From Russia with love

Special to The Transcript

August 30, 2008 12:22 am

— Soviet street scenes, paintings of the American West, colorful abstracts and emotive portraits are all part of an international exhibition exploring early 20th-century Russian immigrant art debuting in October at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. A free, public opening is scheduled 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 4 in the museum's Sandy Bell Gallery.
Following its Oklahoma debut, "American Artists from the Russian Empire" will travel to the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg and the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow before returning to the United States for a final show at the San Diego Museum of Art.
"This is one of the most important international exhibitions ever brought to the University of Oklahoma," OU President David L. Boren, said.
Derrick Cartwright, executive director of the San Diego Museum of Art, acknowledged the impact of the collections lending to the exhibition.
"'American Artists from the Russian Empire' is an innovative undertaking, drawing as it does upon the unique resources of many American collections," he said. "These collections, both public and private, represent the profound contributions of dozens of Russian-born artists."
Curated by Evgenia Petrova, deputy director for science at the State Russian Museum, the exhibition is composed of more than 70 paintings and sculptures by such artists as Nicolai Fechin, Leon Gaspard, Jacques Lipchitz, Mark Rothko, Ben Shahn, Alexis Arapoff, Pavel Tchelitchew and Max Weber. "American Artists from the Russian Empire" will remain on display through Jan. 4, 2009, before traveling to Russia.
Exhibition lenders include the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, the National Gallery of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art and private collections such as Kate Rothko and Mary Arapoff, daughters of artists whose works are included in the exhibition.
"The exhibition's strength resides at once in the opportunity it provides to compare and contrast the variety of visual expressions of these men and women," said Cartwright, "and, because of the project's multiple venues in Russia and the United States, also to test the different responses of interpretive communities in these countries."
Special guests for the opening include Cartwright, who will lead a lecture and open discussion at 4 p.m., as well as Petrova, who will give an evening walk-through of the exhibition.
Ghislain D'Humieres, director of OU's Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, recognizes the importance of Oklahoma's role in the exhibition.
"The influence of this exhibition on the university's culture of learning is enormous, and we are delighted for Norman to be the opening venue and Oklahoma to be one of only two states to host the exhibition," said D'Humieres.
American Artists from the Russian Empire is jointly organized by the?State Russian Museum and?the Foundation for International Arts and Education. Additional programs relating to the art and politics of Russian regions are scheduled throughout the fall at the museum.
Admission to the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is free to all OU students with a current student ID and all museum association members, $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for children 6 to 17 years of age, $2 for OU faculty/staff, and free for children 5 and under. Admission is free on Tuesdays. The museum's Web site is www.ou.edu/fjjma. Information and accommodations on the basis of disability are available by calling 325-4938.