Bakst Lev is a Belarusian by birth, Russian in spirit, who lived for many years in France, known in history as an outstanding Russian artist, theater designer, stage designer. His work anticipates many of the trends of the 20th century in art, it combines the features of impressionism, modernism and symbolism. Bakst is one of the most stylish and sophisticated artists of Russia at the turn of the century, who had a powerful influence not only on Russian, but also on world culture.
Family and childhood
Bakst Lev Samoilovich was born in 1866 in an Orthodox Jewish family in the Belarusian city of Grodno. The family was large, with patriarchal foundations. My father was a Talmudic scholar, also engaged in trade, his income was low, so his son often visited his grandfather in St. Petersburg. He was rich enough, he was a fashionable tailor, loved luxury and social life, led a Parisian lifestyle that his grandson really liked. He was a great theater-goer and instilled this passion into Leo. It was in honor of his grandfather that the young man takes the surname Bakst, having slightly reduced it, instead of his real one, Rosenberg, which seemed to him completely unethical. As a child, the future artist liked to play scenes of his own composition before the sisters, the boy had a wild imagination and obvious penchant for drawing.
Vocation and study
At age 12, he won the competition for the best portrait of A. Zhukovsky in the gymnasium. Bakst Leo dreamed of studying painting, but his father did not recognize such a frivolous occupation in life as drawing, and for a long time the boy had to indulge in his favorite pastime secretly, at night. As a last argument, his father decided to ask the sculptor Mark Antokolsky for advice; drawings of the future painter were sent to him in Paris. And when the answer was received that the authorās talent was clearly visible in the works, his father gave up.
In 1883, the young man entered as a volunteer at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. Lev Bakst, whose biography is now forever connected with art, studied with such teachers as Chistyakov, Asknazia, Wenig, showed good results for four years. However, having lost the academyās competition for the silver medal, the young man leaves the school. His work was deleted from the list of participants due to the fact that all the characters in the painting on biblical themes had Jewish features. This artist could not endure. The skills of the academic drawing received at the academy will be useful to him in the future.
Finding a Way in Art
Having left his studies, Bakst Lev was forced to seek income, his father died, and he needed to help the family, which was mainly kept by his grandfather. He was helped by the fact that while still a student he made contacts at the publishing house, where he began to draw up inexpensive books. This work did not bring pleasure to him, but brought money. In 1890, he became close to the Benoit brothers, they introduced Bakst to the circle of progressive creative youth. Under their influence, the artist is fond of watercolor. It was this circle, which later grew into the Art World art association, that shaped Bakstās views and his direction in painting. In 1891, Leo first went abroad, he traveled to Germany, Italy, Belgium and France, visiting museums. From 1893 to 1896 he studied at the studio of French artists in Paris. At this time, Leo gains first fame as a good watercolor painter.
Bakst portrait painter
The artist Lev Bakst was forced to constantly fulfill orders that did not give him pleasure. He rested and embodied his ideas in portraits, which are gradually becoming popular. They manifested the refined manner of the artist, his skill as a draftsman and the ability to penetrate the psychology of the character. Starting to paint portraits in 1896, he periodically turned to this genre throughout his life. Among his best works are portraits of A. Benoit, I. Levitan, mature works of the early 20th century, portraits of Z. Gippius, I. Rubinstein, S. Diaghilev with a nanny, J. Cocteau, V. Tsukini. Most of the artistās creative heritage is made up of drawings, he made sketches of the people who attracted his attention, and drew portraits of acquaintances and friends.
Bakst painter
Leo Bakst, whose paintings are striking in variety, experimented a lot with painting technique. He could write in thick strokes, or he could create a complex canvas with the help of glaze. He worked little in the genre of landscape, but the available works show the impressionist vision of the artist. In the works āNear Niceā, āOlive Groveā, āSunflowers under the Sunā, the light and air of nature are felt, the optimistic worldview of the author is transmitted. Leo Bakst, whose exhibition today could gather a large number of fans of his work in any city in the world, did not feel confident in himself as a painter. He too easily succumbed to outside influences and did not develop a clear, personal manner of writing. But undoubted masterpieces are his work āDinnerā, āIn a cafeā, āAncient horrorā.
Bakst and theater
Most of all, Bakst Lev Samoilovich showed his talents in theatrical works. He was very fond of this art form. Leo Bakst, whose exhibition of theatrical scenery and costumes is invariably accompanied by a full house, works for S. Diaghilevās theater with great pleasure. He brilliantly arranges the ballets āScheherazadeā, āCleopatraā, āNarcissusā, āFirebirdā. Bakst became a real co-author of the spectacles, organically embodying the directorās plan in the scenery, lighting, costumes. Since 1910, the artist lives in Paris and collaborates with the S. Diaghilev Theater . It was in collaboration with him that Bakst made a real revolution in scenography and theatrical design.
Diverse talent
Bakst Lev not only proved himself in painting and scenography, in fact, he was a designer. He often came up with costumes, and not just for the stage. It was he who invented the logo, as they would say today, a logo for the magazine "World of Art". He created interior design for exquisite ladies' boudoirs, for the premises of Diaghilev's entreprise. Bakst also worked on creating exhibits. Working on theatrical costumes, Leo discovered the talent of a stylist, he drew sketches of ladies' dresses and became a real trendsetter in the Art Nouveau style. He also turned out to be a good teacher. Elizaveta Zvantseva invited Bakst to her art school in 1900, where he tried to help young talents find their style in painting. It was he who first saw the talent in his student - Marc Chagall.
Personal life
Leo Bakst, whose paintings were so successful and brought him great fame, was completely unlucky in his personal life. His first love for the French actress Marcel Josse was very unhappy. It ended only thanks to the departure of the artist from Paris. In St. Petersburg, he falls in love with the daughter of P. Tretyakov, who by that time was a widow with a child in her arms. Bakst accepts Lutheranism in order to marry his beloved. The marriage was unsuccessful, although the son of the artist, Andrei, was born in it. The couple spent a lot of time apart and eventually divorced in 1910. But he continued to be friends with his ex-wife and stepdaughter, in 1921, at his invitation, they were able to leave the Soviet Union and settle in Paris.
In the last years of his life, Bakst worked a lot in Paris, America, England, this undermined his health, and on December 28, 1924 he died suddenly.