Portrait of Catherine Balebina

Portrait of Catherine Balebina is a painting by Russian portrait artist Lev Russov (1926–1987), which depicts his wife Catherine Balebina (Russian: Екатери′на Васи′льевна Бале′бина; 1933–2002).[1]

Portrait of Catherine Balebina
ArtistLev A. Russov
Year1956
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions60 cm × 50 cm (24 in × 20 in)
Locationprivate collection, Moscow

History

The portrait was painted in Leningrad in 1956 is one of the most famous portraits of the artist. He had first met Catherine Balebina in 1955. She was born December 29, 1933, the daughter of Vasily Balebin, the famed military pilot and torpedo-bomber, Hero of the Soviet Union and Great Patriotic War. Soon she became his wife. The marriage was officially registered on 31 January 1959. His son Andrew Russov was born April 27, 1960 and was his primary muse. Charming and lively, full of self-sacrifice, he posed for Leo Russov as a model for many paintings and portraits. For many years he created and preserved a world that manifested itself in full force and flashed the creative gifts of Lev Russov.

In the portrait of his wife, Russov raises on a pedestal a gamine image of feminine beauty and charm. It seems Rusov had no purpose other than to canonize, sing of this perfect image. And he does it according to the laws of the genre. The author successfully found a neutral background, which in combination with a closed dark blue dress let all the attention focus on her face, effectively shaded by the chestnut mane of hair, and the full force from the expressive eyes of the young woman. Her gaze directed to the side, at the corner of her sensual lips she hides a smile. In contrast to the static pose, her eyes speak of a passionate and independent nature. We can read this also in the expression of her face.

In the portrait there are no details that belong to a specific time or place. And, yet, we unhesitatingly to recognize the young woman as a contemporary of the middle - second half of the 1950s. Perhaps never early the female images in Russian Art was not as open, cheerful, lively, and without a trace of affectation, never carried a combination of the spiritual and physical beauty with deep civic and independent views.[2]

Until the early 1990s, Portrait of Catherine Balebina was kept in the family of the artist. In the future, he was acquired in a private collection. In 2007 the «Portrait of Catherine Balebina» has been described and reproduced in the book «Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School» among 350 selected works by artists of the Leningrad School.[3]

See also

References
  1. Sergei V. Ivanov. Mysteries of early portraits of Lev Russov. (Rus)
  2. Иванов С. О ранних портретах Льва Русова // Петербургские искусствоведческие тетради. Выпуск 23. СПб., 2012. С.9.
  3. Sergei V. Ivanov. Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School. Saint Petersburg, NP-Print Edition, 2007. P.65.

Sources
  • Directory of Members of the Union of Artists of USSR. Volume 2.Moscow, Soviet artist, 1979. P.290.
  • Directory of members of the Leningrad branch of Union of Artists of Russian Federation. Leningrad, Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1980. P.103.
  • Иванов С. О ранних портретах Льва Русова // Петербургские искусствоведческие тетради. Выпуск 23. СПб., 2012. С.7-15.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.