Alexej Georgewitsch von Jawlensky (; 13 March 1864 – 15 March 1941), surname also spelt as Yavlensky, was a Russian

expressionist 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 ...

painter active in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He was a key member of the New Munich Artist's Association (

Neue Künstlervereinigung München The Neue Künstlervereinigung München (N.K.V.M.), ("New Artists' Association Munich") was an Expressionism art group based in Munich. The registered association was formed in 1909 and prefigured ''Der Blaue Reiter'' (The Blue Rider), the first ...

Der Blaue Reiter ''Der Blaue Reiter'' (''The Blue Rider'') was a group of artists and a designation by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc for their exhibition and publication activities, in which both artists acted as sole editors in the almanac of the same name ...

(The Blue Rider) group and later

Die Blaue Vier ''Der Blaue Reiter'' (''The Blue Rider'') was a group of artists and a designation by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc for their exhibition and publication activities, in which both artists acted as sole editors in the almanac of the same name ...

(The Blue Four).

Life and work

Alexej von Jawlensky was born in

Torzhok Torzhok () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Tver Oblast, Russia, located on the Tvertsa River along the federal highway M10 highway (Russia), M10 and a branch of the Oktyabrskaya Railway division of the Russian Railways. The ...

, a town in

Tver Governorate Tver Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, Russian SFSR, which existed from 1796 until 1929. Its seat was in Tver. The governorate was lo ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, as the fifth child of Georgi von Jawlensky and his wife Alexandra (née Medwedewa). At the age of ten he moved with his family to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. After a few years of military training, he became interested in painting, visiting the Moscow World Exposition c. 1880. Thanks to his good social connections, he managed to get himself posted to St. Petersburg and, from 1889 to 1896, studied at the art academy there, while also discharging his military duties. Jawlensky gained admittance to the circle of the renowned Russian realist painter

Ilya Repin Ilya Yefimovich Repin ( – 29 September 1930) was a Russian painter, born in what is today Ukraine. He became one of the most renowned artists in Russian Empire, Russia in the 19th century. His major works include ''Barge Haulers on the Volga' ...

. There he met

Marianne von Werefkin Marianne von Werefkin (born Marianna Vladimirovna Veryovkina; , ; – 6 February 1938) was a Russian artist, whose work is celebrated as a central part of German Expressionism. Life and career In Russia 1860–1896 Werefkin was born to ...

, a wealthy artist and former student of Repin. He requested that Werefkin be his mentor, and Werefkin decided to put her work on hold to promote his work and provide him with a comfortable lifestyle. Jawlensky and Werefkin moved to

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

in 1894, where he studied in the private school of

Anton Ažbe Anton Ažbe (30 May 1862 – 5 or 6 August 1905) was a Slovene realist painter and teacher of painting. Ažbe, crippled since birth and orphaned at the age of eight, learned painting as an apprentice to Janez Wolf and at the Academies in Vienn ...

. In 1905 Jawlensky visited

Ferdinand Hodler Ferdinand Hodler (March 14, 1853 – May 19, 1918) was a Swiss painter. He is one of the best-known Swiss painters of the nineteenth century. His early works were portraits, landscapes, and genre paintings in a realistic style. Later, he ad ...

, and two years later he began his long friendship with

Jan Verkade Johannes Sixtus Gerhardus (Jan) Verkade (18 September 1868 - 19 July 1946), afterwards Willibrord Verkade O.S.B., was a Dutch Post-Impressionist and Christian Symbolist painter. A disciple of Paul Gauguin and friend of Paul Sérusier, he belonge ...

and met

Paul Sérusier Paul Sérusier (; 9 November 1864 – 7 October 1927) was a French painter who was a pioneer of abstract art and an inspiration for the avant-garde Nabis movement, Synthetism and Cloisonnism. Education Sérusier was born in Paris. He studie ...

. Together, Verkade and Sérusier transmitted to Jawlensky both practical and theoretical elements of the work of the

Nabis Nabis may refer to: * Nabis of Sparta, reigned 207–192 BCE * Nabis (art), a Parisian post-Impressionist artistic group * ''Nabis'' (bug), a genus of insects * NABIS, National Ballistics Intelligence Service, a British government agency See a ...

, and

Synthetist Synthetism is a term used by Post-Impressionist artists like Paul Gauguin, Émile Bernard and Louis Anquetin to distinguish their work stylistically from Impressionism. Earlier, ''Synthetism'' has been connected to the term Cloisonnism, and later ...

principles of art. In Munich he met

Wassily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky ( – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter and art theorist. Kandinsky is generally credited as one of the pioneers of abstract art, abstraction in western art. Born in Moscow, he spent his childhood in ...

and various other Russian artists, and he contributed to the formation of the

. His work in this period was lush and richly coloured, but later moved towards abstraction and a simplified, formulaic style. Between 1908 and 1910 Jawlensky and Werefkin spent summers in the Bavarian Alps with Kandinsky and his companion, the painter

Gabriele Münter Gabriele Münter (19 February 1877 – 19 May 1962) was a German expressionist painter who was at the forefront of the Munich avant-garde in the early 20th century. She studied and lived with the painter Wassily Kandinsky and was a founding mem ...

. Here, through painting landscapes of their mountainous surroundings, they experimented with one another's techniques and discussed the theoretical bases of their art. Following a trip to the Baltic coast, and renewed contact with

Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual arts, visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, ...

in 1911 and

Emil Nolde Emil Nolde (born Hans Emil Hansen; 7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956) was a German painter and printmaker. He was one of the first Expressionists, a member of Die Brücke, and was one of the first oil painting and watercolor painters of the early ...

in 1912, Jawlensky turned increasingly to the expressive use of colour and form alone in his portraits. Expelled from Germany in 1914 due to WWI, he moved to Switzerland. He met Emmy Scheyer in 1916 (Jawlensky gave her the affectionate nickname, Galka, a Russian word for

jackdaw Jackdaws are two species of bird in the genus ''Coloeus'' closely related to, but generally smaller than, crows and ravens ('' Corvus''). They have a blackish crown, wings, and tail, with the rest of their plumage paler.Madge & Burn (1994) 136� ...

), another artist who abandoned her own work to champion his in the United States. After a hiatus in experimentation with the human form, Jawlensky produced perhaps his best-known series, the ''Mystical Heads'' (1917–19), and the ''Saviour’s Faces'' (1918–20), which are reminiscent of the traditional Russian Orthodox icons of his childhood. In 1921, Alexej von Jawlensky returned to Germany and took up residence in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

. There, in 1922, he married Werefkin's former maid Hélène Nesnakomoff, the mother of his only son,

Andreas Andreas () is a name derived from the Greek noun ἀνήρ ''anēr'', with genitive ἀνδρός ''andros'', which means "man". See the article on Andrew for more information. The Scandinavian name is earliest attested as antreos in a runeston ...

, who was born before their marriage (1902). In 1924 he established the Blue Four, whose works, thanks to Scheyer's tireless promotion, were jointly exhibited in Germany and the US. From 1929 Jawlensky suffered from progressively crippling

arthritis Arthritis is a general medical term used to describe a disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, Joint effusion, swelling, and decreased range of motion of ...

, which necessitated a reduced scale and finally forced a cessation in his painting in 1937. He began to dictate his memoirs in 1938. He died in

, Germany, on 15 March 1941. He and his wife Helene are buried in the cemetery of St. Elizabeth's Church, Wiesbaden.

Legacy

In November 2003 his '' Schokko'' (''Schokko mit Tellerhut'') sold for US$9,296,000 and in February 2008 for GB£9,450,000 (US$18.43 million). The 2006 album by the jazz group Acoustic Ladyland, ''Skinny Grin'', features one of his works, ''Portrait of The Dancer Alexander Sacharoff'', as its cover art. The six CD's issued by CPO with the complete string quartets by the Polish composer

Mieczysław Weinberg Mieczysław Weinberg (December 8, 1919 – February 26, 1996) was a Polish, Soviet, and Russian composer and pianist. Born in Warsaw to parents who worked in the Yiddish theatre in Poland, his early years were surrounded by music. He taught him ...

(1919–1996), and played by the

Danel Quartet The Danel Quartet (or Quatuor Danel) is a French/Belgian string quartet established in June 1991. Known for classical, early modern and contemporary repertoire, they tour internationally and have an extensive discography. They have both recorded ...

, all have a female portrait by von Jawlensky on their cover. Volume 1 shows "Frauenbildnis" (1909). Volume 2 has "Kind mit blauen Augen". Volume 3 has "Weiblicher Kopf" (1912). Volume 4 has "Mädchen mit Haube" (1910). Volume 5 has "Spanierin" (1911). And volume 6 shows "Kopf" (1912).

Alexej of Jawlensky-Award

In remembrance of the artist, in 1991 the "Jawlensky Award" has been coined. Every five years it is being awarded to contemporary artists by the capital of the federal state of Hesse

, the Spielbank Wiesbaden and the Nassauische Sparkasse. The award is accompanied by a cash prize, an exhibition at the Museum Wiesbaden and the purchase of a work.

Works

Paintings by von Jawlensky are displayed in galleries and museums around the world. The

Museum Ostwall The Museum Ostwall (known as Museum am Ostwall until 2010) is a museum of modern and contemporary art in Dortmund, Germany. It was founded in the late 1940s, and has been located in the Dortmund U-Tower since 2010. The collection include ...

Dortmund Dortmund (; ; ) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the List of cities in Germany by population, ninth-largest city in Germany. With a population of 614,495 inhabitants, it is the largest city ...

, Germany, maintains a collection of exceptional depth. The largest collection of works by von Jawlensky is kept at the

Museum Wiesbaden The Museum Wiesbaden is a two-branch museum of Art museum, art and Natural history museum, natural history in the Hesse, Hessian capital of Wiesbaden, Germany. It is one of the three Hessian State museums, in addition to the museums in Hessian ...

, which owns more than 90 works of the artist, and forms the most important collection of his work in Europe.

Representative works

File:Blumenstilleben (Still Life with Flowers) by Alexej von Jawlensky.jpg, ''Blumenstilleben'', 1908. Private collection. File:Alexej Jawlensky - Schokko with Red Hat (1909).jpg, ''Schokko with Red Hat'', 1909 File:Jawlensky Sakharoff.jpg, ''Portrait of

Alexander Sakharoff Alexander Sakharoff (, also spelled Sakharov and Sacharoff, 13 May 1886 – 25 September 1963) was a Russian dancer, teacher, and choreographer who immigrated to France. Life Sakharoff was born Alexander Zuckermann to a Jewish family in Mar ...

'', 1909 File:Alexej von Jawlensky - Schokko mit Tellerhut.jpg, ''Schokko with Wide Brimmed Hat'', 1910 File:Alexej von Jawlensky - Der violette Turban.jpg, ''Violet Turban'', 1911 File:Head of a Youth–Jawlensky (1911).jpg, ''Head of a youth'', 1911 File:Alexej von Jawlensky (selfportrait).jpeg, ''Self-Portrait'', 1912 File:Alexej von Jawlensky - Kopf in Blau.jpg, ''Head in Blue'', 1912 File:Brown curls–Jawlensky (1913).jpg, ''Brown curls,'' 1913 File:Alexej von Jawlensky Variation c1916.jpg, ''Variation'', 1916 File:Alexej von Jawlensky - Heilandsgesicht, Märtyrer.jpg, ''Savior's Face: Martyr'', 1919 File:Alexej von Jawlensky - Verwunderung.jpg, ''Astonishment'', 1919,

Norton Simon Museum The Norton Simon Museum is an art museum located in Pasadena, California. It was previously known as the Pasadena Art Institute and the Pasadena Art Museum and displays numerous sculptures on its grounds. Overview The Norton Simon collections ...

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

File:Jawlensky-Alexej-von Tete-de-femme-Meduse Lumiere-et-Ombre 1923.jpg, ''

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; ), also called Gorgo () or the Gorgon, was one of the three Gorgons. Medusa is generally described as a woman with living snakes in place of hair; her appearance was so hideous that anyone who looked upon her wa ...

'', 1923

References

External links

Official Website

Galerie Ludorff, Düsseldorf, Germany
''Biography of Alexej Georgewitsch von Jawlensky''

Information
with links fro
the-artists.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jawlensky, Alexej Von 1864 births 1941 deaths People from Torzhok German Expressionist painters 19th-century German painters German male painters 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists Painters from the Russian Empire Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the German Empire 19th-century German male artists