Olga Sacharoff

On the 140th Anniversary of Olga Sacharoff

I am not sure whether to classify Olga Sacharoff as one of our own artists or as a foreign artist - in her case, it is difficult to avoid ethnographic picturesqueness. “Isn’t she Russian?” is what everyone says, but I always want to answer: “I’m not sure.” It’s very likely that she herself isn’t sure. Indeed, how could one possibly state with confidence “She’s Russian and that’s all there is to it”? The thing is, she moved to Barcelona during the Great War. The thing is, no one has managed to better express in painting the essential quintessence not simply of the Catalonian soul, but specifically the soul of Barcelona, than this woman who, if I may so express myself, can hardly be said to speak any of the Western European languages.