20 november – 19 january
The All-Russian Museum Decorative Arts presents iconic examples of glass and crystal from the 18th–21st centuries from its collection, accompanied by works by avant-garde, the “Thaw”, and contemporary artists from private collections. The exhibition takes viewers through the creation of an object: from the composition of the glass mass and determining the shape of the future product to its artistic processing.
Eight sections of the exhibition correspond each to a technique or property of the material. They feature museum glass and crystal collection items alongside with some the associative artistic forms: paintings, graphics, photographs, videos, and art objects. Thus, a single line can be traced in the development of Russian art as a whole – easel, decorative, applied and mass-produced – from classicism to postmodernism. The works of glass artists – Vera Mukhina, Boris Smirnov, Leida Jurgen – are displayed alongside the photography of Alexander Rodchenko, the graphics of Yuri Pimenov and the paintings of Dmitry Gutov.
The collection of art glass of the All-Russian Decorative Art Museum includes more than 5,000 items: all stages of the history of Russian glassmaking are reflected in thus collection, items made in a wide variety of techniques at glass factories of the Russian Empire, Soviet glass factories and in the studios of contemporary artists. The exhibition is complemented by works by contemporary authors, many of which were created specifically for the project. This is a crystal floor lamp by Alexandra Nesterkina, lace in metal by Margo Makarova, a “blown glass” sculpture by Alexandra Frolova and a ceramic “crystal” service by Irina Korina. The architect and author of the idea of the exhibition Olga Treivas presents her new work – a detachable object made of colored crystal. The exhibition continues in the courtyard of the All-Russian Decorative Art Museum, where a series of objects by the FRESH.GLASS team of artists is installed: these are polished and extended transparent blocks left after the technical draining of glass from the furnace.
Exhibition curators: Olga Treivas, Elena Kovalenko, Anastasia Grigoryan.
Project organizer: the Link of Epochs Foundation.
The main partner of the project is the Suzdal cultural institution MIRA. The items from its collection are presented along with exhibits of the Museum and works by contemporary authors. The MIRA collection is a collection of Russian art objects, documents, artifacts, covering the period from the 1910s to the present day. The collection combines avant-garde, works by contemporary artists, applied and printed art.
The project is supported by the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives.