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Here is a short story about Theophile Pelz Naum Borisovich Frayerman. Illustrate a pattern of my collection.

Beach high water
Nahum Pelts

There is a street in Odessa, from which the names of prominent writers and poets, musicians and artists, scientists and artists. They lived in different times, but the memory of Odessa so strong, and their ability to find an excuse to recall this, so refined that even now it seems: all these wonderful people who contributed to the glory of the city and country - are your contemporaries, and should only get on Pushkin and take a closer look, as are sure to meet a celebrity and, moreover, not one.

With Pushkin, I connected and personal memories: for many years after the war lived here my older workmates (now I understand - teacher), professor of painting Theophilus B. Fraerman.

  Theophilus B. was not only an artist but also an employee of the majority of museums in Odessa. He had a wonderful sense of interior, which is extremely valuable in creating the exhibition. At various times Fraerman worked at the Institute of Fine Arts, College of Arts and Construction Institute.

The first thing that struck it with familiarity - the exclusive tranquility and humanity. Humanity and wisdom flowed from a deep culture, extensive knowledge and greed for any sign of life. He loved everything: street bustle with variegated garments, early morning, with a loud tapping heels and gardeners, watering lawns, when the colors are clean and strong. He loved to shine the sea, sagebrush steppe, poetry, music, Russian novels. But most of all - painting, which was also a heavy burden, and a holiday.

He soon felt himself in the draft to the beauty of the arts. But the systematic education could be no question. How could afford the cost of training the son of the people, saving pennies for weeks? The decision not gone beyond the bitter wisdom of the poor. The boy wants to learn to draw? Let! Is this not be done in the paint-shop? Of course, this is not exactly, but you have to think about earning a living. What to do? So thirteen teenager began their universities. At dawn, he went into town and helped the teacher daub signs. The master was proud of his work, the assistant closed frowned.

And then he learned that the city art school, and with it free weekend courses. They were artists bessrebreniki, the main concern of which were the fate of art, the desire to help talented young people. For the enthusiastic teenager week turned into endless breaks between each Sunday.

At fourteen hard to create something significant, but the stubbornness can show. And the apprentice of the paint-shop demonstrated it, having achieved admission to the hospital in the artistic.

Years went into the study, as in a fog. World, shining through the window, three times tough, lay on the canvas. Kostandi, Ladyzhenskii, Iorini - sensitive and subtle masters taught to love the generous nature of the paint on the south, to disclose the plastic artists of the Renaissance. Four years in college were as four theatrical productions. But when the study was left behind, the old problems arose with renewed force: what next? About St. Petersburg and Moscow Theo could not ask: where will the money, who will give a residence permit? In autocratic Russia the way for further study were cut off. Then he threw sadly known Moldavanka, deceptively rich in Odessa and in his father's suit, pockets of which chargeable only hope for a happy planidu, went to study in Germany.

At the beginning of the century in Germany was famous Ashbe School - Academy of Painting in Munich. But the dry rationalism of Munich academics at odds with everything he had been taught in Odessa. He hated axiomatic stories, wandering from easel to easel. And he went to Paris. Gone, but not gone, laboring on the way to casual work. It was early autumn. His companions were pastel sunrises and sunsets, stood out on the horizon generalized contours of foreign cities, unpretentious songs of rural landscapes. Two months later, his eyes opened traveler capital artists.

In Paris, Théophile warmed sculptor Aronson. He worked in his studio, helped translate the sculpture in marble. It was a good school, she taught infallibly feel shape, joined to high creativity. In addition, it strengthens the force, but it is also important, because the artist need a large supply of physical and mental endurance.

And then he entered the Paris Academy. Here he worked under the famous portrait painter Bonnard. Bonnard was able to send students to the secret art of vigilance. Fraerman accumulated useful korrigiruya acquired own vision. Probably, this was a secret and a rare success, which culminated in the Academy classes: several of his works under the name Teo Fra been taken in Salon. They were purchased by collectors, and in the hands of a young man who often looks in the windows of bakeries eyes of Jean Valjean, fell on his ideas, a fantastic sum. He spent it on the acquisition of the studio and plunged into work. There, in the studio, which he was pleased to far more than the prince of the blood royal inheritance, he wrote many paintings whose fate was never learned by the end of life. Only one, many years later, he was met by thousands of kilometers away from Paris, It was a small, extremely thin on the color painting "Paris Street.

But it happened after the revolution in Russia, and then in Paris, the young artist exhibited his work in the Salon d'Automne, exhibitions decorators, working on the exposition of the Luxembourg Museum. He met with Serov and Bakst, Voloshin, and Matisse, Rodin and France. Roden and France were members of the jury Autumn Salon, which in 1909 was elected and Fraerman.

Influenced by great artists and humanists finally formed a creative position Frayerman: it drew a simple man and a protest against social injustice. That is why, almost to London, where he lived, the news of the February Revolution, a group of emigrants Fraerman returned to Russia in Odessa.

In these times of fluctuating special committee of artists and cultural workers, which included and Fraerman, has done a great job of collecting and attribution of the paintings, which constituted the principal wealth of the current art museums of Odessa.

Shops and antique shops were packed with a variety of subjects: local dealers bought for a song canvases art, porcelain, tapestries have escaped from Petrograd and Moscow officials and aristocrats - on ships, going abroad, it was necessary to push through his elbows.

In one of the commission shops Fraerman saw "the face of Paris. When asked who bought the picture, the owner merely shrugged his shoulders. Price is in the eight figures, it was a divine price - in those days all were sold in the millions. He runs around friends, get out of papers and took them to the commission store. Recovered from the picture painted in the Paris workshop, - the only thing left on the memory of a distant country artists.

After the opening of the Odessa Institute of Fine Arts Fraerman was appointed professor of painting. He educated a large galaxy of artists, among them Academy Kibrik, Honored Artist of the USSR Professor Postel, artists Otroshchenko, Titov, Ivanov. On his teacher and classroom in Odessa Eugene Adol'fovich Kibrik later recalled:

"Life is demanding posters, panels or" murals "distempers on revolutionary topics ...

In the first year of teaching, held in the workshop of a talented PG Volokidina, I noticed that all the monumental task subjects responded only shop Theophilus Borisovich Frayerman. His students registered the revolutionary festivals, wall newspapers, painted institute club, and all this in a new, unknown to me the spirit. Now I understand that the style of these works relied on the traditions of the Renaissance. Easy great form, much larger color silhouettes inherent to these traditions, allows young artists to quickly respond to the demands of time.

... All this much to me and I filed a request to enroll me in the studio Frayerman, which spent two years and permanently retained for this time of the warmest memories ... "

Teaching, educating a new generation of artists Fraerman gave a significant part of mature years of life.

Only in the early fifties, he left college, institute and fully devoted himself to writing. Every day, spend many hours behind the easel and creates a series of remarkable works, marked by skill, grace and wit.

But having gone to his head in work, Fraerman not broke, but on the contrary, more and more attracted to people who closely followed the artistic life of the country, rejoicing every new acquaintance, adopts his recent students, advising, arguing. "Artists should be as much as possible, it is decorated with life - he often said, when it comes to looking for innovative young - just everything to be real.

I remember how he admired and rejoiced in the "Golden Rose" Paustovsky. When a new magazine arrived, we went to an amusement park, sought out a secluded bench and read the story aloud. When reading about Bagritsky, his poems about the watermelon, the cavalry squadron, who was walking behind the coffin of the deceased poet's early, his tears flowed down her cheeks. He was familiar with Bagritski, met with poets and writers who lived in Odessa.

There was a Fraerman and his own muse - his wife, an artist-an applied Lidia Pestryakova-Fraerman. Home Frayerman was in many ways unusual, he had to abandon work and a little rest been removed, when they want to take stock of the day, to see the care and the search for tomorrow. This was the kind of house museum - a collection of paintings, antiques, furniture of different periods and countries, inlaid boxes, charming miniatures. When the sun's rays were polished sills, rosy glow flared collected and the creation of this beauty.

The environment and atmosphere of this house was the fruit of many years of work of its hosts, while their eternal holiday, which they generously shared with friends and colleagues in the profession.

For nearly half a century, as there Theophilus Borisovich. That day I went to see him on the case, he asked to stay: go out together. Was a gray, frosty day. At the entrance to the museum, where he once worked with him had a stroke. Nearby were two sailors, and we managed to keep him, otherwise he would have fallen flat on his back. Someone carefully rushed to the phone, doctors appeared ambulance brought him to consciousness, was carried home. After the incident, he spent a month in bed, but did not stay in bed: I had to go to the prosecutor's office to give information about his old friend, wrongly convicted in the prewar years. When he returned, the blow was repeated. He did not rising.

After his death left dozens of paintings, gouaches, which formed the basis for a posthumous exhibition. Some were acquired by museums, others kept the widow.

More recently died Lidia. Not preserved and the house, who lost their hospitable hosts.


Often, looking at the blue water of the bay, Theophilus B. used to say: "This is my last shore" - and when he did, stepping back, dropping, felt - before the eyes stand other shore. One of his latest works Fraerman called "Coast high water.


Home> Migdal Times> № 24> Beach high water

1.Portret artist's wife. Paper gr.karandash 1925.
2.P.Volokidin.Portret malchika.Karton, oil.