Ivan Klyun. Transcendental landscapes. Flying sculptures. Light spheres

MOMus - Museum of Modernism Art - Kostaki Collection, Thessaloniki, Greece, presents the first foreign exhibition of works by the Russian avant-garde artist Ivan Klyun - “Ivan Klyun. Transcendental landscapes. Flying sculptures. Light Spheres ”, which will be held from July 2 to September 19, 2021. The exhibition of Ivan Klyun in Thessaloniki is held simultaneously with the exhibition “Ivan Kudryashov. On the 125th anniversary of his birth ”at the State Tretyakov Gallery, 32 items for which were provided by the Museum of Modernism Art.

An impressive delegation from Russia came to the opening of the exhibition, which took place for the first time in a year and a half after the lockdown was canceled. Maria Tsantsanoglu, Director of MOMus - Museum of Modernism Art - Kostaki Collections, the curator of the exhibition met Director General of the State Tretyakov Gallery Zelfira Tregulova, President of the IOMus Board of Trustees Christina Krasnyanskaya, new members of the Board of Trustees Victoria and Konstantin Yanakov, as well as Sofya and Roman Trotsenko and Irina Davidovich. The opening ceremony was attended by the Mayor of Thessaloniki Konstantinos Zervas and the Vice-Mayor for Culture and Tourism Maria Karadjianni.

The exhibition by Ivan Klyun, which is based on works and archival materials from MOMus - the Museum of Modernism Art - the Kostaki collection, tells about the creative path of the Russian avant-garde artist, painter, sculptor, art theorist and teacher who left a mark on all innovative artistic trends of his time, including neo-impressionism, symbolism, cubo-futurism and non-objective art.

Ivan Klyun (Ivan Vasilyevich Klyun, real name Klyunkov, 1873, Bolshie Gorki village - 1943, Moscow) began to create non-objective compositions back in 1914. He was a member of the association of avant-garde artists "Supremus" created by Kazimir Malevich, however, he offered his own vision of Suprematism. In the early 1920s, he thoroughly studied the elements of form, light and color and developed his personal method, the theory of light and movement in space, embodied in non-objective painting built on spherical forms. His short teaching career at the Higher Artistic and Technical Workshops (VKHUTEMAS) was followed by many years of research and experimental work.

The Kostaki collection of the Museum of Modernism Art MOMus contains 383 graphic and painting works by Ivan Klyun, as well as unique archival materials: letters, manuscripts, lithographs, educational materials, etc. The museum’s archives also contain important preparatory drawings by Ivan Klyun, thanks to which insight into some of the lost works.

MOMus and the State Tretyakov Gallery have long and closely cooperated. Exhibits from the Museum of Art of Modernism have adorned such exhibitions as: “El Lissitzky. El Lissitzky ”- the first large-scale retrospective of El Lissitzky in Russia in 2017–2018,“ Avangard. List No. 1. To the 100th anniversary of the Museum of Artistic Culture "2019–2020, an exhibition of the most prominent representatives of the avant-garde, which for the first time in museum practice presented a reconstruction of the exposition of the Moscow Museum of Artistic Culture.

Museums carry out research exchange, carry out joint work in the field of studying the creative heritage of Giorgi Kostaki. There are plans to develop cooperation in the field of restoration work of avant-garde works.

In 2019, a personalized hall dedicated to Georgy Kostaki was opened in the permanent exhibition of the New Tretyakov Gallery. Part of Kostaki’s gift still adorns the personal rooms of Filonov, Tatlin and the new hall of “non-objective art”.

Exhibition “Ivan Klyun. Transcendental landscapes. Flying sculptures. Light Spheres ”is supported by the Heritage Art Foundation, Moscow, the Board of Trustees of the Museum of Modernism Art MOMus and the Malevich Society Foundation, New York.

The curator of the exhibition in Thessaloniki was the director of MOMus - Museum of Modernism Art - Kostaki Collection Maria Cantsanoglu, who also edited the exhibition catalog in collaboration with the chief curator of the Angelica Charista Museum.

The sculpture workshop of the Department of Fine and Decorative and Applied Arts of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki under the guidance of Professor of Sculpture Aris Katsilakis organized the reconstruction of "flying sculptures" by Ivan Klyun and creative workshops with the participation of third-year students.

Collectors Irina Pravkina and Iveta and Tamaz Manasherovs also provided works for the exhibition.

The texts for the bilingual catalog in English and Greek were written by art critics Christina Lodder, Andrey Sarabyanov, Victoria Schindler, Maria Kostaki and Maria Timina.

The exhibition is supported by:

Heritage Art Foundation, Moscow
Malevich Society Foundation, New York
MOMus Board of Trustees - Museum of Modernism Art - Kostaki Collection (Kristina Krasnyanskaya (President), Konstantin and Victoria Yanakov, Andrey Cheglakov)