Tag: History

The Modigliani Affaire

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The death of Amedeo Modigliani and of his devoted partner Jeanne Hebuterne starts one of the most emblematic stories of the Art Market, which will lead the works of the unfortunate Tuscan artist to be subject of an โ€œexceptional enterprise of economic revaluationโ€.

The acme of the speculative operation has been reached with the auction award for 170,405,000 US dollars of the “Red Nude”, which previously belonged to Gualino Collection and to Feroldi Collection and then in 1950 was acquired by the art collector Gianni Mattioli thanks to the interest of his cousin, Fernanda Wittgens, the then Director of the Pinacoteca di Brera.

The valorization of Modigliani’s Work thus began in the โ€˜50s on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean: in Europe activities revolved around โ€œIl Milione Galleryโ€ in Milan and in Americaย around Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Mexican Artist Said Dokins and UAE Master-Calligrapher Khalid Al Jallafis Display their Calligraphic Art at Guadalajara International Book Fair 2022

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This year, Guadalajara International Book Fair, the most outstanding meeting of the Spanish-language world, invited the UAE city of Sharjah as a guest of honor. It is the third largest of the seven Emirates and is considered to be the cultural capital of the Arab world by UNESCO.

For nine days, Sharjah Pavilion showcased the Arab culture and literature to Mexico through poetry and literature. There were many productive meetings as well as a variety of artistic and cultural events where writers, editors, researchers, artists, and spokespersons of Arab culture exchanges ideas, laying the foundations to better the relations between Mexico and the United Arab Emirates. ย 

Top 15 Most Unusual Museums You Should Consider Visiting in America

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The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The American Museum of Natural History.

These are familiar institutions that you may have visited, considered visiting, or heard of in passing.

While these landmarks are popular for a reason, there are tens of thousands of other museums across the U.S. that many people are not as familiar with.

And thatโ€™s a shame, since these off-the-wall stops consist of enriching, unique exhibits that may convert even the most stubborn of museum doubters.โ€ฏ

Painting Bizzarrini into Automobile History

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I had never seen a car so wanton, so rakish, almost obscene. It was like a streetwalker in 8-in high heels. What amazed me then was that it had a Chevy V8 as an engine, iron block, pushrod. Detroit crudity in an exotic. I forgot poetry and instantly became a car guy.

A couple years later I was writing car ads in Detroit and a boss mentioned an obscure Italian car was down at a Corvette shop; I might want to take a look at it.

It was a Bizzarrini Targa.

Now,ย in 2022, Iโ€™d say itโ€™s worth what โ€” 2ย  toย  3 million?ย Give or take.

Rare Porcelain from Imperial Russia by Philip Batenin

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This small bell shaped tea cup, manufactured in 1830s by the famous Batenin Porcelain Factory that belonged to a wealthy merchant Philip Batenin, is a perfect example of valuable antique porcelain from the Imperial Russia. The cup features one of the rarest views ever depicted on Batenin’s creations, the Smolny Cathedral on the Neva River, which is painted completely by hand.

A similar cylindrical cup with a view of the Smolny Cathedral was sold at a Sotheby’s auction in June 2007 for ยฃ2400. Another is located in the world-famous Hermitage Museum. Nowadays, Batenin’s porcelain is quite rare and highly prized among collectors.

How Russian Czar’s Library Ended Up In America

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Most people in the United States, Russia, and the World donโ€™t know that more than 2,500 volumes from the personal library of the Russia’s Royal Family are in the possession of the Library of Congress of the United States.

This priceless collection was formed in the Winter Palace in St. Petersburgโ€™s, Imperial Russia. It survived WWI, the 1917 Revolution as well as the Civil War that followed, eventually ending up in America.

This is the fascinating story of how it happened, told exclusively to the World Art News by a researcher who worked with these rare books.

Why Soviet Firearms are a Great Investment โ€“ Part 1: The SKS

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Despite its relatively short term as the Soviet Unionโ€™s main battle rifle, this has not diminished the SKS rifleโ€™s presence on the global market as an increasingly sought-after firearm that is both highly collectible and investible. There are in fact numerous reasons for this. The most readily apparent is the historical aspect. There is of course the SKS rifleโ€™s iconic status as a classic WWII and Cold War era firearm of the Soviet Union. There is also its extensive use by other countries across numerous conflicts throughout history, including the Chinese Civil War and the Vietnam War. To this day, the SKS remains in active, secondary, and ceremonial use across the world.

Czeslaw Znamierowski: Multicultural Artist from the Soviet Union

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โ€œFor him there were no boundaries between nationalities. He readily made friends with the natives of any countryโ€ฆ. He was no stranger to Latvians, Lithuanians, Jews, Tatars, Karaites, Russians. He was ready to help everyone if possible.โ€

At a time of great division in the Eastern European community a lesson in multiculturalism, unity and brotherhood can be learned from an unusual person, a Soviet Lithuanian artist Czeslaw Znamierowski (23 May 1890 โ€“ 9 August 1977). He was born in Imperial Russia on Latvian territory into a Polish family. At the age of 32 he became a citizen of the Soviet Union and soon after moved permanently to Lithuania, where he lived until his last day.

Ilya Glazunov’s Russian Nationalism | Hokkaido University

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Although lately Western scholars have begun to pay attention to various manifestations of the rise of ethnic Russian nationalism as distinct from official “Soviet patriotism” they have virtually ignored the phenomenon of Il’ia Glazunov, a Soviet painter who is also a foremost protagonist of that nationalism. The chief reason for this lack of scholarly interest lies in the fact that not only has Glazunov been a controversial figure but he was also accused of Russian chauvinism, anti-Semitism, and of being a KGB agent.