Abraham Mintchine (4 April 1898 – 25 April 1931) was one of the major painters associated with the artists' environment known as

School of Paris The School of Paris (, ) refers to the French and émigré artists who worked in Paris in the first half of the 20th century. The School of Paris was not a single art movement or institution, but refers to the importance of Paris as a centre o ...

. A Jewish painter, born in

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, he immigrated to Paris in 1925. His known artwork was produced mostly while in Paris and la Garde, between 1926 and 1931. He is famous for vibrant paintings where mysticism is also often present. His work can be related to

expressionism Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

, although as highlighted by

Giovanni Testori Giovanni Testori (Novate Milanese, 12 May 1923 – Milan, 16 March 1993) was an Italian writer, journalist, poet, art and literary critic, dramatist, screenplay writer, theatrical director and painter. Biography Childhood and youth “It i ...

, these categories which are convenient in art history are often too narrow to characterize painters like Mintchine.

Early life

Mintchine was born in

where at age 13 he was an apprentice to a

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Modern goldsmiths mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, they have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), plat ...

. He began painting from the age of 16 and studied at the Kyiv Art School (together with Josyf Weissblatt, Olexandr Tyshler) and at Olexandra Exter. Later he left

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

for

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in 1923. In Berlin he designed sets and costumes for the Jewish theatre. At the time of his first exhibition in

he displayed artwork in a style close to

Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broke ...

(only one painting from this period is known).

School of Paris

Mintchine's most prolific and self-defining period started when he arrived in Paris around 1925. There he developed an exalted style, through dense and vibrant compositions. Mintchine's life was not easy. In extreme poverty and married with a child, he nonetheless succeeded to develop a characteristic style. Mintchine often integrated mysticism in his compositions (often representations of angels or angelic elements such as wings). In 1929, the art dealer

René Gimpel René Albert Gimpel (4 October 1881–3 January 1945) was a French art dealer of Alsatian Jewish descent who died in 1945 in Neuengamme concentration camp, near Hamburg, Germany. Art dealer and collector Friend and patron of living artists ...

identified Mintchine as a "genius" painter and start buying all his paintings. About Mintchine's condition, he wrote in his journal: "he barely managed to scrape a 100 sous to live on; he wouldn't eat, and, dying of hunger would say to his wife: 'Eat, Mintchine isn't hungry'." Abraham Mintchine - Pierrot 1928

Mintchine's art reflects an exceptional intensity. His artwork is less tormented than Soutine's, conveying passion through great poetry (often with the addition of mystical elements). Mintchine's life was short but very prolific. Suffering from tuberculosis, he died at only 33 of a brain aneurysm (or possibly heart attack) while painting ''The Hill with Red Flowers''. Abraham Mintchine - Portrait of the Artist as a Harlequin 1931

Abraham Mintchine - Portrait of the Artist as a Harlequin 1931

Memory and legacy

Due to his death at a young age his artwork is generally rarer than others from the same period. More recently, several signed counterfeits have emerged. However, many of his artworks have been published by Massimo Di Veroli who continues to authenticate it. Abraham Mintchine’s artwork is present in collections of major Museums and galleries, including

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

. In 2022 the Mintchine Society was launched. The association has for role to protect and promote Abraham Mintchine’s artwork. It published a new website which contains an up-to date catalogue raisonné and a variety of documents about Abraham Mintchine. The platform also offers a unique point of contact for collectionneurs and curators all over the world.

References

External links

Abraham Mintchine - WikiGallery.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mintchine, Abraham 1898 births 20th-century French painters 20th-century Russian male artists French male painters 20th-century Russian painters Russian male painters School of Paris 1931 deaths Jewish painters Jewish School of Paris

Early life

School of Paris

Memory and legacy

See also

References

External links