for designing several structures inspired by the arresting images and features of this school. The architect, who, at that time, lived and worked in St. Petersburg, regularly travelled to Veliky Novgorod and Pskov to study the architecture. He brought scores of photographs and sketched images of famous paintings and landmark buildings from his trips and he also brought measurements. The depth of his knowledge of the subject is evidenced in the chapters that Shchusev co-wrote with V. Pokrovsky for the first volume of Igor Grabar’s “A History of Russian Art” - “St.Sophia Cathedral of Novgorod and the Beginnings of the Original Architecture”, “The Best Period of Novgorodian Architecture” and “Civil Buildings and Fortifications in Novgorod and Pskov” - and in his array of photographs published in this tome. However, the visits to Veliky Novgorod and Pskov that Shchusev made before the Revolution have been omitted almost entirely from monographs and academic publications about on his work.

SHCHUSEV’S PSKOV EXPEDITIONS

St. Anastasia Chapel in Pskov. AN ARTISTIC COLLABORATION BETWEEN ALEXEI SHCHUSEV AND NICHOLAS ROERICH

Sergei Koluzakov

Magazine issue: 
Special edition "St. Anastasia Chapel in Pskov. An Artistic Collaboration Between Alexei Shchusev and Nicholas Roerich"

A small but unique creation by Alexei Shchusev (1873-1949), the St. Anastasia Chapel in Pskov is one of the few church buildings designed by Shchusev to have survived to the present day in Russia, and its murals are among only a handful of surviving works of public art by Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947). Neither artists’ biographers have written much about this landmark, the construction and decoration of which was an important milestone in their artistic collaboration. Despite its significance, in the Soviet period, the chapel suffered serious losses and the deformation of its original appearance. Only now - given the opportunity to study the previously unpublished archival materials, photos taken before the Bolshevik Revolution and technical drawings - can researchers trace the history of the chapel’s creation, compare its architecture and decor, and gain a better understanding of its creators’ vision.

St. Anastasia Chapel in Pskov. AN ARTISTIC COLLABORATION BETWEEN ALEXEI SHCHUSEV AND NICHOLAS ROERICH

To dear Alexei Viktorovich Shchusev, as a token of my heartfelt admiration for his truly monumental talent, which will be considered in the future as one of Russia's jewels, in memory of our common thoughts, aspirations, hopes and faith, yours truly and sincerely, Nicholas Roerich.
November 15, 1913

Nicholas Roerich's dedication in his "Collected Works”, 1914

A Funerary Memorial for Arkhip Kuindzhi

Sergei Koluzakov

Article: 
POSTSCRIPTUM
Magazine issue: 
#3 2018 (60)

Commissioned by the “Kuindzhi Society of Artists”, Alexei Shchusev worked on the monument to his mentor over the course of two years, modifying his vision together with his collaborators, notably the artist Nicholas Roerich. Such a process, involving a synthesis of the arts, would prove significant in Shchusev’s later work, including the Lenin Mausoleum.

A Funerary Memorial for Arkhip Kuindzhi

Commissioned by the “Kuindzhi Society of Artists”, Alexei Shchusev worked on the monument to his mentor over the course of two years, modifying his vision together with his collaborators, notably the artist Nicholas Roerich. Such a process, involving a synthesis of the arts, would prove significant in Shchusev’s later work, including the Lenin Mausoleum.

Alexei Shchusev and the Stage

Valentina Khairova

Article: 
HERITAGE
Magazine issue: 
#2 2017 (55)

Much has been written about the famous architect Alexei Shchusev, whose career flourished both before the Russian Revolution and during the Soviet era. We have Shchusev's own memoirs as well as the remembrances of his family and friends, while the architect's versatile achievements have been well documented by scholars. However, his connections with the theatre and his work as a stage designer - such as on the 1926 Moscow Art Theatre production of "The Sisters Gerard" - are much less known.

Alexei Shchusev and the Stage

Much has been written about the famous architect Alexei Shchusev, whose career flourished both before the Russian Revolution and during the Soviet era. We have Shchusev's own memoirs as well as the remembrances of his family and friends, while the architect's versatile achievements have been well documented by scholars. However, his connections with the theatre and his work as a stage designer - such as on the 1926 Moscow Art Theatre production of "The Sisters Gerard" - are much less known.

The St. Alexius Church at Tsarskoye Selo. Alexei Shchusev’s “Unknown” Project

Sergei Koluzakov

Article: 
HERITAGE
Magazine issue: 
#1 2016 (50)

In the years preceding the revolution, Alexei Shchusev worked predominantly on church architecture and made a name for himself as a professional in that field. In 1901, he was assigned, “as an addition to the existing staff”, to the office of the Holy Synod’s Attorney General. However, by 1910 Shchusev had already become a member of the Imperial Academy of Arts “in recognition of his artistic reputation”. After the 1917 revolution, the artist accepted the new government and wrote his own chapter in the history of Russian architecture, creating many outstanding monuments.

The St. Alexius Church at Tsarskoye Selo. Alexei Shchusev’s “Unknown” Project

The Holy Trinity Church in Cuhurestii*

Sergei Koluzakov

Article: 
EXCLUSIVE PUBLICATIONS
Magazine issue: 
#1 2014 (42)

ONE OF THE REMAINING ENIGMAS OF NATALIA GONCHAROVAS ARTISTIC LEGACY CONCERNS HER WORK ON THE MURALS FOR A CHURCH IN BESSARABIA (NOW MOLDOVA) BUILT BY THE ARCHITECT ALEXEI SHCHUSEV. FOR A LONG TIME HER INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROJECT WAS A MATTER OF DISPUTE.

The Holy Trinity Church in Cuhurestii

* The Holy Trinity Church in Cuhurestii designed by Alexei Shchusev, and Natalia Goncharova's sketches for the church's murals

ONE OF THE REMAINING ENIGMAS OF NATALIA GONCHAROVAS ARTISTIC LEGACY CONCERNS HER WORK ON THE MURALS FOR A CHURCH IN BESSARABIA (NOW MOLDOVA) BUILT BY THE ARCHITECT ALEXEI SHCHUSEV. FOR A LONG TIME HER INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROJECT WAS A MATTER OF DISPUTE.

The Portraits of Mikhail Nesterov

Lyudmila Bobrovskaya

Article: 
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
Magazine issue: 
#1 2013 (38)

PORTRAITS WERE A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF NESTEROV'S OEUVRE, BUT FOR A VERY LONG TIME -PRACTICALLY UNTIL THE EARLY 1930S - THE ARTIST WOULD REGULARLY REPEAT THE PHRASE, "I'M NO PORTRAITIST!", IN LETTERS TO HIS FRIENDS. ALWAYS DEMANDING OF HIMSELF AS AN ARTIST, NESTEROV BELIEVED THAT HIS PORTRAITS WERE NOT OF THE SAME CALIBRE AS THOSE OF HIS PREDECESSORS SUCH AS VASILY PEROV, IVAN KRAMSKOYOR ILYA REPIN; EVEN "THE GIRL WITH PEACHES" BY THE MUCH YOUNGER ARTIST VALENTIN SEROV, NESTEROV REGARDED AS REACHING AN UNATTAINABLE LEVEL OF ARTISTRY.

The Portraits of Mikhail Nesterov
"As a portraitist, I felt attracted to those people whose
life paths reflected their thoughts, feelings, acts."
Mikhail Nesterov. "My Bygone Days. Encounters and Memories"

Mikhail Nesterov and Alexei Shchusev. Collaborate Unknown projects

Sergei Koluzakov

Article: 
EXCLUSIVE PUBLICATIONS
Magazine issue: 
#1 2013 (38)

BY THE LAST YEARS OF THE ROMANOV DYNASTY MIKHAIL NESTEROV AND ALEXEI SHCHUSEV WERE ALREADY FULLY-FLEDGED CULTURAL LUMINARIES IN RUSSIA. NESTEROV HAD WON ACCLAIM WITH HIS NATIONAL-ROMANTIC PAINTINGS SUCH AS "THE HERMIT", "THE VISION OF THE YOUNG BARTHOLOMEW", AND "THE MURDERED TSAREVICH DMITRY", WHILE SHCHUSEV'S DESIGN HAD BEEN CHOSEN FOR MOSCOW'S LARGEST CONSTRUCTION PROJECT - THE KAZAN RAILWAY STATION IN MOSCOW. BOTH MEN WERE REGARDED BY THEIR CONTEMPORARIES AS VERY ORIGINAL FIGURES IN CHURCH PAINTING AND ARCHITECTURE. THIS ARTICLE'S FOCUS ON THEIR ARTISTIC COLLABORATION IS NATURAL, BECAUSE NESTEROV, AL¬WAYS DEMANDING OF HIMSELF, CONSIDERED THE CHURCH BUILDINGS DESIGNED BY SHCHUSEV IN COLLABORATION WITH HIM AS HIS GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS MADE "ON THE CHURCH SCAF¬FOLDING". MOREOVER, THE NATURE OF THIS COLLABORATION ARGUABLY INDICATES THAT THE TWO MASTERS INFLUENCED ONE ANOTHER. NOT SURPRISINGLY, AFTER THE BOLSHEVIK REVOLU¬TION THEIR CHURCH-RELATED PROJECTS WERE RARELY MENTIONED. IN THE COURSE OF THE PREPARATION FOR THE EXHIBITION "MIKHAIL NESTEROV. IN SEARCH OF HIS RUSSIA", I HAVE MAN¬AGED TO EXAMINE UNKNOWN EPISODES IN THE ARTIST'S CAREER, STUDYING THOSE OF HIS COM¬MISSIONED WORKS THAT EVEN EXPERTS KNOW LITTLE ABOUT, AND IDENTIFYING IMAGES AND DRAWINGS NEVER PREVIOUSLY PRINTED.

Mikhail Nesterov and Alexei Shchusev

BY THE LAST YEARS OF THE ROMANOV DYNASTY MIKHAIL NESTEROV AND ALEXEI SHCHUSEV WERE ALREADY FULLY-FLEDGED CULTURAL LUMINARIES IN RUSSIA. NESTEROV HAD WON ACCLAIM WITH HIS NATIONAL-ROMANTIC PAINTINGS SUCH AS "THE HERMIT", "THE VISION OF THE YOUNG BARTHOLOMEW", AND "THE MURDERED TSAREVICH DMITRY", WHILE SHCHUSEV'S DESIGN HAD BEEN CHOSEN FOR MOSCOW'S LARGEST CONSTRUCTION PROJECT - THE KAZAN RAILWAY STATION IN MOSCOW. BOTH MEN WERE REGARDED BY THEIR CONTEMPORARIES AS VERY ORIGINAL FIGURES IN CHURCH PAINTING AND ARCHITECTURE.

Syndicate content