Leonid Purygin

Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner

Roslyn, New York, Nassau County Museum of Art, 20th Century Russian Art, 1992

Constance Schwartz, 20^th Century Russian Art: The Avant-Garde Years; The Glasnost Years, New York, Nassau County Museum of Art, 1992, p. 61, illustrated
Leonid Purygin: One-Man Exhibition, New York, Eduard Nakhamkin Fine Arts, 1989
Leonid Purygin, Moscow, Moscow Titul Publishers, 1992

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This elaborate triptych is very well preserved in what appears to be its original frame and the canvases still appear to be stretched on the original stretchers. In the lower right of the right-hand panel there is a small scuff which has created a tiny paint loss. There are some slightly visible cracks in the upper right of the central large panel and a few tiny spots to the right of the paintbrush held by the female figure. In general this piece is in beautiful state and with a small amount of maintenance, it could be hung as is.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Leonid Purygin's art draws on Russian folk art, mythology, and his own mental storehouse of fantastic imagery. His work—which he termed "mystical realism"—borders on surrealism while retaining elements of naïve art. Among his influences were the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch and Pieter Brueghel. In addition, Purygin's works were often based on icons and altarpieces, in which the place inhabited by Jesus Christ is occupied by Purygin himself or by one of the artists' personal demons or saints.

From the age of fourteen, Purygin began an independent life, performing various odd jobs. Painting from a very young age, he started his art education in 1969 at the studio of the Narofominsk House of Culture. Then, over the course of four years, he unsuccessfully attempted to enroll in the Moscow Art School in Memory of 1905. Purygin's name finally became  known after the first Sotheby's auction held in Moscow in 1988.