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Lyubov Popova
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{{Short description|Russian artist (1889–1924)}} {{Infobox artist | name = Lyubov Popova | image = Lyubov Popova.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Lyubov Popova, before 1920 | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date |1889|4|24}} | birth_place = [[Ivanovskoye District|Ivanovskoe]], [[Moscow Governorate]], [[Russian Empire]] | death_date = {{death date and age |1924|5|25|1889|4|24}} | death_place = [[Moscow]], [[Soviet Union]] | nationality = | known_for = [[Painting]], [[stage design]], [[textile design]], [[book design]] | training = | movement = [[Russian avant-garde]], [[Cubo-Futurism]], [[Suprematism]], [[Constructivism (art)|Constructivism]] | works = | patrons = | influenced by = | influenced = | awards = }} '''Lyubov Sergeyevna Popova''' ({{langx|ru|Любо́вь Серге́евна Попо́ва}}; April 24, 1889 – May 25, 1924)<ref name="Britannica">{{cite web |title=Lyubov Sergeyevna Popova {{!}} Russian Constructivist Artist |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lyubov-Sergeyevna-Popova |website=Britannica |access-date=18 July 2024 |language=en |date=21 May 2024}}</ref> was a Russian-Soviet [[avant-garde art]]ist, [[Painting|painter]] and [[designer]]. == Early life == Popova was born in [[Ivanovskoye District|Ivanovskoe]], near [[Moscow]], to the wealthy family of Sergei Maximovich Popov, a very successful textile merchant and vigorous patron of the arts, and Lyubov Vasilievna Zubova, who came from a highly cultured family. Lyubov Sergeyevna had two brothers and a sister: Sergei was the eldest, then Lyubov, Pavel and Olga. Pavel became a philosopher and the guardian of his sister's artistic legacy.<ref name=":1">Dabrowski, M., ''Liubov Popova'', Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1991, p.122.</ref> Popova grew up with a strong interest in art, especially [[Italian Renaissance]] painting. At eleven years old she began formal art lessons at home. She was first enrolled in Yaltinskaia's Women's Gymnasium, then in Arseneva's Gymnasium in Moscow.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title = Women Artists, 1550-1950|last = Harris|first = Ann Sutherland|publisher = Museum Associates of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art|year = 1976|isbn = 0-394-41169-2|location = New York|pages = [https://archive.org/details/womenartists155000harr/page/310 310]|url = https://archive.org/details/womenartists155000harr/page/310}}</ref> By the age of 18 she was studying with [[Stanislav Zhukovsky]], and in 1908 entered the private studios of [[Konstantin Yuon]] and [[Ivan O. Dudin|Ivan Dudin]]. Between 1912 and 1913, she began attending the studios of the Cubist painters [[Henri Le Fauconnier]] and [[Jean Metzinger]] at [[Académie de La Palette]] in Paris.<ref name=":0" /> == Career == === Travels === Popova traveled widely to investigate and learn from diverse styles of painting, but it was the ancient Russian [[icon]]s, the paintings of [[Giotto]], and the works of the 15th- and 16th-century Italian painters which interested her the most.{{Citation needed|date=March 2025}} In 1909 she traveled to [[Kiev]], then in 1910 to [[Pskov]] and [[Novgorod]]. The following year she visited other ancient Russian cities, including [[St. Petersburg]], to study icons. In 1912 she worked in a Moscow studio known as "The Tower" with [[Ivan Aksenov]] and [[Vladimir Tatlin]], and also visited [[Sergei Shchukin]]'s collection of modern French paintings. In 1912–1913 she studied art with [[Nadezhda Udaltsova]] in [[Paris]], where she met [[Alexander Archipenko]], and [[Ossip Zadkine]] in 1913. After returning to Russia that same year, she worked with Tatlin, Udaltsova, and the [[Vesnin brothers]]. In 1914 she traveled in France and Italy during the development of Cubism and [[Futurism]].<ref>Sarabianov, Dmitri, and Adaskina, Natalia, ''Popova'', Harry N Abrams Inc. New York, 1990</ref> == Style == === Cubo-Futurism === [[File:1913 Popova Das Modell anagoria.JPG|thumb|''The Model'', 1913]] [[File:Lyubov Popova - The Pianist.jpg|thumb|''The Pianist'', 1914, [[National Gallery of Canada]]]] Popova was one of the first female pioneers in [[Cubo-Futurism]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Drutt|first1=Matt|title=Lyubov Popova|url=http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/artwork/3494|website=Guggenheim}}</ref> Through a synthesis of styles she worked towards what she termed ''painterly architectonics''. After first exploring [[Impressionism]], by 1913, in ''Composition with Figures'', she was experimenting with the particularly Russian development of Cubo-Futurism: a fusion of two equal influences from France and Italy. From 1914 to 1915 her Moscow home became the meeting-place for artists and writers. In 1914–1916 Popova together with other [[avant-garde]] artists ([[Aleksandra Ekster]], Nadezhda Udaltsova, [[Olga Rozanova]]) contributed to the two [[Jack of Diamonds (artists)|''Knave of Diamonds'']] exhibitions, in Petrograd '' Tramway V'' and the ''[[0,10 Exhibition|0.10]]'', ''The Store'' in Moscow. An analysis of Popova's cubo-futurist work also suggests an affinity with the work of [[Fernand Léger|Fernand Leger]], whose geometry of tubular and conical forms in his series of paintings from 1913 to 1914 is similar to that in Popova's paintings.<ref name=":1" /> === Suprematism === Her painting ''The Violin'' of 1914 suggests the development from Cubism towards the "painterly architectonics" series of 1916–1918. This series defined her distinct artistic trajectory in [[abstract art|abstract]] form. The canvas surface is an energy field of overlapping and intersecting angular planes in a constant state of potential release of energy. At the same time the elements are held in a balanced and proportioned whole as if linking the compositions of the classical past to the future. Color is used as the iconic focus; the strong primary color at the center drawing the outer shapes together. [[File:Popova Philosopher.jpg|thumb|''Portrait of a Philosopher'' (Artist's brother, Pavel Sergeyevich Popov), 1915]] In 1916 she joined the ''[[Supremus]]'' group with [[Kazimir Malevich]], the founder of [[Suprematism]], [[Aleksandra Ekster]], [[Ivan Kliun]], [[Nadezhda Udaltsova]], [[Olga Rozanova]], [[Ivan Puni]], [[Nina Genke-Meller|Nina Genke]], [[Ksenia Boguslavskaya]] and others who at this time worked in [[Verbovka Village Folk Centre]]. The creation of a new kind of painting was part of the [[Russian Revolution (1917)|revolutionary]] urge of the [[Russian avant-garde]] to remake the world. The term 'supreme' refers to a 'non-objective' or abstract world beyond that of everyday reality. However, there was a tension between those who, like Malevich, saw art as a spiritual quest, and others who responded to the need for the artist to create a new physical world.<ref>Bowlt, John, and [[Drutt, Matthew]], ''Amazons of the Avant-Garde'', Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1999</ref> Popova embraced both of these ideals but eventually identified herself entirely with the aims of the [[October Revolution|Revolution]] working in [[poster]], [[book design]], fabric and [[theatre]] design, as well as teaching. At ''0.10'' she had exhibited a number of figurative painted cardboard reliefs in a cubist derived style. In 1916 she began to paint completely abstract [[Suprematism|Suprematist]] compositions, but the title "Painterly Architectonics" (which she gave to many of her paintings) suggests that, even as a Suprematist, Popova was more interested in painting as a projection of material reality than as the personal expression of a metaphysical reality. Popova's superimposed planes and strong color have the objective presence of actual space and materials.<ref>Gooding, Mel, ''Abstract Art'', [[Tate Publishing Ltd|Tate Publishing]], 2001</ref><ref>Tedman, Gary, ''Soviet Avant Garde Aesthetics'' - chapter from Aesthetics & Alienation, [[Zero Books|John Hunt Publishing]], 2012</ref><!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Popova Paint arch 1918 2.jpg|thumb|Liubov Popova, ''Painterly architectonic'', 1918 {{deletable image-caption}}]] --> In 1918 Popova married the art historian [[Boris von Eding]], and gave birth to a son. Von Eding died the following year of [[typhoid fever]]. Popova was also seriously ill but recovered. === Constructivism === As early as 1917, in parallel with her Suprematist work, the artist had made fabric designs and worked on ''Agitprop'' books and posters, In the ''[[Tenth State Exhibition: Non Objective Creativity and Suprematism]]'', 1918, she contributed the architectonic series of paintings. She continued painting advanced abstract works until 1921. In the [[5x5=25]] Exhibition of 1921,<ref>Gray, Camilla, ''The Russian Experiment in Art'', Thames and Hudson, 1965</ref> Popova and her four fellow [[Constructivism (art)|Constructivists]] declared that easel painting was to be abandoned and all creative work was to be for the people and the making of the new society. Popova worked in a broad range of mediums and disciplines, including painting, relief, works on paper, and designs for the theater, textiles, and typography. Popova did not join the [[First Working Group of Constructivists|Working Group of Constructivists]] when it was set up in Moscow in March 1921, but joined by the end of 1921. In 1923 she began creating designs for fabric to be manufactured by the First State Textile Printing Works in Moscow.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.incorm.eu/Biogs/Popova.pdf|title=Liubov Popova|access-date=2017-03-11|archive-date=2016-07-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160705020110/http://www.incorm.eu/Biogs/Popova.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> From 1921 to 1924 Popova became entirely involved in Constructivist projects, sometimes in collaboration with [[Varvara Stepanova]], the architect [[Alexander Vesnin]] and [[Alexander Rodchenko]]. She produced stage designs: [[Vsevolod Meyerhold]]'s production of [[Fernand Crommelynck]]'s [[Le Cocu magnifique|''The Magnanimous Cuckold'']], 1922; her ''Spatial Force Constructions'' were used as the basis of her art teaching theory at [[Vkhutemas]]. She designed typography of books, production art and textiles, and contributed designs for dresses to [[LEF (journal)|LEF]].<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Popova Spacial force constr. 4.jpg|thumb|Liubov Popova, ''Spatial force construction'', 1921, oil on plywood {{deletable image-caption}}]] --> She worked briefly in the Cotton Printing Factory in Moscow with Varvara Stepanova. == Death and legacy == Popova died at the peak of her artistic powers two days after the death of her son, from whom she had contracted [[scarlet fever]] in 1924 in Moscow. A large exhibition of her work opened in Moscow from December 21, 1924, to January 1925, at [[Stroganov Moscow State University of Arts and Industry|Stroganov Institute]], Moscow. The exhibition included Popova's works such as seventy-seven paintings, as well as books, posters, textile designs, and line engravings. "Artist-Constructor" was the term applied to Popova by her contemporaries in the catalogue of the artist's posthumous exhibition.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Liubov Popova|last=Dabrowski|first=Magdalena|publisher=Museum of Modern Art|year=1991|isbn=978-0870705687}}</ref> ''Rodchenko/Popova: Defining Constructivism'', an exhibition of the work of Popova, Rodchenko, and other Constructivists was shown at [[Tate Modern]], London, in 2009,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/rodchenko-popova|title=Rodchenko/Popova: Defining Constructivism|publisher=Tate Modern|access-date=October 13, 2012}}</ref> and subsequently at [[Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia|Museo Reina Sofia]], Madrid. Popova's work was included in the 2021 exhibition ''[[Women in Abstraction]]'' at the [[Centre Pompidou]].<ref name="Women in abstraction">{{cite book |title=Women in abstraction |date=2021 |publisher=Thames & Hudson Ltd. ; Thames & Hudson Inc |location=London : New York, New York |isbn=978-0500094372 |pages=170}}</ref> == Gallery == <gallery widths="170px" heights="200px"> File:Popova Air Man Space.jpg|''Air+Man+Space'', 1912, Oil on canvas, 125 x 107 cm, [[Russian Museum|The State Russian Museum]], St. Petersburg File:GUGG Untitled (Popova).jpg|''Untitled'', 1915, Oil on canvas, {{convert|106.4|x|71.1|cm|in|abbr=on}}, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York Gift, George Costakis, 1981 [[Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum|Guggenheim Museum]] File:GUGG Birsk.jpg|''Birsk'', 1916, Oil on canvas, {{convert|106|x|69.5|cm|in|abbr=on}}, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York Gift, George Costakis, 1981 [[Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum|Guggenheim Museum]] File:Textile design - Liubov Popova - c.1924.jpg|Textile design, c.1924 </gallery> == See also == * [[List of Russian artists]] == References == {{reflist}} == External links == {{Sister project auto}} * {{webarchive |url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20011125071530/http://www.rollins.edu/foreign_lang/russian/popova.html |title=Lyubov Popova |date=2001-11-25}} – [[Rollins College]] * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041206165721/http://www.guggenheimcollection.org/site/artist_bio_131.html |title=Biography |date=2004-12-06}} – [[Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum]] * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150423004401/http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/artists/1144 |title=Collection |date=2015-04-23}} – Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum * [http://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/tate-papers/14/liubov-popova-from-painting-to-textile-design Liubov Popova: From Painting to Textile Design] by Christina Lodder, Tate Papers no.14 {{Futurism}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Popova, Lyubov}} [[Category:1889 births]] [[Category:1924 deaths]] [[Category:Painters from the Russian Empire]] [[Category:Russian modern artists]] [[Category:Soviet avant-garde]] [[Category:Cubist artists]] [[Category:Soviet designers]] [[Category:Soviet Futurist painters]] [[Category:Academic staff of Vkhutemas]] [[Category:Suprematism (art movement)]] [[Category:Expatriates from the Russian Empire in France]]
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