The exhibition “Fragile Art” is being held at the Tretyakov Gallery in Lavrushinsky Lane

The exhibition continues a series dedicated to drawing materials and techniques in Russia. A pastel show is always a major event. The particular fragility of “powdery” pastel works explains why they are so rarely exhibited.

As the exhibition’s curator Irina Shuvalova explained, graphic works must “rest,” as light destroys the paper and its bond with the pigment, and the artwork can become almost invisible. “There has never been such a presentation of pastel as in this exhibition. The new glass, which we are using for the first time, allows viewers to discern subtle nuances of texture,” noted Irina Shuvalova.

Pastel works are afraid of the slightest vibration, so they must be transported with the utmost care. They are stored in special static mesh folders. That is why any exhibition of these works is always a significant event.

The “Fragile Art” exhibition covers the key stages in the development of this distinctive technique: from the earliest works of the first Russian artists working in pastel in the late 18th and early 19th centuries to the bold experiments at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. In the first hall, visitors encounter rare examples by transmitters of the European tradition in Russia: Georg Friedrich Schmidt and Vigilius Eriksen, as well as classic works by Orest Kiprensky and Alexei Venetsianov.

“A Hundred-Year-Old Tsarskoye Selo Peasant Woman with Her Family” is an extremely rare example of engagement with a folk theme in that era.

The shared стремление to convey impressions from life and capture fleeting natural states, characteristic of the turn of the 19th–20th centuries, is reflected in masterpieces by Ivan Kramskoi, Isaac Levitan, Valentin Serov, Maria Yakunchikova, and Elena Polenova. It is known that Elena Dmitrievna Polenova took a keen interest in the pastel technique. In letters from Paris, she shared her impressions of exhibitions by pastel artists. She promoted pastel in Moscow, inviting participants of artistic evenings to try this forgotten technique, which was rapidly regaining popularity in Europe. Elena Dmitrievna succeeded in inspiring her outstanding student Alexander Golovin to embrace this medium. Only a few of her own works have survived. One of them is the large, striking drawing “Roofs in the Rain.”

Elements of stylization and even imitation of Old Master techniques can be seen in works by Alexander Benois, Konstantin Somov, Viktor Borisov-Musatov, Zinaida Serebryakova, and Mikhail Vrubel. Vrubel’s engagement with pastel was brief, which makes his rare works all the more valuable, as they paved the way for experiments by a new generation of artists.

The remarkable “Portrait of a Lady” by Viktor Borisov-Musatov is based on a staged photograph of the artist’s sister, Elena Musatova, wearing an antique dress. She became an unwitting participant in the artist’s experiments and new artistic methods. In the “Portrait of a Lady,” the original photographic image is translated into color using a mixed technique of watercolor and pastel. The fine outline tracing the shape of leaves or the lace on the dress gives them an ornamental character. Pastel strokes in the model’s hair and in the deep folds of satin unify the figure and the landscape.

“All visitors, of course, want to see the fly in Mikhail Vrubel’s painting ‘The Pearl,’” said curator Irina Shuvalova. “It is in the upper left corner of the work.

The story goes that when Vrubel was working on the piece, a real fly landed on the paper and became stuck. The master then painted it, deciding that there are no accidents. It became the grain of sand from which a pearl is born.”

Indeed, this work by Vrubel is unique. The master glued layers of finely torn, painted paper, essentially creating one of the first examples of collage.

In conclusion, the curator of the “Fragile Art” exhibition at the Tretyakov Gallery, Irina Shuvalova, said: “It is no coincidence that Mikhail Vrubel was compared to a Gothic cathedral for his architectural forms. And it is no coincidence that we juxtapose this work with a painting by the Constructivist artist Konstantin Shchusev, depicting the construction of the Kazansky Railway Station and concluding our exhibition. In it, the very idea of pastel is revealed: drawing with color — without pencil or paints,” Irina Shuvalova emphasized.