Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1993 - 20

Introduction
For two weeks in late March and early
April 1991 I was fortunate enough to travel
to Prague, Moscow, and St. Petersburg
with an ATHE-sponsored group of theatre
educators. Our two sections were headed
by Milly Barranger and James Symons. Our
delegations toured theatres, met with
Czech, Slovak, and Russian colleagues,
and consumed numerous exotic and
potent libations.
In St. Petersburg we were taken to the
State Theatrical Library where we sat in
awe as Chekhov manuscripts and other
artifacts were set out for our inspection.
Among the many treasures were sketches
and designs by Alexander Benois and others who had been involved with Sergei
Diaghilev's Ballets Russes.
The curator then asked if anyone knew
what had happened to one of the best of
these designers, Boris Anisfeld. She said
that he left Russia in 1917 and continued
to design in the S, but that little was
known of his fate. I realized that I had
heard the name before, but couldn't
remember where.
Later when I was back home, I realized that Nena Couch, curator of Ohio State
niversity's Theatre Research Institute, had
told me about some original set and costume renderings by Boris Anisfeld which
had been donated by the artist's daughter,
Mrs. Otis Chatfield-Taylor.
Following the failed Russian coup, I
decided the time was right to attempt to
contact the Stale Theatrical library to discuss the possibility of a travelling exhibit-an enterprise which would serve the
dual purpose of taking Anisfeld's American
designs to Russia and eventually blinging
his early designs to university galleries in
the United States.
Through some very helpful Russian
colleagues, I was able to contact Natalia
Metelitsa, vice-director of the St.
Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and
Music, and discovered that there was interest in the project. She said they currently
exhibited and stored 40 paintings, theatre
designs, and various costumes and other
three-dimensional pieces by Boris Anisfeld
and that some of them would be available
for use in a touring exhjbit.
Plans for the exhibit are continuing,
but given the logistics of a project of tills
magnitude, the actual tour will take at least
two years to materialize. Thjs overview and
the accompanying designs will serve as an
introduction to the life and career of an
emigre artist.

-JB
18

1993 SUMMER

TD&T

irh his parenr's blessing,
An isfeld enrered rhe Odessa
School of An in 1895 ar rhe
age of 16. Kosrandi, a specialisr in porrrairure and figure-painring, was one of
his reachers. Anisfeld credirs his rime in
Odessa wirh rhe developmenr of his
incipienr ralene. Through his srudies
Anisfeld developed a faciliry for landscapes, figure and ponrair painring, and
decorarive composirions. He also learned
co work in various media-crayon, oil,
rempera, warer color, and pas reI.
Afrer five years of rigorous scudy,
Anisfeld qualified for admission co rhe
Imperial Academy of Fine Ans in Se.
Perersburg which was rhen headed by rhe
masrer of rhe lare ninereenrh cenrury
masrer of rhe realisr school, Ilia Repin. Ar
rhe academy Anisfeld received rho rough
rraining in anacomy, color, and design. In
face, Boris Anisfeld's anisric developmenr
and his furure success were rhe resulr of
rwo major facrors: eighr years of scudy
(1901-1909) and conrinued associarion
wirh rhe Academy and his involvemenr
wirh rhe avanr-garde group known as
iVlil' Jskllsstva, or rhe "World of Arr."
Mil' fskll5stva was essenrially a "culrural 'club' of anisrs lirerari, musicians and
aesrheres.'" Ir was founded by AJexander
Benois and a group of his friends who
wished co share \X!esrern European ideas
and anisric movemenrs, originally only
wirh orher members of rhe exclusive
club. Evenrually rheir goals blossomed
inco a full-fledged movemenr co inspire
Russian anisrs co become more progressive (read: \X!esrernized), less Slavic.
Benois and orher members of /IiiI'
fskllsstva-including Leon Baksr, Alfred
Nurok, Walrcr Nouvcl, Ivan Bilibin,
icholas Roerich, E. E. Lanseray, Igor

Grabar, and Dmirri Filosofov-organized and recruired members for rheir
socier)', sponsored exhibirions, and published a magazine. Berween 1898 and
1904, rhe magazine, also known as Mil'
Jskllsstva, broughr rhe manifescoes of rhe
mosr compelling modern European an
movemenrs, from rhe Pre-Raphaelires
rhrough rhe Impressionisrs and Symbolisrs, ro Russian readers. Complemenring rhe discursive conrenr were
black and whire reproduceions of works
by Cezanne, van Gogh, Gauguin,
Picasso, and Marisse, co name jusr a few.
Boris Anisfeld was "discovered" in
1905 while a srudenr ar rhe Academy by
a Sr. Perersburg an criric and member of
Mil' Jskllsstva, Igor Grabar. Coincidenrally, a young composer and counrry
cousin of founding member Dmirri
Filosofov had begun co exen his sense of
vision on rhe group-rhe cousin was
Sergei Diaghilev. Diaghilev srudied law
afrer his dreams of being a composer
ended in Sr. Perersburg, bur he succeeded
in crearing a niche for himself by organizing and promoring exhibirions by Mil'
fskllsstva members.
Grabar inrroduced Anisfeld ro
Diaghilev and rhe laner included several
of rhe anisr's works in rhe 1905 "\X!orld
of An" exhibirion in Sr. Perersburg.
Reaceion co rhe exhibi r was overwhelmingly posirive and Diaghilev arranged a
similar exhibir in Paris. Twenry of
Anisfeld's painrings were selecred for display in rhe Saloll d'Autollll/e of 1906 held
in rhe Grand Palais in Paris. He was
eleceed a societail'e of rhe Salon, a rremendo us accomplishmenr for a srudenr of
any narionaliry.
Anisfeld's inrernarional repurarion as
a painrer was firmly esrablished wirh sub-

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1993