- 482
Alexander Kharitonov
Estimate
30,000 - 40,000 USD
bidding is closed
Description
- Alexander Kharitonov
- Resurrection, 1989
- signed, titled, dated 1989 and dedicated in Cyrillic to the Russian philosopher Fedorov (on the reverse)
- oil on canvas
- 15 by 13 1/4 in.
- 38.1 by 33.7 cm
Provenance
Collection of the artist's widow, Moscow
Literature
Mikhail Sokolov, Alexander Kharitonov, New York: The Third Wave, 1992
Norton Dodge, ed., Alexander Kharitonov, Museum of Contemporary Russian Art, New Jersey: Museum of Contemporary Russian Art, 1991
Norton Dodge, ed., Alexander Kharitonov, Museum of Contemporary Russian Art, New Jersey: Museum of Contemporary Russian Art, 1991
Catalogue Note
Alexander Kharitonov, an artist who consistently used Christian imagery, was at once traditional and innovative: traditional in his devotion to Byzantine and Russian Orthodox imagery, innovative in his creation of a highly personal artistic language.
After World War II, Kharitonov studied art at the Moscow Art School for Gifted Children. His first one-man show took place in 1958 at Moscow State University.
Until the late 1980s, art with religious themes was unacceptable to the Soviet authorities--as was work with controversial political commentary, social criticism, and erotic subject matter. In the 1960s-1980s, some nonconformist artists, in opposition to the dogmatic anti-religious stance of the Soviet government, introduced forbidden religious imagery into their art.
As the artist explained: "My work rests on three pillars: Byzantine painting, Old Russian icon painting, and church embroidery in precious stones, pearls, and beads." Kharitonov was also influenced by nineteenth-century Russian landscape painting, especially the work of Alexei Savrasov.
In Resurrection (In Memory of the Russian Philosopher Nikolai Fedorov, 1989), Kharitonov uses a pointillist technique inspired by both Byzantine and Russian iconography and old Russian church embroidery, with its intricate use of beads and gemstones. Kharitonov's tiny, raised brushstrokes resemble the mosaics found in Christian churches.
Pantheistic Cosmism reigns supreme in Resurrection, which is dedicated to the noted Russian thinker Nikolai Fedorov (1828-1903). Fedorov was a Russian Orthodox Christian philosopher who was part of the Russian Cosmism movement. He advocated radical life extension through the use of scientific methods and embraced the notions of human immortality and the possibility of resurrecting the dead. Fedorov's writings heavily influenced the mystic Petr Uspensky and the early rocket scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, and he was highly praised by the writers Fedor Dostoevsky and Leo Tolstoy.
Many of Kharitonov's works include some autobiographical references, and Resurrection is no exception. In this work the artist included images of his wife and himself as one of the angels in the foreground.
In 1986, Kharitonov became paralyzed but continued painting his intimate-scale works deeply rooted in Russian cultural tradition and imbued with spiritual enlightenment.
After World War II, Kharitonov studied art at the Moscow Art School for Gifted Children. His first one-man show took place in 1958 at Moscow State University.
Until the late 1980s, art with religious themes was unacceptable to the Soviet authorities--as was work with controversial political commentary, social criticism, and erotic subject matter. In the 1960s-1980s, some nonconformist artists, in opposition to the dogmatic anti-religious stance of the Soviet government, introduced forbidden religious imagery into their art.
As the artist explained: "My work rests on three pillars: Byzantine painting, Old Russian icon painting, and church embroidery in precious stones, pearls, and beads." Kharitonov was also influenced by nineteenth-century Russian landscape painting, especially the work of Alexei Savrasov.
In Resurrection (In Memory of the Russian Philosopher Nikolai Fedorov, 1989), Kharitonov uses a pointillist technique inspired by both Byzantine and Russian iconography and old Russian church embroidery, with its intricate use of beads and gemstones. Kharitonov's tiny, raised brushstrokes resemble the mosaics found in Christian churches.
Pantheistic Cosmism reigns supreme in Resurrection, which is dedicated to the noted Russian thinker Nikolai Fedorov (1828-1903). Fedorov was a Russian Orthodox Christian philosopher who was part of the Russian Cosmism movement. He advocated radical life extension through the use of scientific methods and embraced the notions of human immortality and the possibility of resurrecting the dead. Fedorov's writings heavily influenced the mystic Petr Uspensky and the early rocket scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, and he was highly praised by the writers Fedor Dostoevsky and Leo Tolstoy.
Many of Kharitonov's works include some autobiographical references, and Resurrection is no exception. In this work the artist included images of his wife and himself as one of the angels in the foreground.
In 1986, Kharitonov became paralyzed but continued painting his intimate-scale works deeply rooted in Russian cultural tradition and imbued with spiritual enlightenment.