Antonina Ivanova at Work

According to the russian-language inscription under the photograph made in simple pencil, Antonina Ivanova is shown in the process of painting a mural based on sketches by the avant-garde artist Nikolai Suetin (1897–1954), which took place in Moscow in 1942. However, during this period, N. Suetin worked at the Leningrad Porcelain Factory, as he did not leave Leningrad during the Nazi blockade. Therefore, the location, time, and context were most likely different from those indicated in the inscription. The modernist elements of the tea (?) set may be close to the practices of N. Suetin and his circle (for example, his wife, Anna Leporska, who was also a student of Kazimir Malevich). The porcelain work on the artist's left resembles the ceremonial, often portrait vases of the Stalinist empire (for example, the vase "Socialist Leningrad" by the LFZ (Lomonosov Porcelain Factory) from the 1940s, by Alexei Skvortsov and Tamara Bezpalova-Mykhalova, is similar in shape and size (78.3 cm high)). Identifying the company where Antonina Ivanova might have worked in 1940s Moscow has not yet been possible. It is known that after unsuccessful admission to the VKHUTEMAS (Higher Art and Technical Studios) in 1923, the artist got a job at Mosekkust, where she worked on painting Bogorodsk toys. In addition, during this period, the artist worked in a section at the State Academy of Art Sciences (Moscow, 1921–1931), where she studied folk art. As a result, numerous decorative fabrics and murals appeared (based on a reproduction from Voronov's book "On Peasant Art", 1924). However, the institution (?) indicated in the caption under the photograph as "Mosliki" has not been found (Soviet Decorative Art. Materials and documents of 1917–1932. Porcelain, faience, glass. / Ed. by V. P. Tolstoy. – Moscow: Iskusstvo Publ., 1980. – 340 p.). Therefore, additional research is needed to establish the exact time and place of the photo fixation.

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery