A retrospective of the work of Jóhannes Sveinsson Kjarval (1885-1972), one of Iceland’s leading artists of the 20th century, will open at the prestigious State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg on September 26. President of Iceland Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson will formally open the exhibition.
Fjallamjólk by Jóhannes S. Kjarval.
The following week, an exhibition of the work of one of Russia’s leading artists, Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956), Revolution in Photography, will open at Reykjavík Art Museum – Kjarvalsstaðir, running from October 5 to January 12.
A pioneer of modern Russian art, Rodchenko was the nation’s leading photographer and graphic designer. Born in St. Petersburg in 1891, he was a contemporary of Kjarval. He originally trained as a painter, but from 1925 he focused exclusively on photography.
Revolution in Photography is curated by Russia’s most renowned curator, Olga Sviblova, Director of the Multimedia Art Museum in Moscow.
The exhibition comprises 233 photographs spanning the period from the start of Rodchenko’s career until 1935. The exhibition has traveled the world, including London, Vienna, Rome, Amsterdam, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Krakow and Moscow.
The Kjarval exhibition commemorates the 70th anniversary of Icelandic-Russian diplomatic relations on October 4, 1943—almost one year before Iceland became independent from Denmark on June 17, 1944.
Key works from Kjarval’s oeuvre will be on display, more than 40 paintings and drawings. Art historian Kristín Guðnadóttir serves as the exhibition’s curator, while Dr. Evgenia Petrova, deputy director for academic research at the State Russian Museum, organizes the exhibition on the museum’s behalf.
ESA
