The solo-exhibition of paintings “Epidemic of Love” by the artist Irena Machitski, a member of the International Art Foundation, takes place at the Museum of Modern History of Russia from September 1 until November 9, 2003. The opening of this exhibition coincides with the festival events on the eve of the “Moscow City Day”, which is usually celebrated by Muscovites and guests of the capital of Russia during the first week of September.

The artist Irena Machitski exhibits more that 90 works of art comprising the series “The Cloud of Unknowing”, “The Music of the Spheres” and the newest one “What the Wind Sings…” Thus the new solo-exhibition of Irena Machistki might be regarded as a retrospective, incorporating paintings which were exhibited at the Central House of Artists in 2001- 2002. These are: her solo-exhibition “The Cloud of Unknowing” (Central House of Artists, 2001), titled after the triptych of the same name which is now in the collection of contemporary art of the Russian Foundation of Culture; the solo-exhibition “The Music of the Spheres” (Central House of Artists, 2002). The present exhibition also includes a new series of 25 paintings “What the Wind Sing…” named by the title of Alexander Blok’s poetic cycle.

All these were created by the artist over the last four years, and are now exhibited under the title “Epidemic of Love”. The choice of the title of the exhibition was far from random: it fully corresponds with the artist’s attitude to life and art. Machitski’s first series of paintings took its name from the work of the anonymous English monk who lived in the XIV century. He called “to smite upon that thick Cloud of Unknowing with a sharp dart of longing love”. Machitski’s creative impulse is encouraged by Love - Love for her people, Love for people in general, Love for Art and Harmony. Therefore, according to the artist’s conception, the three steps - Faith, Hope and Charity -lead to the triptych “The Cloud of Unknowing” .

Some of her paintings are embraced by the title “Petals of Love”, others “speak” about Love too: “Veil of Love”, “The Stirring of the Soul”, “Whisper of Poppies”…

Machitski started her artistic activity with bright emotional paintings overwhelmed with Love because she believes that Love should govern the World.

And the series “The Music of the Spheres” develops the same idea, openly declared in the titles of some of her canvases: “Inspired Hearts”, “The First Kiss”, “The Pearl of Love”, “The Strings of the Heart”, “Unity of the Hearts”…

Machitski’s new series of paintings “What the Wind Sings” presents 25 works created since Autumn 2002, and is to some extent fairy-tale. It echoes Alexander Blok’s poetic lines: “My dear friend, believe the tale // Like me // who used to love // its wonders // and enjoy // the language of a fairy // and catch the magic words //and guess // through misty way //some other worlds it conveys…”

The artist “writes” her own fairy-tale, probably a long epic poem or a saga: “Egyptian Night”, “The Island of Buyan (Rowdy Island)”, “The Fire-bird”, “The Cove (Lukomorie) ” and the “Christmas-tide” cycle: “Sweet Dreams”, “Fear, Soul’s Deceiver”, and “Fortune-Telling with Ribbons”. The series is centered around the painting “The Axis of the Earth” symbolizing the axis of Life on Earth which is in permanent movement.

There is one painting that “participates” in all Machitski’s solo-exhibitions - the polyptych “Eternal Truth”. It is a key-picture at the present exhibition too. From the black depths of the painting - de profundis clamavi - the viewer reaches outer cosmic space. The bright, festive twelve round canvases, which form the series “The Flight of Thought” are grouped in threes, making four powerful chords.

The fairy-tale world created by the artist is attractive and captive; this world is governed by the laws of harmony and beauty, it is polysemantic and multi-coloured. The concept of the artist and/or some subconscious motivations are not initially easy to perceive, but this makes the adventurous travel into the world of Machitski’s art more interesting and intriguing.

The wind in Machitski’s paintings sings of Love, Love for people, for Life, for Creativity.
Her pictures produce strong impulses of a positive, harmonizing energy.

The artist believes that the Epidemic of Love is the best of all epidemics which crash through the world, because Love is the only eternal incentive granted to Man by God.

A grand and unprecedented exhibition of works of applied art made on the themes of Machitski’s paintings is also on show at the Museum (created by Olga & Yuri Topanins).

Designer - Igor Privalov.

The albums “The Cloud of Unknowing”, “The Music of the Spheres” and “What the Wind Sings”, and collections of postcards and videocassettes are available.

Curator: Natella Voiskounski
Art-manager, ASTI Gallery
Art-critic

Contact: (095) 203 3773 (ASTI Gallery) from 14.30 till 18.00
Museum: (095) 299 6724, 299 5458, 299 0974
www.imachitski-art.ru (Russian version)
www.imachitski-art.com (English version)

The exhibition “Epidemic of Love” of the grand, large-sized impressive paintings of Irena Machitski includes a small but no less impressive exhibition of decorative applied art - hand-crafted lacquer miniatures. This combined presentation is a unique phenomenon - we do not have any other examples of such a form of direct creative collaboration between a painter and miniature hand-craft artists.

The artists Olga & Yuri Topanin have long experience of cooperation with the ASTI Gallery, whose art-manager is the curator of the current exhibition. Olga Topanina specializes in landscape and still-life miniatures, Yuri Topanin in miniature portraiture.

It should be noted that these masters of applied arts - on the one hand - follow the rich, centuries-old traditions of the lacquer miniature; on the other hand, they enrich traditional forms by revolutionary breakthrough, boldly transforming works of contemporary visual art into miniatures. Their artistic talent reveals itself in a great number of art-works, some are worth mentioning in greater detail.

These include a superb delicate box made for the Queen-Mother to mark her 100th birthday; a box with a view of Windsor Castle to mark the 50th anniversary of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II (both by the order of the queen’s contractor, “Gainsborough” Co); some boxes for Lord and Lady Nourse; a box portraying Mr. George White with the picture of his father - a famous American impressionist - in the background, and a view of the Eugene O’Neill memorial house on the inside of the lid; a box with three portraitees - the prince and princesses of the ancient Italian family of Corzini, etc.

Such was the experience of the Topanins at the moment of their acquaintance with the artist Irena Machitski and her art, when they became “infected” by the powerful force of Machitski’s paintings.
They started with the triptych “The Cloud of Unknowing”. The first works made by Olga Topanina on papier-mache with direct oil painting on gold-leaf were a brooch and a large European envelope-size box with this subject. After Irena Machitski’s donation of the triptych to the Russian Foundation of Culture, the artists made a miniature triptych with three steps symbolizing Faith, Hope and Charity. Some of the boxes depicting Machitski’s such paintings as “The Stirring of the Soul”, “Whisper of Poppies”, “Awakening”, “Rustle” are real masterpieces…

Machitski’s next exhibition, “The Music of the Spheres”, stimulated the Topanins to create a new series of miniatures of such paintings as “Mystery”, “The Orb of Cognition/The Tunnel of Reality”, “The Strings of the Heart”, “Unity of the Hearts”, etc. The round box “Mystery” is an outstanding work of decorative applied art (the designer of the papier-mache box is Andrei Yanshin).

The center of the composition is occupied by the image of the work “Mystery”, and the remaining eleven round works, comprising the series “The Flight of the Thought” are also presented on it.

Some delicate fine jewellery - rings, pendants and hair-slides - are also exquisite exhibits in the present show.

As the Topanins say, Irena Machitski is - for them at least - a talented composer, whose symphonies they transform into chamber solo pieces.

There is every reason to call the Topanins the founders of a new trend in lacquer miniature painting - miniaturization of works of contemporary visual art, whose complicated and sophisticated language they adopt, and whose multilayer and polysemantic message they manage to read.

The artist Irena Machitski is in a state of continuous creative activity. The artists Olga & Yuri Topanin follow the same path - the way of true creative search.

Painters: Pavel Nikiforov, Oleg Safronoff, Eduard Studennikov, Alexander Schwartz, Alexander Satel, Valery Lashin, Alexander Dragovoy, Natalia Rodionovskaya, Svetlana Skripnikova, Ilia Danshin, Zinovy Shersher (USA), Alexander Grechanik (Israel), Artis Bute (Latvia), Irena Machitski, Tatiana & Sergey Kostrikov, Irina Alaverdova, Maria Suvorova, Vladimir Voinovich, Oleg Raikis, Olga Landysheva, Inga Kallagova, Tatyana Novikova, Constantine Chevalier, Eugeny Izosimov, et al.

Organized in 1991, ASTI Gallery permanently exhibits contemporary Russian and foreign art. During 10 years of its activity ASTI Gallery has organized over 70 exhibitions, one-man shows, etc. ASTI Gallery ussues albums, catalogues, booklets, calendars, posters, exclusive prints of the artists belonging to it. The Gallery never loses the opportunity to take part at the art exhibitions, fairs, charity auctions, etc.