Zurab Tsereteli created more than five thousand works of sculpture, painting, graphics. Perhaps there is no artist in Russia whose work would cause such conflicting reviews.
According to his projects, sights were created in Moscow that caused a negative assessment of the public. Critics believe that the creative abilities of this master correspond to the level of an ordinary graphic designer. The transfer of the monument to Peter I has been debated for more than ten years. Nevertheless, the Zurab Tsereteli Museum is popular with Muscovites. There are a lot of positive reviews about the works presented here.
Short biographical note
Zurab Tsereteli was born in 1934 in Tbilisi. He graduated from the Academy of Arts, then continued his studies in France. In the early 60s, Tsereteli began active work in the field of monumental art. His sculptural works are presented at exhibitions in Brazil, Spain,UK, USA, Japan, France and Georgia. In 2010, the artist was awarded the prestigious National Society of Arts Award.
Zurab Tsereteli Museum in Moscow
The first exhibition was opened in November 2009. The Zurab Tsereteli Museum is located in a three-story building in the very center of the capital. The exposition reveals to visitors the stages of the artist's creative development. His works combine elements of ancient Georgian art with the traditions of the modern European school. On both sides at the entrance there are sculptures depicting the great painters - Pablo Picasso and Marc Chagall. The artist was personally acquainted with these outstanding personalities. However, the Zurab Tsereteli Museum presents many monuments dedicated to celebrities.
Not every artist is ready to let the audience into his workshop. As a rule, this area is closed to visitors. But anyone can enter the artist's studio, whose work is discussed in today's article. It is part of the Zurab Tsereteli Museum. The artist exhibits new canvases primarily on Bolshaya Gruzinskaya. By the way, the place for the museum-workshop of Zurab Tsereteli was not chosen by chance. The house where Tsereteli has been living since 1993 is located on the street where representatives of the Georgian nobility once lived. The artist himself comes from an old princely family.
Museums of contemporary art Zurab Tsereteli founded in 1999. Today, the exhibitions that are held in it play a significant role in the artistic life. Moscow. The museum is located on four sites. Branch - House-Museum of Zurab Tsereteli. As already mentioned, it occupies three floors. Each of them has an exposition dedicated to a particular stage in the artist's work.
Music and Literature
Here you can see works dedicated to the origins of Zurab Tsereteli's art. In the museum on Bolshaya Gruzinskaya, on the first floor, there is a bronze portrait of Mstislav Rostropovich. The composition is built around this figure. Antique motifs are also present here - an outstanding musician is surrounded by muses. The main source of inspiration for the artist has always been art itself in all its manifestations. In the same room where the sculptural composition dedicated to Rostropovich is located, you can see the famous character of Exupery - the Little Prince, cast in bronze.
Tbilisi - my love
To the left of the entrance to the museum there is a collection of panels dedicated to the artist's hometown. The series is called "Tbilisi - my love". In these works, the Georgian capital is presented as Tsereteli remembered it during his childhood. The artist turned to the image of old Tbilisi and its inhabitants more than once over the years: in sculpture, and in painting, and in graphics. On the first floor of the Zurab Tsereteli Museum of Art, you can see enamel paintings depicting Tbilisi.
Another collection demonstrates the master's interests in Antiquity. Here you can see sculptural works depicting Argonauts and heroes of the ancient Kingdom of Colchis, formed on the territory of modernGeorgia in the fifth century BC.
Tear of Sorrow
On the banks of the Hudson, in memory of the tragic events of 2001, a monument designed by Tsereteli was erected 11 years ago. His model is present in the museum among other works. "Tear of Sorrow" is a bronze stele, the height of which is 32 meters. The monument resembles the outlines of one of the twin towers destroyed by terrorists. In the opening of the "tower" is a huge tear, symbolizing the boundless grief of those who lost loved ones in New York on September 11.
Painters of the 20th century
After viewing the work in the halls of the first floor, you should go up to the third. Here are sculptural portraits of outstanding masters of the 20th century: Matisse, Picasso, Van Gogh, Chagall, Gauguin. The images of these artists are associated with a decisive stage in the work of Tsereteli - in Paris, he reached a new level of skill.
Zurab Tsereteli first went to the French capital in 1964. This trip became a key event in his life. The young artist plunged into the amazing atmosphere of art, got acquainted with the works of Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall. Tsereteli was lucky enough to visit their workshops. He was struck by the multifaceted talent of Picasso and Chagall. These artists were subject to any means of expression: from small plastic arts to monumental painting. Then Tsereteli realized that the main condition for creativity is the feeling of freedom.
Memory theme insculptures by Tsereteli
The portrait of Charlie Chaplin is repeatedly found on the artist's canvases. The plasticity and extraordinary artistry of the great comedian inspired Zurab Tsereteli more than once. He embodied the image of Chaplin in painting, sculpture, graphics.
Among the works on display on the third floor of the museum, the most personal and intimate are the portraits of his wife, who passed away several years ago. Inessa surrounded by candles is a symbol of eternal memory. The composition is distinguished by combinations of warm and cold colors, which creates a strong energy, catches the eye.
Another canvas dedicated to the person who influenced the formation of Tsereteli as an artist is a portrait of Lado Gudiashvili, the greatest Georgian master of the 20th century. This work is a tribute to the memory of the painter who spent many years in Paris. Gudiashvili managed to combine in his work the characteristic features of modern European art and elements of Georgian culture, in which he became an example for Tsereteli.
Second floor
Picasso apparently had a strong influence on Tsereteli's work. After viewing the sculptural works in the halls on the third floor, visitors descend to the second, and there they again see a composition dedicated to the Spanish painter. Here the portrait of Picasso is embodied in tinted plaster. The sculptural portrait is painted in blue, red and black. Tsereteli gave expression to his work, thereby reflecting the essence of the painter's character - Picasso was a restless and complex personality.
"Piccentaur" is a work in which the Spanish artist is represented as a mythical creature - a centaur. The composition includes details of different content and tells about Picasso from different angles: as a person and as a creator. Of course, a special place in the work of Zurab Tsereteli is occupied by a portrait. But many of his works and still lifes. Tsereteli himself claims that flower compositions are training, experiment, exercises for him, allowing him to solve one or another technical and coloristic problem.
Sculpture Park
The exposition is completed by a collection of mosaic panels and sculptures located in the courtyard. This is a real open-air museum. Here you can see models of famous monuments installed in different cities of the world. There are also works that cannot be found anywhere else.
Many works are created from the remains or fragments of monumental sculptures, which thus gained a new life. In the spacious courtyard of the museum-workshop on Bolshaya Gruzinskaya, one can see several variants of one project and feel the complexity of the creative search. The works of Zurab Tsereteli evoke different emotions. But most visitors to the museum like the sculptures more than the paintings. On Bolshaya Gruzinskaya you can see a model of the famous monument to Peter I, sculptural portraits of legendary personalities of the 20th century.
Museum address: Bolshaya Gruzinskaya, 15. The nearest metro stations are Krasnopresnenskaya, Barrikadnaya, Belorusskaya.
