DREVIN (Drevinsh) Alexander Davydovich

July 3, 1889 (Wenden, Livonia province) — February 26, 1938 (near Moscow)

Painter, graphic artist

Drevin was born to a family of metalworker. In 1895 his family moved from Wenden to Riga. In 1903 he finished the Ekaterina’s School. In 1904 Drevin entered the preparatory nautical school under Riga School of ocean navigation. In 1906 he was arrested for participation in revolutionary incidents; during half a year he lived in Smolensk province. In 1907 Drevin returned to Riga, finished the nautical school. Then he was interested in art. In 1908–1914 he studied at Riga municipal art school. In 1912 he began to expose his works at the exhibitions. Riga Art Museum acquired Drevin’s sketch from the second exhibition of Latvian painters.

In 1915 in connection with the beginning of the First World War and the threat of occupation, Drevin and his family moved to Moscow. He took part in the exhibition of Latvian painters in the Art Bureau of N. E. Dobychina in Petrograd; all proceeds from the exhibition were given to refugees. Drevin created a series of paintings Refugees. In 1915 he joined the group Bubnovy Valet (“Jack of Diamonds”).

In 1918 Drevin exposed his paintings at the first exhibition of the Trade Union of Moscow painters. In the same year he was appointed head of art section under the Latvian Commissariat and head of art and construction section under the department of fine arts o the National commissariat of education (Narcompros).

Drevin created abstract paintings; exposed them at the Exhibition of painters of the 9th Latvian rifle regiment. Drevin participated in foundation of the Museum of Modern Art in Moscow. In 1919 he joined the Association of the Extreme Innovators in Painting. In the same year Drevin joined the Latvian art society Group of Expressionists.

In 1920 Drevin married the painter N. A. Udaltsova, in 1921 son Andrey was born to him. In 1920 Drevin was invited as a professor to lecture at the Higher State Artistic and Technical Workshops (VKhUTEMAS); he taught there during 10 years till the close of the institute. In 1921 he took part in the exhibition of the group Mir Iskusstva (“World of Art”). Drevin collaborated with the Institute of Art Culture (Inkhuk) and the State Academy of Artistic Sciences (GAKhN) in Moscow. In 1922 Drevin’s paintings were exposed at the First Russian Art Exhibition in the Van Diemen Gallery in Berlin.

In summer 1923 Drevin lived and worked in the village Sokolniki, near Savelovskaya railroad; there he painted a series of landscapes. In 1924 he painted a series of landscapes of the town Dmitrov near Moscow.

In 1924–1925 Drevin participated in exhibitions of the society Moscow painters. He joined the Association of the artists of Revolutionary Russia (AkhRR), but left it soon. In 1926–1928 Drevin travelled to Ural in order to gather material for work. In 1927 he became one of the founders and active members of the Society of Moscow painters. In 1928 joint exhibition of works of Drevin and Udaltsova was held in the State Russian Museum in Leningrad.

In 1929–1932 Drevin visited Altai and East Kazakhstan. Paintings from the Altai series were exposed at the exhibition of the group Trinadtsat (“Thirteen”) in 1931 and provoked negative press comments. In 1932–1933 Drevin took part in the exhibition Artists of the RSFSR for 15 years in Leningrad and Moscow; some works of Drevin were taken off from Moscow exhibition. The book About Formalism in Painting by O. Beskin was published in the same year; the author subjected to criticism the Drevin’s style of painting.

In 1933–1934 Drevin visited Armenia; in 1934 drawings and paintings from Armenia were exposed at the specially organized exhibition in the State Cultural Historical Museum of Yerevan. In 1936 Drevin was sent on a mission by the society Prometheus to the Latvian collective farm of Y. Rudzutak, where he created a series of drawings and paintings. In 1937–1938 he visited Mologa several times.

On January 16th, 1938 Drevin was arrested for trumped-up charge of Latvian riflemen; on February 26th, in the same year he was shot at the Butovo training ground near Moscow. In 1957 Drevin was rehabilitated posthumously.

Retrospective exhibitions of Drevin’s works were held in 1979 in Moscow and in Leningrad (the State Russian Museum), in Riga (1981) and Tallinn (1982). In 1989 a lot of works of the master were exposed at the exhibition of the group Trinadtsat (“Thirteen”) in Moscow. In 1991 joint exhibition of Drevin’s and Udaltsova’s works was held in the halls of the Union of artists of USSR.

Alexander Drevin was one of the leaders of Russian avant-garde of 1910s–1920s. His early works were painted in impressionistic style. His works were characterized by freshness of perception of nature; pastel colors with tints of green, reddish, blue and pink. In works of War period (a series Refugees), brown and grey shades of color were dominant.

In late 1910s — early 1920s Drevin painted not only in figurative style, but in abstract style, which was close to rayonism. The painter was interested in combination of colors, its saturation and texture.

In mid 1920s Drevin returned to figurative art. The main part of his late works consisted of landscapes painted after his numerous journeys to Altai, Ural and Armenia. The painter tried to reconsider the landscape, to create abstract image of the nature.

Drevin was a master of drawing. His graphic works, mostly drawings from life in watercolor, pen or pencil, were estimated not less than his paintings.

Works by Alexander Drevin are in many museum and private collections, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum, the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki (Greece), the State Art Museum in Riga and others.