Sergei Arsenievich Vinogradov

A gift from the artist's widow to the family of the present owner in the 1940s

Possibly, Paris, Galeries d'Alignan, Exposition d'art russe, 1931, no.319
Riga, Akademika S.A.Vinogradova Gleznu Izstades, 1935, no.83

V.Sinaisky, Pskovo-Pecherskii Monastyr, Riga, 1929, p.29 illustrated
Exhibition catalogue Akademika S.A.Vinogradova Gleznu Izstades, Riga, 1935, no.83 listed
N.Lapidus, Sergei Arsenievich Vinogradov, St Petersburg: Khudozhnik Rossii, 2010, p.172 illustrated

A protective second canvas has been tacked to the reverse of the original. There is slight canvas buckling, particularly at the edges, and faint stretcher bar marks are visible along the top edge and in the lower left corner. There is mostly vertical craquelure throughout the composition. Slight frame abrasions, with associated minor paint loss are visible at the edges and there are a few light surface scratches also with paint loss, as in the red wall of the far right tower. There is a light covering of surface dirt and some discolouration, most notably in the sky above the central steeple Examination under UV light reveals very minor areas of retouching scattered throughout. Held in a painted carved wood frame with canvas slip. Unexamined out of frame.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In 1928 Vinogradov was invited by Professor Vasily Sinaisky, of the University of Latvia, to provide the illustrations for a cultural and historical study of the Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery. In the years between the 1920 Estonian war of Independence and 1945 Soviet annexation, the region fortuitously found itself in Estonian territory. This stroke of luck preserved the monastery and its Russian Orthodox community from the worst of the Soviet anti-religious campaigns. Although the monastery complex had sustained damage during the Great War and was even used as a garrison by German troops, by the late 1920s the turbulence of the previous years was over, the repairs were almost complete and there was a general sense of optimism. This optimism is reflected in Vinogradov’s sun-drenched scenes filled with areas of saturated colour which show the artist at his best as a colourist.

The present lot is reproduced in colour on page 29 of Sinaisky’s album. The Cathedral of the Dormition, which is the main church in the complex, is viewed from behind with its roofs and blue star-studded cupolas rising up behind Holy Mountain. The scene is endowed with a sense of timelessness, the oak trees which cast dappled shadows across the surface of the canvas date from the founding of the monastery itself and the green grass of the mountain seems to merge with the verdigris of the roofs, suggesting the communion of the architecture with its surroundings.