"Forgotten classic" - the work of Matvey Dobrov in the Tretyakov Gallery

MOSCOW. In the building of the Tretyakov Gallery, located on Krymsky Val from March 20, an exhibition is opened, a visit to which will give connoisseurs of graphic art the opportunity to get acquainted with the work of Matvey Dobrov. The name of the opening exhibition is “Forgotten Classic”.

Indeed, the last time the audience saw the work of the master, who is one of the founders of the Moscow school of etching, was more than thirty years ago, although the engravings and watercolors he created were technically perfect. The technique used by the artists of this school has not gained popularity, since it is extremely difficult to perform.

To create engravings, with surprisingly harmonious images of landscapes, animals and birds, still lifes of the highest quality, which marks any work from the heritage of Matvey Dobrov, there is not only the presence of talent.

Not every artistic nature is capable of the utmost concentration of attention and patience necessary to work in this rare technique. The artist used many etching techniques in his work, mastering each of them perfectly

The most difficult of the techniques - aquatint, with which the prints become like watercolor paintings, was the artist’s favorite. It could take months to create such a work of art.

In the late twenties, the work of Matvey Dobrov was condemned for "bourgeois", the engraving machine was taken from the artist. For the next ten years, he wrote his works only in watercolor and charcoal. Only in the second half of the thirties did the artist again get the opportunity to create etchings.

The exposition of the exhibition, open until May 25, consists of more than a hundred works by the artist. Thanks to the careful selection of works for display, the whole variety of the creative heritage of the master is presented here.

Ludmila Trautmane © Gallerix.ru