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Royal Academy's Russian revelation
By Louise Jury, Evening Standard 22.01.08
Partnership: In front of Matisse's Dance II are Sir Norman Rosenthal (far left) of the Royal Academy, co-curator Ann Dumas and Albert Kostenevich, curator of the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg
Masterpiece: Van Gogh's Portrait Of Dr Felix Rey, 1889
Uprising: Ilya Repin's Manifesto of October 17 1905 (1911)
Look here too
It was the blockbuster show that nearly didn't happen. But after unprecedented political intervention at the highest level, 120 masterpieces lent by the greatest Russian galleries are now here and ready for viewing at the Royal Academy.
Ann Dumas, co-curator with the RA's Sir Norman Rosenthal, said: "There was a moment when we really thought it wouldn't happen so it's absolutely great to see all these pictures here."
From Russia tells the story of relations between Russian and French art between 1870 and 1925, when, in the wake of the Russian Revolution, easy cultural exchange ceased.
At its heart are works bought by two wealthy Russian textile industrialists who loved art and spent with a passion.
Ivan Morosov and Sergei Shchukin commissioned paintings from the biggest names in Impressionism and Post-Impressionism.
"They were the most pioneering and adventurous collectors of the day," Ms Dumas said. Their passion was such that the exhibition has an entire wall of paintings by Cézanne and another of Gauguins.
There is also Dance II by Henri Matisse, one of 37 paintings by the French artist in Shchukin's collection. This masterpiece has never been seen in Britain before but was one of hundreds of works requisitioned from private ownership by the Soviet state in 1917.
This history contributed to Russian fears that if such works were lent to Britain they might be seized by the original owners' heirs - threatening the exhibition's existence. The concerns were eventually resolved when anti-seizure legislation was rushed through Parliament.
All the works are owned and have been lent by galleries, including the Hermitage in St Petersburg and the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Art in Moscow. The exhibition places Morosov and Shchukin's French art alongside that of Russian artists who were influenced by what they saw in the industrialists' homes.
No Russian work in the show is as famous as the French pieces, but Ms Dumas said: "These are works with a terrific power and an authentic voice." Charles Saumarez Smith, the academy's new chief executive, said: "It's very exciting."
• From Russia opens on Saturday and runs until 18 April, with an admission charge.
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