The Hermitage Leningrad Western European Art

Album de arta The Hermitage Leningrad Western European Art-Paintings, drawings, sculptures, publicat de Aurora Art Publishers-Leningrad, an aparitie 1984, 336 pagini, format 35x27, supracopera si caseta de protectie. Pentru doritori albumul este disponibil.

Istoria timpurie a Departamentului de Arta Occidentala Europeana se aseamana intrucatva chiar cu istoria Leningradului. Precum Sankt Petersburg a rivalizat cu cele mai somptuoase si luxoase capitale ale Europei, tot asa colectiile de opere de arta Apuseana, colectie inceputa in anul 1764- data oficiala a fondarii Ermitajului, nu a avut nevoie decat de doua decade ca sa ajunga opulenta si varietatea care au plasat-o alaturi de cele mai faimoase colectii europene.

Exponate izolate de arta europeana si-au gasit locul in Rusia in etapele istorice precedente, mai ales in timpul domniei lui Petru cel Mare dar aparitia colectiilor consistente a inceput propriu-zis in a doua jumatate a secolului al optsprezecelea.

Achizitiile timpurii facute de Ecaterina a doua aveau menirea de a decora somptuoasele apartamente ale imensului Palat de Iarna dar in scurt timp, colectia Imperiala a crescut depasind functiunea decorativa devenind un muzeu veritabil, nucleul insusi al viitorului Ermitaj.

Dezvoltarea Muzeului a fost uimitoare si rapida astfel incat primul catalog tiparit la zece ani dupa infiintarea colectiei numara deja 2080 de picturi iar peste inca un deceniu, galeria de pictura continea 2568 de panze.

Succesul colectiei Imperiale a constat si in circumstantele de achizitie ale primelor exponate. In 1764 Ecaterina a doua primeste 225 de picturi ale maestrilor olandezi si flamanzi in schimbul unei datorii fata de trezoreria Imperiului Rus a negustorului berlinez Gotzkowsky.

Aceste capodopere fusesera colectionate pentru Friedrich al doilea al Prusiei care, stramtorat fiind in urma Razboiului de sapte  ani isi luase gandul de la a le mai achizitiona.

Cu resurse financiare nelimitate la dispozitia sa, Imparateasa Ecaterina a doua nu pregeta sa largeasca impresionanta colectie a muzeului.

Albumul reflecta pe deplin splendoare inegalabila a geniului artistic al Maestrilor artei si ofera o calatorie in universul creatiei.

Lanskoy

Album de arta in limba franceza publicat in anul 1960 de catre editura de lux Fernand Hazan, Paris. Albumul cuprinde atat 12 planse cu reproduceri dupa Andrey Lanskoy cat si o descriere a operei artistului.

Andrey Lanskoy s-a nascut in anul 1905 la Moscova. Periplul vietii tumultoase a inceputului de secol XX il conduce dupa razboiul civil, fiind ranit, catre Constantinopole iar in 1921 se indreapta catre Paris. Arta sa este vizibil influentata in special de Van Gogh,

Dupa 1940 picteaza numai arta abstracta iar in 1944 expune la Galeria Jeanne Bucher d in Paris. In 1962 incepe sa lucreze la un proiect amplu constand in ilustrarea operei lui Gogol, Jurnalul unui nebun. Isi incheie calatoria in anul 1976 la Paris.

Traditional russian carved and painted woodwork

Traditional russian carved and painted woodwork este un album de arta bogat ilustrat, publicat in anul 1981 intr-un tiraj de 20.000 exemplare de catre Izobrazitelnoye Iskusstvo Publishers Moscova. Albumul cuprinde imagini din colectia Muzeului de Stat de istorie si arta din regiunea Zagorsk.

Lucrarea a fost tradusa din limba rusa in limba engleza de catre Nadezhda Burova in colaborare cu Ernest Conell. 

Colectia cuprinde exponate de interes atat artistic cat si academic si a fost inceputa in anii '30. In 1941 colectia Muzeului de Arte Populare si Mestesuguri a fost mutata in Muzeul de Istorie si Arta Zagorsk.

Ricordo di Pompei 32 vedute

Albumul interbelic de arta fotografica Ricordo Di Pompei 32 vedute cuprinde precum spune si titlul 32 de imagini sepia din Pompei. 

Fiecare imagine are pe verso, pe langa denumire,  o descriere in patru limbi, italiana, franceza, engleza si germana.

Coperta rosie elegant decorata este cartonata. Dimensiunea cartilor postale este de 160 mmx 110 mm. La sfarsitul albumului exista o harta a orasului disparut. Se pare ca albumul era folosit ca si ghid pentru turistii care vizitau situl arheologic.
                                                   ***************************

Interwar photography album Ricordo Di Pompei 32 Vedute includes, as the title says 32 sepia images of Pompeii.

Each image has on the back, besides the name, a description in four languages​​, Italian, French, English and German.

Red hard cover is elegantly decorated. Postcards size is 160 mmx 110 mm. At the end of the album there is a map of the  disappeared city. It seems that the album was used as a guide for tourists visiting the archaeological site.

Ancient musical instruments of Western Asia

Ancient musical instruments of Western Asia in the British Museum by Joan Rimmer is an art album published in 1969 by the Trustees of the British Museum. The album was printed in Great Britain by Hazel Watson & Viney Ltd. Aylesbury, Bucks.

The cover represents The silver Lyre from Ur reconstructed and the list of plates contains 25 black and white images and a list of 12 figures in the text.

It also contains a foreword written by R.D. Barnett, Keeper, Department of Western Asiatic Antiquities.

It is today more clearly seen than ever before that from very earliest times the Near East, straddling the crossroads of three continents, Asia, Europe and Africa, played a vital part in developing the arts, crafts and sciences of the civilized world of today.

Iranian miniatures from the art collections of the soviet museums

This album containing 16 images was published in 1980 in 25000 pieces by Aurora Art Publishers from Leningrad. The Museum of Oriental Art established in Moscow in 1918 by the order of the Soviet government contains many paintings, sculptures, works of decorative and applied art and jewelry created by Asian and African people since antiquity to the present.

 

Sadik-bek Afshar, Isfahan style, Groom with a horse, 17th Century

School of Riza-i-Abbasi, Isfahan style, Lovers, 17th Century

School of Riza-i-Abbasi, Isfahan style, Young man with a pitcher, 17th century

Shafi-i-Abbasi, Isfahan style, Sleeping dervish, 1631-1632

 

Haji Muhammad Muzzawir, Isfahan style, Portrait of Imam Quli Khan, 1642

 

Iran, Isfahan style, Portrait of a man with turban, late 17th Century

 

Iran, Isfahan style, Mounted Young man with a servant, 17th Century

 

Iran, Herat style, Shirin on her way to Farhad, 1491

 

Iran, Herat style, Bahram Gur with the Indian Queen in the Black Tower, 1491

Iran, Shiraz style, Milking an Onager, late 15th Century

Iran,Dance of the Dervishes, 19th Century

Iran, Shiraz style, Old man with a staff, 1796-1797

 

Iran, Tabriz style, Riders, 17th Century

 

Iran, Isfahan style, Portrait of a sitting man, late 17th century

 Iran, Quazvin style, Young man with a horse, 16th Century

Iran, Shiraz style, Isfandiar killing Simurg, 16th Century.

Indian miniatures by Aurora Art Publishers, Leningrad

Aurora Art Publishers, Leningrad

"The Holi Festival", Mughal School 1734-1735. This miniature, the work of the famous painter Mir Kalan, is considered the best of his known works.

"Discourse with a hermit" Mughal school, second quarter of the 17th Century.The subject of this miniature is associated with those sectarian movements, common in medieval India, which evolved in the 17th century, into reformatory religious movements.

"Triumphal procession", Decani school, Mid 17th century.Triumphal procession have been a favorite subject in Golconda painting.

"Shah Jahan's Darbar" Mughal school mid 17th century. The event depicted is the great darbar- one of the most colorful and majestic ceremonies of the Mughal Court.

"Bathing pool", Mughal school, late 16th or early 17th century. The miniature presents a typical picture of life in the harem, a subject frequently treated by the painters of the court.

"Merchants hoist Yusuf out of the well" Muhammad Nadir Samarkand. The Bible story of Yusuf(Joseph) the Beautiful was a theme treated by many oriental poets who are attracted by his life full of dramatic events.

"Falcon", Mughal school, first quarter of the 17th century. A srtiking feature of this portrayal of a falcon, done by a court painter.

"Jahangir's Darbar with a falcon", Mughal school,about 1605. This multifigure portrait shows Padishah Jahangir with his 3 sons.

"Elders in the hills", Farrukh Beg, Deccani school, end of the 16th or early of the 17th century. Here we have, apparently, a scene relating to the life of a Moslem saint.

"Woman wearing sari", Mughal school, first quarter of the 17th century. The image of a woman has been an important element in Indian representative art.

"The Divali Festival", Mughal school, first third of the 18th century. During the first of the 18th century the miniature painting began to loose its veracity of representation.

"Maiden killing a snake", Deccani school, 17th century. This miniature is typical for the 17th century Bijapur painting.

"The birth of Salim", Mughal school, late 16th century. This miniature is an excellent example of late 16th century Mughal painting. It depicts an event which occured in 1569, when, near the village of Sikri, a son, Salim, ;later Emperor Jahangir, was born to Padishah Akbar.

"Noble equestrian and man with a book", Mughal school, 1600. The key figure in the composition is the young man in the foreground holding a half-open book in a handsome binding.

"Abdul Hasan Tana Shah", Deccani school, late 17th century. The sultan of Golconda, last of the Kutb-Shah dynasty to rule the state, was nicknamed "Tana-Shah" or "King of the good taste".

"Shivaji", Deccani school, late 17th century. Shivaji(1627-1680) was a ruler bent on unifying Maharashtra under his own rule, who led the struggle of the Marathas against the Mughals. Shivaji was a gifted military leader and diplomat, noted for his courage.

The manuscripts and rare books department of the Saltykov-Shchedrin Public Library of Leningrad.