- 237
Mikhail Shvartsman
Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 GBP
Log in to view results
bidding is closed
Description
- Mikhail Shvartsman
- Exit
- signed in Cyrillic l.l.; further signed, titled, inscribed Moskva, dated 1972 and bearing various exhibition labels on the reverse
- tempera and gesso on board
- 100 by 75cm, 39 1/2 by 29 1/2in.
Exhibited
St Petersburg, State Russian Museum; Moscow, State Tretyakov Gallery; Frankfurt am Main, Städel et al., Nonkonformisty: vtoroy russkiy avangard 1955-1988, 1996-1997
Verona, Palazzo Forti, L'arte vietata in URSS 1955-1988, 7 March - 4 June 2000
Ashdod, Art Museum Ashdod, Persecuted Art & Artists under Totalitarian Regimes in Europe During the 20th Century, 22 June - 21 September 2003
Bern, Kunstmuseum Bern, Avantgarde im Untergrund. Russische Nonkonformisten aus der Sammlung Bar-Gera, 3 February - 24 April 2005
Bratislava, Slovak National Gallery, Nonkonformisti. Druhá ruská avantgarda 1955-1988. Zbierka Bar-Gera, 2008
Verona, Palazzo Forti, L'arte vietata in URSS 1955-1988, 7 March - 4 June 2000
Ashdod, Art Museum Ashdod, Persecuted Art & Artists under Totalitarian Regimes in Europe During the 20th Century, 22 June - 21 September 2003
Bern, Kunstmuseum Bern, Avantgarde im Untergrund. Russische Nonkonformisten aus der Sammlung Bar-Gera, 3 February - 24 April 2005
Bratislava, Slovak National Gallery, Nonkonformisti. Druhá ruská avantgarda 1955-1988. Zbierka Bar-Gera, 2008
Literature
Exhibition catalogue Nonkonformisty: vtoroy russkiy avangard 1955-1988, Cologne: Wienand, 1996, p.221 illustrated
Exhibition catalogue L'arte vietata in URSS 1955-1988, Milan: Electa, 2000, p.159 illustrated
Exhibition catalogue Persecuted Art & Artists under Totalitarian Regimes in Europe During the 20th Century, Bönen: Druck Verlag Kettler, 2003, p.199 illustrated; p.283 listed
Exhibition catalogue Avantgarde im Untergrund. Russische Nonkonformisten aus der Sammlung Bar-Gera, Bern: Benteli Verlag, 2005, p.105 illustrated; p.174, no.115 listed
Mikhail Shvartsman, St Petersburg: Palace Editions, 2005, p.127, no.37 illustrated; p.366, no.68 listed
Exhibition catalogue Nonkonformisti. Druhá ruská avantgarda 1955-1988. Zbierka Bar-Gera, Bratislava: Slovenská Národná Galéria, 2008, p.91, no.2 illustrated; p.168 listed
Exhibition catalogue L'arte vietata in URSS 1955-1988, Milan: Electa, 2000, p.159 illustrated
Exhibition catalogue Persecuted Art & Artists under Totalitarian Regimes in Europe During the 20th Century, Bönen: Druck Verlag Kettler, 2003, p.199 illustrated; p.283 listed
Exhibition catalogue Avantgarde im Untergrund. Russische Nonkonformisten aus der Sammlung Bar-Gera, Bern: Benteli Verlag, 2005, p.105 illustrated; p.174, no.115 listed
Mikhail Shvartsman, St Petersburg: Palace Editions, 2005, p.127, no.37 illustrated; p.366, no.68 listed
Exhibition catalogue Nonkonformisti. Druhá ruská avantgarda 1955-1988. Zbierka Bar-Gera, Bratislava: Slovenská Národná Galéria, 2008, p.91, no.2 illustrated; p.168 listed
Condition
The support is sound, a strip frame has been attached to the edges. There are minor abrasions visible along the right and left edges. Bits of grit are visible in the underlying layer of gesso at the edges. There are surface scratches in places. The varnish layer is uneven and there is a layer of surface dirt with spots in places. Inspection under UV light does not reveal any obvious signs of retouching. Unexamined out of frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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 response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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."
Catalogue Note
In light of the wave of abstract art from the second half of the twentieth century, hieratism is one of the most successful and capacious systems within the visual arts with the potential for future discoveries. Continuing the analytic theme of the early avant-garde, Mikhail Shvartsman offers a new artistic language based on the essence of symbols.
For the artist, the symbol was a way of signifying hidden meanings, revealing the invisible as the foundation of creation and the pre-foundation of the visible. In Shvartsman’s work, the hierature is the symbol itself, where with the help of abstract forms that create peculiar structures through their compositional blend, the artist signifies the plan of the invisible, the meaning hidden within the realities of the world, and expresses his mystical experience. Narrative is completely absent from the artist’s works. The forms that help to construct the image are deprived of a fixed meaning; the meaning arises as a result of their combination based on a set relation of forms, light, colour, space, surface, texture.
Shvartsman constructs a complex spatial structure on a plane without disturbing its two-dimensionality. The background is seen as a neutral surface that has the meaning of ideographic space. Through appropriate colour and light effects, he rotates the forms to the required perspective and achieves a combination of different spatial zones within one planar structure.
Two viewpoints occur as a result: from within the painting space and from outside. Moreover, the height of the exterior viewpoint can vary in relation to the horizon. The character and movement of forms, which symbolise the metamorphosis of lifeforms, express the meaning of the various processes of the world’s being. These processes, structurally recognised, find their significance in hierature. This most complex plastic storytelling unveils the artist's central themes – space and time. He regards time as infinity, carrying with it multi-dimensional worlds.
These methods, which are representative of the artist’s work, characterise the hierature Exit.
We would like to thank Dr Olga Yushkova, art historian, for providing this catalogue note.
For the artist, the symbol was a way of signifying hidden meanings, revealing the invisible as the foundation of creation and the pre-foundation of the visible. In Shvartsman’s work, the hierature is the symbol itself, where with the help of abstract forms that create peculiar structures through their compositional blend, the artist signifies the plan of the invisible, the meaning hidden within the realities of the world, and expresses his mystical experience. Narrative is completely absent from the artist’s works. The forms that help to construct the image are deprived of a fixed meaning; the meaning arises as a result of their combination based on a set relation of forms, light, colour, space, surface, texture.
Shvartsman constructs a complex spatial structure on a plane without disturbing its two-dimensionality. The background is seen as a neutral surface that has the meaning of ideographic space. Through appropriate colour and light effects, he rotates the forms to the required perspective and achieves a combination of different spatial zones within one planar structure.
Two viewpoints occur as a result: from within the painting space and from outside. Moreover, the height of the exterior viewpoint can vary in relation to the horizon. The character and movement of forms, which symbolise the metamorphosis of lifeforms, express the meaning of the various processes of the world’s being. These processes, structurally recognised, find their significance in hierature. This most complex plastic storytelling unveils the artist's central themes – space and time. He regards time as infinity, carrying with it multi-dimensional worlds.
These methods, which are representative of the artist’s work, characterise the hierature Exit.
We would like to thank Dr Olga Yushkova, art historian, for providing this catalogue note.