Aleksandr Gerasimov was not just a Russian artist, he was a Soviet artist. It's not a coincidental distinction. He was intimately tied to the regime during its most autocratic stage. Aside from some operatic depictions of Lenin, he also painted official portraits of Stalin, some of which could make one wonder whether Gerasimov had to paint them over to erase apparatchiks who had fallen out of favor.
But whatever his political role, he was still an artist. A very good one, too. "Boat Trip", seen above, has long been one of his most sought-after works. Several kinds of sensuality are at work here. The mist and spray that rise from the water feel real enough to make you think of the way flecks of cool water feel on the skin. There are also the Russian women relaxed in the sun, one extending her legs, the other leaning forward into the wind. They're mostly turned away from us, enrapt in a grand picture of their own. The man had a real feel for his subjects.
2 comments:
After seeing this very beautiful painting and reading your thoughts about him Aleksandr Gerasimov appears to have been a complete and extraordinarily talented artist. I've seen his exaggerated images of Lenin and Stalin, painted in almost comically heroic style and have wondered if he actually admired the men or if he was simply flattering them in order to maintain his particular artistry.
Gerasimov's art is in wonderment: both for himself as artist and for the viewer. His world is about exquisite textures in those brightly colored impasto images - not at all unlike Vincent van Gogh's work which always amazes me. Yes, that is a very interesting and sensuous painting - not quite right in the details of how the women's bodies interact but they could be moving in that exciting environment of sun, wind and water.
Successful artists--successful in the material sense, I mean--always know how to work the system. That means knowing whom to flatter as much as anything else. I have no doubt that there are portraits of Jeff Bezos out there, technically accomplished but sort of making you wonder why the painter bothered. So Gerasimov could well have buttered up the party leaders to make sure he could otherwise work in peace.
I hadn't thought of the Van Gogh comparison before but there's a lot of validity to it. In both there's a feeling of solidity, the sense that something is there regardless of whether all the details are true to life. The women 's bodies are a little abstracted, but he captures the feeling of motion and the sense of being out in the elements.
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