- 522
Natalya Nesterova
Estimate
30,000 - 40,000 USD
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Description
- Natalya Nesterova
- Eaten Grapes, 1994
- signed and titled in Cyrillic and dated 1994 (on the reverse)
- oil on canvas
- 35 3/8 by 39 3/8 in.
- 90 by 100 cm
Literature
Leonid Bazhanov and Ksenia Bogemskaya, Natalya Nesterova, exhibition catalogue, Moscow, 1989
Matthew Cullerne Bown, Contemporary Russian Art, Oxford: Phaidon Press, 1989
Alexandre Gertsman, ed., Natalya Nesterova: Reflections on Time Past, St. Petersburg: The State Russian Museum, Palace Editions, and IntArt, 2004
Alexandre Gertsman, ed., Remembrance: Russian Post-Modern Nostalgia, New York: IntArt Foundation, 2003
Margarita Tupitsyn, Natalya Nestrova: Recent Works from Moscow, New York: Sovart Inc., 1988
Matthew Cullerne Bown, Contemporary Russian Art, Oxford: Phaidon Press, 1989
Alexandre Gertsman, ed., Natalya Nesterova: Reflections on Time Past, St. Petersburg: The State Russian Museum, Palace Editions, and IntArt, 2004
Alexandre Gertsman, ed., Remembrance: Russian Post-Modern Nostalgia, New York: IntArt Foundation, 2003
Margarita Tupitsyn, Natalya Nestrova: Recent Works from Moscow, New York: Sovart Inc., 1988
Catalogue Note
A figurative artist, Natalya Nesterova graduated from the Surikov Art Institute in Moscow in 1968. The following year, Nesterova became a member of the Artists' Union of the USSR, and was soon considered a leading member of the left wing of the Union. At the age of twenty-two, she began taking part in the exhibits of the Young Moscow Artists, and in 1974 she had her first solo show at the Artists' House on Kuznetsky Bridge. In 1981, her work was shown for the first time abroad as part of Art 81 in Rome and Basel. Nesterova received the most prestigious awards in Russia--the National Award in Fine Arts, the Gold Medal of the Academy of Fine Arts, and the titles of Honorary Artist and Academician. In 1991, Nesterova was appointed Professor of Painting at the Russian Academy of Theater Arts in Moscow.
Although Nesterova was never counted among the ranks of dissident artists, her highly independent creative stance prompted criticism from the Soviet art establishment. Since Nesterova created works in a primitivist mode and often depicted grotesque imagery, she was accused of undermining the foundations of Russian professional artistic training.
By utilizing simplified forms, exaggerated figures, and bright colors, Nesterova makes reference to both the famous Georgian primitivist Pirosmani and the French naïve artist Henri Rousseau. The art of Paul Cézanne and the Surrealists are also among Nesterova's sources of inspiration. While some of Nesterova's works have surrealistic overtones, what sets her apart from the Surrealists is the humanness of her subjects. Nesterova does not depict specific individuals or landscapes in her paintings, but rather human types set in a timeless environment.
Chance, fate, and enlightenment are all recurring themes in Nesterova's work, which frequently focuses on leisure activities or vacation scenes. Her paintings include elements of theater and sometimes have religious connotations. The faces of her subjects are often concealed by fruit, birds, or flowers or are covered with masks, as can be seen in this lot. The masks consist of playing cards, which, according to the artist, is an allusion to chance and fate. Veiling the people's thoughts and mimicking their expressions, the masks infuse the scene with an air of mystery and a carnival-like aspect.
Although Nesterova was never counted among the ranks of dissident artists, her highly independent creative stance prompted criticism from the Soviet art establishment. Since Nesterova created works in a primitivist mode and often depicted grotesque imagery, she was accused of undermining the foundations of Russian professional artistic training.
By utilizing simplified forms, exaggerated figures, and bright colors, Nesterova makes reference to both the famous Georgian primitivist Pirosmani and the French naïve artist Henri Rousseau. The art of Paul Cézanne and the Surrealists are also among Nesterova's sources of inspiration. While some of Nesterova's works have surrealistic overtones, what sets her apart from the Surrealists is the humanness of her subjects. Nesterova does not depict specific individuals or landscapes in her paintings, but rather human types set in a timeless environment.
Chance, fate, and enlightenment are all recurring themes in Nesterova's work, which frequently focuses on leisure activities or vacation scenes. Her paintings include elements of theater and sometimes have religious connotations. The faces of her subjects are often concealed by fruit, birds, or flowers or are covered with masks, as can be seen in this lot. The masks consist of playing cards, which, according to the artist, is an allusion to chance and fate. Veiling the people's thoughts and mimicking their expressions, the masks infuse the scene with an air of mystery and a carnival-like aspect.