Nicholas
K. Roerich
(1874-1947)
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Symbolism
"The sense of beauty will save the world" (N.K.Roerich)
The Soviet painter Nicholas Konstantinovitsch Roerich and his symbolic world
has fascinated me since a friend many years ago sent me the two postcards shown
below. I liked his fantasy world, "big brush", and ardent
colours, showing paintings of a spiritual and symbolic
nature.
Nicholas Konstantinovich Roerich was born in St.
Petersburg, Russia, on October 9, 1874, the first-born son of lawyer and notary,
Konstantin Roerich and his wife Maria. He was raised in the comfortable
environment of an upper middle-class Russian family with its advantages of
contact with the writers, artists, and scientists who often came to visit the
Roerichs. At an early age he showed a curiosity and talent for a variety
of activities. When he was nine, a noted archeologist came to conduct
explorations in the region and took young Roerich on his excavations of the
local tumuli. The adventure of unveiling the mysteries of forgotten eras with
his own hands sparked an interest in archeology that would last his
lifetime. Through other contacts he developed interests in collecting
prehistoric artifacts, coins, and minerals, and built his own arboretum for the
study of plants and trees.
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While still quite young, Roerich
showed a particular aptitude for drawing, and by the time he reached
the age of sixteen he began to think about entering the Academy of Art
and pursuing a career as an artist.
His father did not consider painting to be a fit
vocation for a responsible member of society, however, and insisted
that his son follow his own steps in the study of law. A compromise
was reached, and in the fall of 1893 Nicholas enrolled simultaneously
in the Academy of Art and at St. Petersburg University.
- Bulgaria 1978. Nicholas Roerich. Self-portrait.
- Nicholas Roerich. Self Portrait, from which the stamp on the far
left is produced.
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In 1895 Roerich met the prominent writer, critic, and
historian, Vladimir Stasov. Through him he was introduced to many of the
composers and artists of the time -- Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Stravinsky,
and the basso Fyodor Chaliapin. At concerts at the Court Conservatory he heard
the works of Glazunov, Liadov, Arensky, Wagner, Scriabin, and Prokofiev for the
first time, and an avid enthusiasm for music was developed. Wagner in particular
appealed to him, and later, during his career as a theater designer, he created
designs for most of that composer's operas. Moreover, musical terms and
analogies can appropriately be applied to Roerich's painting. He frequently
related music to the use of color and color harmonies, and applied this sense to
his designs for opera. As Nina Selivanova wrote in her book, The World of
Roerich: “The original force of Roerich's work consists in a masterly and
marked symmetry and a definite rhythm, like the melody of an epic song.”
- Russia 1990. Nicholas Roerich: "Unkrada". 1909. Issued for
the benefit of the Soviet Cultural Foundation.
- Russia 1974. Nicholas Roerich. Commemorating his 100th birth
anniversary: "Visitors from Abroad", 1901. Original painting
belongs to the Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
- Russia 1990. Nicholas Roerich: "Pskovo-Petschorskij Monastry",
1907. Issued for the benefit of the Soviet Cultural Foundation.
The stamps shown on this page are the only ones issued on a world wide basis,
so I am proud to show you a complete collection of this painter's
work.
The late 1890's saw a blossoming in Russian arts,
particularly in St. Petersburg, where the avant-garde was forming groups and
alliances, led by the young Sergei Diaghilev, who was a year or two ahead
of Roerich at law school and was among the first to appreciate his talents as a
painter and student of the Russian past.
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The above two postcards show paintings by
Nicholas Roerich. Nothing is written on the backside to give a hint at
what they depict, so it is entirely up to the viewer's own
imagination. The cards belong to the webmaster, and are not published
elsewhere on the Internet. The paintings are typical for Roerich's
symbolic style.
One of Diaghilev's first achievements was the
founding, with Princess Maria Tenisheva and others, of the magazine The World of
Art. This magazine enjoyed a relatively short life but had an important
influence in Russian art circles. The magazine declared itself the enemy of the
academicians, the sentimentalists, and the realists. It introduced to its
readership, which was made up mostly of the intelligentsia, the vital elements
of Russian artistic circles, European post-impressionism, and the modernist
movement. Roerich contributed to it and sat on its editorial board. Other
Russian painters involved were Alexandre Benois and Leon Bakst, who later became
Roerich's co-workers in the early days of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes.
After finishing his university thesis, Roerich
planned to set off for a year in Europe to visit the museums, exhibitions,
studios, and salons of Paris and Berlin. Just before leaving he met Helena,
daughter of the architect Shaposhnikov and niece of the composer Mussorgsky.
There seems to have been an immediate mutual attraction, and they were soon
engaged to be married. On his return from Europe their marriage took place.
While Nicholas is identified with nature and
landscape paintings, his son, S.N. Roerich, is known more for portraits.
His famous portraits of Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi adorn the walls
of Parliament House. His other well-known works include a few landscapes
and the portraits of N.K. Roerich, Elena Roerich and Devika Rani.
- Russia 2004. 100th birth anniversary of Nicholas
Roerich's son, S.N. Roerich.
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