Anniversary exhibition of paintings and drawings by Boris Messerer "Themes and Variations"

The Russian Academy of Arts presents the anniversary exhibition project of Boris Asafovich Messerer, an outstanding master of fine arts, the patriarch of Russian scenography, People’s Artist of the Russian Federation and Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts "Themes and Variations". The retrospective exhibition includes about 100 paintings and graphic works of the author, including portraits, landscapes and still lifes, which were not previously presented to the general public.

Boris Messerer, the eminent holder of titles and titles, every time appears in unexpected images at exhibitions. Today we have the opportunity to peer into the world of painting by an artist who has been devoting himself to theater for many decades, a difficult task of scenography, which sometimes forced him to abandon his own creativity for a long time.

The strict, extremely rigid selection of works made by the author for the next exhibition makes it possible to understand the complex nature of the interaction between different types and genres of fine art, its inviolable laws. Messerer’s painting, born of his attachment to space and the polyphony of the stage, was created in the studio and dictates its own rules for exhibiting. It is important to note that the large format, necessary for solving stage problems, in ordinary halls only emphasizes its own merits - the powerful energy inherent in these canvases is preserved, although it tends to change accents.

For a long time, Boris Asafovich worked in the musical theater, primarily in the Bolshoi. The artist’s natural immersion in a special world of figurative sound, understanding of the composer’s intention, the ability to listen to the conductor - all these necessary qualities inherent in a true theater professional have been developed in his work. And they were reflected in the picturesque structure of easel works, one way or another connected with theatrical impressions. It’s not just about stories perceived behind the scenes or in rehearsal rooms.

Messerer was more interested not in the airiness and quivering of classical dance, but in the refinement and completeness of the pose, gesture, that is, the rhythmic pattern of the stage image. This is how compositions arose based on a comparison of various states of the ballerina - relaxation, peace, inner composure and at the same time readiness for dynamics, for rapid movement.

Boris Messerer is known for his complex still lifes. His famous gramophones became the heroes of many works. Equally expressive are the interiors with the image of armchairs and chairs with curved shapes. Favorite items include elongated transparent glass bottles through which you can see fragments of the background, as well as unusual metal details superimposed on each other or combined with other textures - paper, fabric and others.

Such a combination of opposites is also reminiscent of the theatrical nature of the artist’s thinking. In non-objective still lifes, densely arranged in sheets of unprecedentedly large format, which ordinary etchings do not know, dramatic collisions can be traced with particular clarity.

The exhibition of paintings by Boris Messerer makes it possible to present at least a dotted path of the artist. His early paintings are exhibited for the first time. In the distant 1960s, still lifes with jugs appeared, since the 1970s ballet series and still lifes with gramophones have begun, in 2015-2018 still lifes with balusters were created. In this time period there are numerous non-objective compositions, etchings and, of course, watercolors.

Messerer’s artistic thinking allows him to handle the entire system of spatial arts equally freely. Theatre, painting, easel and book graphics, three-dimensional plastics and installation - this is the list of the author’s interests and areas of application of forces throughout his active creative life. In the early years of his career, he often turned to book illustration, which was also reflected in the anniversary exhibition at the Russian Academy of Arts.

The scale of what has been done causes genuine admiration for the creative energy of the master and gratitude for the opportunity to touch the world he created. This world still enriches and pleases us, its contemporaries and viewers.

The material was prepared on the basis of an article by Natalia Kozyreva.