Zdanevich Ilya Mikhailovich (pseudonym Ilyazd, Eli Eganbyuri)

April 21, 1894 (Tiflis) - December 25, 1975 (Paris)

art theorist, critic, graphic artist, painter of decorative art.

came from a family of Polish aristocrats who moved to the Caucasus in the XVIII century. In 1911 he graduated from the Tiflis high school and entered the law faculty of St. Petersburg University. I became acquainted with artists VS Bart, MV Le Dante, M. V. Mayakovsky, AE Kruchenykh, became fascinated with new trends in art soon became prominent advocate of Russian Futurism. In early 1912 issued a "Manifesto of Futurism" on the evening of the Youth League at the Trinity Theater. In 1912-1913 made many appearances at debates and conferences. Posted by a series of polemical articles: "Why are we painted by", which became one of the Futurist manifestos, "Long-manifesto" which anticipates Declaration Dadaists. In 1913, under a pseudonym, published a book about creativity MF Larionov and Natalia Goncharova. Zdanevich, along with his elder brother Cyril (also known artist and art critic) and Le Dante is credited with opening for "public" and the art public art Niko Pirosmani. With their active participation of his works were exhibited in 1913 at "Target" in Moscow. In 1914 he met with the leader of the Italian Futurists F.-T. Marinetti during his first visit to Moscow (before Zdanevich few years was with him in the correspondence). Kubofuturisticheskih has designed a series of booklets and posters, often using asymmetric typographic bias to draw attention to a particular word or concept.

From 1915 to 1917 he worked as a Caucasian Petrograd correspondent of the newspaper Rech and the British Manchester Guardian. In 1917, having received a law degree, returned to Tbilisi. He traveled to Turkey. In 1917, together with twisted and IG Terentiev founded association "41", publisher of the same name, as well as a group of "futurists Syndicate».

In 1917 the Society organized a "Freedom of Art", performed at rallies, on the organizational forms of a new culture. In 1918 - early 1920's written and published several plays: "Janko krUl albAnskaj" (1918), "Ostraf Easter" (1919), "Zgya Jakab (1921).

In 1921 received from the Georgian government scholarship to continue his studies, went to Paris where he stayed with Larionov. Became secretary of the Union of Russian Artists in Paris, organized the group "A" - for connection of Russian artists and poets with representatives of French culture. With sit-down dinners, charity balls and festivals (in 1922 - the evening in honor of Mayakovsky in a cafe "Chameleon", in 1923 - a ball in honor of Kruchenykh, 1924 - "Banal ball" with live painting "The Triumph of Cubism").

friends with G. de Chirico, T. Ttsra, P. Eluard, Jean Cocteau, R. Delaunay. Participated in meetings of Dadaists and Surrealists. Posted novel "Rapture" (some sources - "The Return", published in 1930 in Paris).

was thrice married. The first marriage was combined with The Model Axel Simens (lasted from 1926 to 1939), second - with the Nigerian princess Ibironke Akinsemoin (1940-1943), third - with the artist in ceramics Elene Douar-Mare (1968).

the second half of 1920 had worked as a painter in the body, first for S. Delaunay, then, on the recommendation of Sergei Diaghilev, the company Blak Belair, which went down in 1928 in the House of Coco Chanel. In 1933-1937 - director of the company. In the 1940 resumed publishing "41", attracted to the design of books on their layouts P. Picasso, G. Braque, A. Derain, Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, A. ; Giacometti, L. Survage. Served book illustrator R. Hausmann, R. Osman, P. Eluard, and others. In the last years of life under the influence of his wife took up pottery. In Europe, better known under the pseudonym Ilyazd.

Zdanevich Creativity in the visual arts, despite the absence of a systematic art education, however, occupies an important place in the Russian vanguard of the early twentieth century: the artist - the author of numerous font experiments and discoveries in the field of typographic design.