Abstraction/Constructivism
dal 2/6/2013 al 4/9/2013
Segnalato da
2/6/2013
Abstraction/Constructivism
Pushkin House, London
British and Russian Responses to the City. With works by the photographer Richard Pare, who has been capturing striking images of architectural masterpieces across Russia for the last 20 years, and Dmitry Konradt's landscape series, a stunning documentation of his home city St Petersburg.
curated by Theodora Clarke and Anya Stonelake
Russian Art and Culture and Pushkin House London are pleased to present
Abstraction/Constructivism: British and Russian Responses to the City, curated by
Theodora Clarke and Anya Stonelake. Originally shown at London’s City Hall for
Maslenitsa Festival 2013, the exhibition now moves to Pushkin House as part of the
venue’s upcoming Russian Architecture Programme: Off the Beaten Tracks, curated by
Elena Zaytseva.
On display will be works by internationally renowned British photographer Richard
Pare, who has been capturing striking images of architectural masterpieces across Russia
for the last twenty years. His work shows a keen interest in historical buildings and
Russian Constructivism, one of the key artistic movements of the twentieth century, and
on show will be images of the famous Shabolovka Radio Tower and Melnikov House.
Presented alongside Pare’s photos will be works by Russian photographer Dmitry
Konradt, whose first solo show opened at White Space Gallery London in 2012. Konradt’s
Landscape series, a stunning documentation of his home city St Petersburg, will from a
visual dialogue with Pare’s more architecturally focused compositions.
Although markedly different in style, both photographers trace the roots of
Modernism through the dilapidated remains of the Russian architectural environment and
in doing so manage to find the forgotten beauty and abstraction in the everyday. With
abstract compositions that could almost be derived from Modernist paintings, both Pare
and Konradt challenge conventional viewpoints of city buildings and reanimate their
subjects with a dynamic combination of oblique angles, bold colours and shifting
geometry. The result is a demonstration of the importance of the city landscape as a
catalyst for creativity –both for the twentieth century Constructivist architects and
today’s contemporary photographers– and a rare chance for to see some of Russia’s most
impressive architectural creations.
Alongside the exhibition Pushkin House will be holding a series of related lectures
and events. As part of the programme we are delighted to welcome Richard Pare, who will
talk further about his experiences photographing the crumbling masterpieces of Russian
architecture whilst on June 12th Clementine Cecil will speak on the Moscow Arts
Preservation Society and on June 20th Sergey Nikitin will be tackling the theme of social
urbanism.
Image: Dmitry Kondradt, St Petersburg, 2001
Press & Media enquiries:
Ursula Woolley, Director +44 (0) 20 72699770 ursula.woolley@pushkinhouse.org.uk
Monday 3rd June - Lecture by Richard Pare.
Russian Avant-garde in Architecture: beginnings and endings
Wednesday 12th June - Private view of exhibition with introduction by Clem Cecil.
Moscow and St Petersburg - Off the Beaten Track
Thursday 20th June – Lecture by Dr. Sergey Nikitin
Moscow New Landmarks and Urban Structure
Pushkin House
5a Bloomsbury Square, London WC1A 2TA
Hours: Mon-Fri 4-7pm