55 - NADEZHDA ELSKAYA (RUSSIAN 1947-1978)

NADEZHDA ELSKAYA (RUSSIAN 1947-1978) Flowers on a Napkin No. 10, 1974 oil and lace on canvas 60.3 x 80.4 cm (23 3/4 x 31 3/4 in.) framed dimensions: 66.5 x 86.7 cm (26 1/4 x 34 4/8 in.) signed and dated upper right PROVENANCE Acquired from the artist by an American diplomat circa 1974 thence by descent LOT NOTES Nadezhda Elskaya belonged to the circle of the Lianozovo group and studied closely with Oscar Rabin. In 1974, the year of the present work, she took part in the infamous Bulldozer Exhibition, when Soviet authorities broke up an open-air show of unofficial art with bulldozers and water cannons. She died in 1978 at just thirty-one. Her output is small, and her works rarely appear on the market. Flowers on a Napkin No. 10 belongs to a numbered series, which suggests the motif held a sustained place in her work. An oval lace napkin, rendered with almost obsessive detail, lies on a dark, mottled ground of earthy reds, greys and violets. A small woven bun or pastry rests on it beside a loose bunch of wild pansies and grasses. More pansies are scattered across the surface, as if growing from or pressed into the ground. Elskaya drew on the folk and domestic vocabulary prized by the Lianozovo circle: lace, field flowers, humble household objects. She treated these materials with the tactile, collage-like density seen in her larger works, which incorporate real lace, rope and chain. Keywords: Soviet Nonconformist Art, Lianozovo Group, Bulldozer Exhibition, Russian Woman Artist, Oscar Rabin Circle, Russian Underground Art N.B. Condition reports are available upon request. All lots are sold in as-is condition at the time of sale. Please note that any condition statement regarding works of art is given as a courtesy to our clients in order to assist them in assessing the condition. The report is a genuine opinion held by Shapiro Auctions & Appraisals LLC and should not be treated as a statement of fact. The absence of a condition report or a photograph does not preclude the absence of defects or restoration, nor does a reference to particular defects imply the absence of any others. Shapiro Auctions & Appraisals, LLC., including its consultants and agents, shall have no responsibility for any error or omission.