LONDON.- This autumn’s Russian Art Sale in London will feature Vasily Vereshchagin’s awe-inspiring Crucifixion by the Romans, painted in 1887 in Paris. It will be offered on 28th November with an estimate of £1,000,000-1,500,000. The picture will be sold to benefit the acquisitions fund of the Brooklyn Museum, where it was exhibited for the last time in 1932.

“After conducting a careful review of the Museum’s late-19th and 20th-century Russian holdings, we came to the conclusion that Crucifixion by the Romans by Vasily Vereshchagin does not represent the focus of the collection, which is on modern and avant-garde Russian art. The painting deserves to be better utilized than it has been at Brooklyn, where it was last on view in 1932. We did not foresee a time when it would be exhibited here again,” commented the Brooklyn Museum.
Sarah Mansfield, Head of Christie’s Russian Art Department says: “To offer such an incredible work is an exciting moment for any specialist. We would like to thank the Brooklyn Museum for their cooperation and we are looking forward to presenting Crucifixion by the Romans to an international audience, for the first time in 80 years, on 28th November.”

On 14th October 1888, the New York Times announced the arrival of a large number of Vereshchagin’s paintings in the United States. The works in question, including Crucifixion by the Romans had been sent to New York to be exhibited by the American Art Association and to tour the United States before returning to New York to be auctioned. The exhibition travelled to Chicago, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Boston and was a tremendous success, attended by literally hundreds of thousands of people. The auction commenced sharp at 8.00pm on 17th November 1891.The New York Times reported the following day, ‘The highest price of the evening was achieved by the large painting, one of a series of three that were sold separately, called Crucifixion by the Romans.’ As the final painting in the series referred to by Vereshchagin as ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’, which was devoted to the subject of capital punishment, Crucifixion by the Romans is epic in both scale and content. . By 1899 the work was on view at the Brooklyn Museum, lent by Mr John W. Brown and was presented officially to the museum in 1906 by Mrs Lilla Brown, in memory of her husband.

Of monumental size, this work was painted in Paris in Vereshchagin’s studio which was particularly designed for the execution of over-sized canvasses. The composition is undoubtedly striking: in direct contrast to traditional depictions of the Crucifixion, Vereshchagin positions Christ, illuminated, on the extreme right of the painting, placing the primary emphasis of the composition on the crowd. The viewer becomes part of the crowd, peering over people and horses to view the spectacle. A large expanse of dark sky stretches across the horizontal, the city wall looms heavy over a crowd of traders, Pharisees and a mournful group of Christ’s supporters. In the foreground, Roman soldiers with their spears and lances stand guard. In any study of Vereshchagin’s work written before or after the Russian Revolution, this trilogy of paintings stands as one of the major undertakings of his career. First conceived in 1876, its completion was a dream of the artist’s for over a decade, until the final canvas, the present work, was finished in 1887.

The theme that connects the three works – extremes of capital punishment under three of the greatest territorial empires the world has ever known, the Roman, the British and Vereshchagin’s own, the Russian – is emphasized by the works’ titles: Blowing from Guns in British India and Hanging in Russia. Each work symbolically illustrates the moment of the greatest ethical test each empire had faced, lamenting the brutality of the state while poignantly depicting the unchanging humanity that connects people and populations across vast expanses of time and geographical territory.

In answer to the British and Russian criticism the artist faced for his trilogy – Vereshchagin responded, ‘A hundred years hence they will be appreciated: the pictures will live’. Over a century later, Vereshchagin’s prophesy has been realised, with the appearance of Vereshchagin’s phenomenal masterwork, Crucifixion by the Romans, at auction.

Gumdrop Mountain – 2010 – Oil Pastel on Canvas – JOEM

Charlie Chaplin

A treasure trove of Charlie Chaplin memorabilia offered in collaboration with “Charlie in the Heartland: An International Charlie Chaplin Conference” at Ohio University Zanesville October 28-30. The conference commemorates Charlie Chaplin’s October, 1910 first visit to the United States with Fred Karno’s London Comedians. Chaplin scholars and enthusiasts from around the world will meet in central Ohio to explore the role of heartland America on Charlie Chaplin’s career.

For more information about the International Charlie Chaplin Conference, please visit: http://www.zanesville.ohiou.edu/chaplin/.

Chaplin feature films, The Tramp, The Kid, and Shoulder Arms will be shown at 2 p.m. on Saturdays, Oct. 9, 16, and 23. Films range from 20 minutes to 68 minutes. Refreshments and discussion. Details available in September.

Julie Heller’s Gallery, Provincetown, MA

Nora Daniel is a native New Yorker transplanted to Zanesville about five years ago. She began studying at the Art Students League while still in high school, then at the Vermont Studio School, the National Academy, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and received a B.F.A. from Marlboro College. Her work was chosen for awards from the League, the Academy, and Daniel was chosen to be a visiting artist at the Forbes Chateau de Ballory in Normandy. Her teaching experience is extensive and on-going, inclusive of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art, the New York Academy, the League, and the Armory Center in West Palm Beach. Since coming to Zanesville, she has won awards from the Ohio Arts Council and placement of her work in the Ohio Governor’s Mansion.

As her travels and independent study have included Venice, Hamburg and Mexico, the paintings in this exhibition will bring in exotic locales as well as the city of Zanesville and its rural landscapes. Daniel is a realist who takes her subjects from her surroundings, then engineers her compositions from her unique perspective. Her skill is unquestioned and her style is coloristic. She may render a still life in great detail, while summarizing a building or hillside with broad strokes. Her imagination enlivens simple scenes, creating internal narratives and raising questions about seemingly simple objects.

zanesville art museum

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Filed under Events on 11/17/2010 by Author: Nichole Hanning.

The Fine Arts Department and the Zanesville Campus Library are sponsoring an art exhibit by artist Joe Murphy. The exhibit will be on display at the Ohio University Zanesville Campus Library now through January 5, 2011.

Murphy’s artwork is visually stimulating and is interesting to all ages. “His work exemplifies exuberant color and bold shapes that create an inspiring picture,” said Jerry Westgerdes, Professor of Art Emeritus at OU Zanesville.

“Color, movement, and impression, are the most important elements for me,” Murphy explained. “I feel the color as I create a work.”Murphy, a System Analyst by day, has been an artist for over 20 years. His work was on exhibit at the Y-Bridge Arts Festival, a juried exhibit.

To learn more about artist Joe Murphy visit his website at http://www.artofjoem.com. The exhibit is free and open to the public during normal library hours. For information call (740) 588-1404 or visit http://www.zanesville.ohiou.edu/zcl/index.htm

We want you to bare your artwork!

We have a 2 week event coming in September (12-15) devoted to the artful nude. Body by Ovation will explore the entire range of art that depicts the human form. Starting in the stone age with the Venus of Willendorf, through Boticelli and Manet, we’ll explore the different interpretations of the human body throughout the centuries.

From now until August 9 we’ll be looking for tasteful* submissions focused on the human body. Upload artwork in any medium to the Ovation community and be sure to tag it with with the word “nude”. We will select the best work to showcase in a My Art promo on air during our Body by Ovation event!

Submissions start: August 2
Deadline: August 9

Now is your chance for some exposure

Ovation Online Team