Finally, there was opening day. Must do justice to the organizers of the exhibition: they did everything to cause a frenzy in the eye of the visitor. In the first room they hung the most thorny and angular, geometric compositions Tacca and Falk. In the central hall - a vast, like programs, painting by Ilya Mashkov, portraying him and Petr Konchalovsky naked (in the costumes of the fighters), with excellent muscle; right - with the Spanish piano notes, piano books - Cezanne, Hokusai, the Bible, left the table - with glasses, in the hands - musical instruments, at the feet - gymnastic weights.
In the method of hanging paintings (oil almost exclusively of large format and in a very narrow frames), the participants' Jack of Diamonds "by the rules to hang as closely as possible, a number four - one above the other, at different levels, mainly by comparing pictures of different, in short - have so a picture kill others.
The human eye - the most conservative and intolerant of all the creatures that inhabit the human body naturally resent all new, all dissimilar. In order to catch the gas new perceptions, to make him rich new experience, a lot of caution, as a man of intelligence, but tight perceiver. All these methods of "Jacks" neglected, showing that his extreme youth, frivolity and recklessness.
However, the Moscow public Opening Day - the public, habituated to all. So she behaved calmly and his whole appearance said: "Well, it did not surprise us, we do not never known such species", thus revealing the most vicious of all sorts of misunderstanding. But the next day and in the newspapers, and on-site articles began to appear and people showing their expressions (such as: charlatans, crooks, scoundrels) of all powers of distraction.
However, the blame "jack" not so great: they simply carried on a large audience, intimate ambience of a big studio, which employs many talented and young artists, and made not only things finished, but those stretchers that have long been dumped in a corner and even pieces of the wall on which painted a funny and rude rapenskie cartoons. At the Jack of Diamonds, of course, there are many things "pour epater" *, a lot of naive imitations newest designs, a lot of false theories, in the picturesque winding dead-ends, but at the same time - a lot of really talented and fun crafts, and most importantly - young . Most painter of all "Jacks", perhaps, Ilya Mashkov. He is the closest known oil paints, and they obey him. Already in the "Self-Portrait and Portrait of Pyotr Konchalovsky, which we have mentioned, there are undoubted picturesque dignity; this thing even" academic "because the importance of the comic cartoon requires" academic quality ". But this - "Painting". Painting is still brighter than in other studies I. Mashkov - especially in its "natur mort": apples and pineapple are rendered in the style of signage fruit shop, and other apples and flowers - all written with that very sketchy, which can detect from oil paints Only strong-willed and experienced hand. Other portraits of his interest, as interpreted by serious cartoons. Their similarity is overly precise and brought to the brink of caricature, as in the figure, and in paints. Portrait of the poet SY Rubanovich - sample "lapidary style".
In the general work Mashkova, starting with the first, more school and sketches of models until it is apples and "self-portrait" discover a painter who is still playing for their gift, but passing up a lot already.
Y AV Lentulova not have this perky juggling talent. He goes in one direction, rather than on several. The exhibited items make it possible to trace a small segment of the path - from Laser-era (naked body on the beach) to the serious harmonizing tones (nature morte - a pumpkin).
In the sketches on the beach - quite a lot of this air and light. He is looking for harmonization is not dull colors, but in the fevered pitch of individual tones, and that sometimes he can not. He tends to be large spaces, and color of its decorative.
Konchalovsky - their neighbor in the hall and the picturesque trends - no longer a young artist. However, it differs youthful receptivity and imitative. He "survived" for many artists and artistic techniques and embarrassed by the fact that you never know what to expect from him. Two years ago, he was more "experienced" Van Gogh in Arles, and worked on the very places where he worked. Now he is experiencing with the same passion for Spain. His sincerity and sensibility are doing what every one of his fascination with strikingly borne out in his manner. Thus, in his current canvases can immediately see that after Van Gogh, he gave himself up to Cezanne, Matisse was interested in, worked with Mashkov. In his "Spain" Konchalovsky like more of itself, he is more interested in the fact that he was writing, what manner of writing, but he too saw the paintings in his lifetime.
This same desire to thinghood to objectivity, but only in a far greater extent, affected by Larionov. Larionov - the most naive and most direct of all the "jack". His "Bread" - really just bread: a big, solid, well-baked bread, which would have been happy any bakery, whether it is written on a tin sign. General style signage is very tempted by "jack". Why are inclined and Mashkov, and Goncharova, but a true master in this field is Larionov. He is very talented - no doubt about it, but his talent is something fun-stupid. One need only look at his "Self-portrait" or "Soldier". On the other hand, this feature distinguishes Larionov from rapenskogo bullying Mashkov. NS Goncharova follow the same path as Larionov. Only from the simplicity of signs she came to the art of cheap popular paintings. It stylizations is an immediacy and freshness. Sketches from life its quite serious. In the religious compositions although there is no religion, but there is a decorative line. Often it falls into deliberate rudeness, it is not characteristic. Mashkov, Lentulov, Konchalovsky, Larionov, Goncharova - here, in our view, the core of "Jack of Diamonds. They differ in temperament, but form one coherent group. They have a beautiful instinct, they are talented, they boldly-sincere, but they have too much trust in an involuntary gesture, which leads with a brush, they do not limit yourself and not strictly themselves judged.
They are close and careful painstaking Morgunov, coyly simplified von Wiesen, "experiencing a" Van Gogh AV Kuprin and angular Falk.
Monstrous Burliuks for all the worst quackery they can not hide the natural endowment, was fascinated by Picasso - Tacca illustrate and prove his entire aphorism Delacroix painting that the world of horror, there are three lines: straight, symmetrically undulating and two parallel lines.
In addition to the Jack of Diamonds "put Munichites - Jawlensky and Kandinsky. Sad bitter fruits of theorizing Kandinsky, who makes a heroic attempt to remove his pictures from all "objectivity" and the establishment of the line carpet, not to indulge in ornamental - so curious that they, indeed, from any point of view, nothing can be understood when there is sincere desire to resolve these charades. But the "carpets" these dry lines, reminiscent lomianye strips of iron, taken during a train accident, are not similar.
Foreign artists participating in "Jack" - are random and not very interesting. Talking about "lanky" Fauconnier or "small" Gleze, as representatives of French painting, at least - it would be frivolous.
* To daze (Fr.)
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