Pavel Nikolayevich Filonov ( rus, Па́вел Никола́евич Фило́нов, p=ˈpavʲɪl nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ fʲɪˈlonəf, a=Pavyel Nikolayevich Filonov.ru.vorb.oga; January 8, 1883 – December 3, 1941) was a

Russian avant-garde The Russian avant-garde was a large, influential wave of avant-garde modern art that flourished in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, approximately from 1890 to 1930—although some have placed its beginning as early as 1850 and its e ...

painter, art theorist, and poet.

Biography

Filonov was born in Moscow on January 8, 1883 (

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

) or December 27, 1882 (

Julian calendar The Julian calendar is a solar calendar of 365 days in every year with an additional leap day every fourth year (without exception). The Julian calendar is still used as a religious calendar in parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church and in parts ...

). In 1897, he moved to St. Petersburg, where he began taking art lessons. In 1908, he entered St. Petersburg Academy of Arts but was expelled in 1910. Between 1910 and 1914, Filonov was a member of the art group

Soyuz Molodyozhi Soyuz Molodyozhi (Union of the Youth, ) was an artistic group and an art magazine of Russian avant-garde organized in 1910. There were more than 30 members of the group and most of other Russian avant-garde participated in their exhibitions. Th ...

("Union of Youth"), founded by artists

Elena Guro Elena Genrikhovna Matyushina ( rus, Еле́на Ге́нриховна Матю́шина, p=jɪˈlʲɛnə ˈɡʲɛnrʲɪxəvnə mɐˈtʲuʂɨnə, a=Yelyena Gyenrihovna Matyushina.ru.vorb.oga, links=y; rus, Гуро́, p=ɡʊˈro, a=Yelyena G ...

and Mikhail Matyushin. In 1912, he wrote ''The Canon and the Law'', an article in which he articulated the principles of analytical realism, also known as "anti-Cubism". According to Filonov, while Cubism">analytical art">analytical realism, also known as "anti-Cubism". According to Filonov, while Cubism represents objects using elements of surface geometry, analytical realism seeks to represent objects through the elements of their inner essence or soul. He remained committed to these principles throughout his life. During 1913–1915, he associated closely with futurists such as Vladimir Mayakovsky, Velimir Khlebnikov, and other Russian Futurism, futurists. He collaborated with Kazimir Malevich to illustrate Khlebnikov's ''Selected Poems with Postscript'', 1907–1914. In the autumn of 1916, he enlisted to serve in World War I and was stationed on the

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

n front. Filonov later took an active role in the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

, serving as Chairman of the Revolutionary War Committee in the Dunay region. In 1919, he participated in the "First Free Exhibit of Artists of All Trends" at the Hermitage. By 1923, he had become a professor at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts and a member of the Institute for Artistic Culture (INKhUK). There, he founded the Masters of Analytical Realism, a significant art school with over seventy members, including the American sculptor and painter

Helen Hooker Helen Huntington Hooker or Helen Hooker O'Malley Roelefs (1 January 1905 – 2 April 1993) was an American sculptor and portrait painter who spent a considerable part of her career in Ireland. Early life Helen Huntington Hooker was born in Gree ...

. The group's work had a lasting influence on movements such as

suprematism Suprematism () is an early 20th-century art movement focused on the fundamentals of geometry (circles, squares, rectangles), painted in a limited range of colors. The term ''suprematism'' refers to an abstract art based upon "the supremacy of p ...

and

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 ...

. A major retrospective of Filonov's work was planned at the

Russian Museum The State Russian Museum (), formerly known as the Russian Museum of His Imperial Majesty Alexander III (), on Arts Square in Saint Petersburg, is the world's largest depository of Russian fine art. It is also one of the largest art museums in ...

in 1929, but the Soviet government prohibited it. From 1932 onward, Filonov endured severe poverty, refusing to sell his works to private collectors. He wished to donate his entire collection to the Russian Museum to establish a Museum of Analytical Realism. He died of starvation on December 3, 1941, during the

Siege of Leningrad The siege of Leningrad was a Siege, military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the city of Leningrad (present-day Saint Petersburg) in the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 1941 t ...

Method

Under the umbrella of Universal Flowering, Filonov developed a distinctive method of working that emphasized proceeding from the particular to the general. He believed that objects and compositions should be constructed from small details and fragments, considering any attempt to work in the opposite direction as nothing short of "charlatanism." To adhere to this philosophy, he used - and required his students to use - very small brushes for painting and the finest points for drawing.

Legacy

Most of Filonov's works were preserved by his sister, Yevdokiya Nikolayevna Glebova. She stored his paintings in the archives of the Russian Museum and eventually donated them as a gift. For many years, exhibitions of Filonov's work were prohibited. A breakthrough occurred in 1967 when a display of his works was allowed in

Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...

. Later, in 1988, his art was officially exhibited at the Russian Museum, followed by the first international exhibitions in Paris in 1989 and 1990. During the years when Filonov's works had a semi-legal status, theft might have seemed easy. However,
legend
persisted that Filonov's ghost protected his art. According to the tale, anyone who attempted to steal or smuggle his paintings abroad would suffer misfortune, such as death, paralysis, or similar calamities.

Selected works

Image:Pavel_Filonov_Heads.jpg, ''Heads'' (1910). Filonov considered this painting to be his first real work. Image:Pavel_Filonov_ManWoman.jpg, ''A Man and a Woman (Adam and Eve)'' (1912–1913). Image:Pavel_Filonov_KingsFeat.jpg, ''The Banquet of Kings'' (1913). Image:Pavel Filonov universal flowering.jpg, ''universal flowering'' (1915). Image:Pavel_Filonov_Pedagogics.jpg, ''The Formula of Contemporary Pedagogy of IZO'' (1923). Image:Pavel_Filonov_Horses.jpg, ''Horses'' (1924–1925). Image:Pavel_Filonov_2Heads.jpg, ''Two Heads. Rabbles'' (1925). Image:Pavel_Filonov_Animals.jpg, ''Animals'' (1930). Image:Pavel_Filonov_Faces.jpg, ''Countenances (Faces on an Icon)'' (1940)

References

External links