Artist of the week: vahrich Bakhchanyan
ARTinvestment.RU   18 сентября 2017

Most of our people born in the Soviet Union, vahrich actually know and regularly quote. Even if you think you don't know. "We were born to make Kafka come true", "Wallet — weapon of the proletariat", "by hook or by crook to live not by lies"...

... and another favorite "Bay thumbs — save Russia". All this is not "music and lyrics". It's all vahrich Bakhchanyan. His aphorisms-лозунги, who went to the people. Periodic himself their who-то told — say, did you hear that? "I heard. I came up with", — said the artist.

vahrich the Ter-Petrosyan Bakhchanyan (1938, Kharkov —2009, new-Йорк) — taught in all its splendor. Yes, such that not just "the universities did not finish", and even in eighth grade, but failed. With the youth in the Soviet system Bakhchanyan was "a grenade not that system". Send it to the factory — planted there dripping according to Jackson Pollock. Throw him to the Kharkov plant — wants a exhibition in Paris. And it's not a metaphor. From Kharkov at fault conceptualist and neodadaist can say and do just did: naively tried to send their work to France with the assistance of the Frenchman-преподавателя language. But intelligence agencies were on the alert — saved. The KGB could not grasp that the Soviet Union via-настоящему threatened not artists, and most loyal party workers but members of the Komsomol. In General, at that time, instead of excitable media in Paris and the artist Bakhchanyan got feuilleton "finding fans" in Kharkiv newspaper. It was where to go from Kharkov? In Moscow, of course.

Where it is not too much waiting. The residence was not. And without it, in those days it was impossible to get a regular job. And yet the capital is the capital, very much the abyss intelligent person will not. Was publishing, was the "Literary newspaper" with a liberal 16-й strip. He Bakhchanyan after 30 years, recalled that getting there has been literally off the street, without connections and without patronage. None of this, then, was not necessary. If a collage or drawing up of the editorial Board, published and paid. Without prejudice. And it was a good earnings. Later, the saved work in journals — "Knowledge — Force", "Youth", "Soviet screen". Some names are associated with the legendary Sobolev-Нолевым, Kabakov, Sooster, from Sretensky group. In Moscow — on a miracle! — have Bahchanyana happened and exhibitions. For example, in the cafe "Blue bird" in 1968 and 1969. It is believed that the liberalism of this site is due to the desire of the authorities to understand and control what is happening outside the official art. What the General public there, and it is difficult to get, and received mostly specially selected people. Nevertheless, the censorship there was minimal. And the Bluebird was exhibited Kabakov, Bulatov, Belenok, Sooster, future inventors "SOC-арта" Komar and Melamid (who worked then still not together, but separately), and other early names of unofficial art. In Moscow vahrich Bakhchanyan — Bach — became loved and known in underground circles. Here he became one of the main people in the genre of collage graphics. Here in the early 1970-х his handwritten books-объекты. In addition to working with publishers, began to appear and otherclasses. So, in 1973 vahrich did the scenery for the play "Ward No. 6" theatre-студии Mark Rozovsky.

But time ran out. The nuts began to slowly spin. Even the liberal "Literary" storm broke on political lines, the authorities issued a clear statement of what now needs to be a collage. The Libertines came to an end, and Bakhchanyan decided to leave.

"an Armenian by 150 %" (because even the stepmother was Armenian), Vahrich made the invitation of the Jewish line and were allowed to leave, despite nationality. As he wryly recalled, was the pioneer of non-Jewish emigration. Surprisingly, so was also possible. And not him alone. In particular, later in the same pattern permission to emigrate received his Kharkiv friend, the poet Eduard Savenko, who vahrich-то and came up with the nickname of Lemons. In 1974 Bakhchanyan arrived in Vienna. There was soon staged his show, was offered to stay in Austria, but the artist and his family moved to America.

He then regretted that he did not stay in Vienna. But much later. And in the first years in America were close friends of Sergei Dovlatov, Aleksandr Genis, inspirational work on the magazines "Seven days" and "New American." Was still book illustrations, covers, own projects from morning till evening. However, money has always been difficult. And with exhibitions and worse. The gallery industry in the U.S. did not accept the Russian "artist of words" text metaforami, understood only Russian. In 34 years of living in the US have Bahchanyana the ocean was not a single solo exhibition. Only a rare group. In mid-2000-х he admitted that he had to stay in Austria. And — that with pleasure would go to Moscow if I had a place to live.

In Moscow the artist-таки came in 2003, after 29 years after emigration. Moscow liked. Here artist-прежнему loved and remembered. Here finally-то passed it important Museum and gallery exhibitions. Here be published his book. Will be filmed ("vahrich and the black square" 2014, etc.). the words of Bahchanyana, in Moscow it was more interesting than in new-Йорке. But when asked how many years to wait next time, vahrich habit joked: "I'm Going to come every 29 years." Alas, the words of his he did not keep. 12 Nov 2009 in the U.S. due to a serious illness, the artist decided to leave the life.

Treatment, interpretation and publication of the creative heritage of vahrich of Bahchanyana is still going on. His new books continue to come out years later after his death. In 2010 in the series "Library of Moscow conceptualism" (published by collector German Titov) has published a book "vahrich Bakhchanyan. Writings." And in 2017-м, saw the publication of his book "Not by bread alone. Menu-коллаж". Possible how-то time will re-release the long out of print book "Flies a lot" —, and it I would advise to begin acquaintance with the works of the artist. This is one of those books that should open on any page in any unclear situation: the mood improvement is guaranteed.

Now about the market. It is a specific. The vahrich it is no accident that did not happen with galleries. He's recognizable, replicable, but amazingly non-profit to the author. A sparkling ironic things vahrich often done in a small size, if specially not for sale. This little leaf collages, sketchbook, notebooks, books, rarely photographs. And the market asks another. If social-арт, then fetch the canvas/oil meter on. And preferably two to three. Yes, brighter. So as Komar and Melamid delivered, as in Kabakov with Bulatov and Vasiliev. And chamber formats, sorry, only special judges. Vahrich resisted the market for over thirty years, but in mid-2000-х still had to accept these rules. He has made several works in which, in fact, suffered his earliest collages on a four-foot canvases. As told in an interview with Genis the artist's widow Irene Bakhchanyan: "It was a tribute to market conditions... didn't want to do, terribly ached and was very anxious on this subject, but-таки did!". Ironically, the current auction record for creativity Bahchanyana was set just a pair of five-foot canvases. In 2010, the diptych "Vladimir Nabokov. Lolita" was sold at Sotheby's for $35 000. Before the 2008 crisis, several of his recognizable meter "Stalin-тестов" was sold in the range of $10 000-15 000. On the Russian bid in 2016 several of the collages sold for $4,000 to 8,000. Price, as always, depends on the year, from size, from the recognition of the theme, from the plot and from the status of a trading platform.

At auction market prices on the schedule of Bahchanyana were recorded at the times below, but also things offered on the order easier. Typically 5 000-10 000 for small drawings. Collage "are You going?" which Monday sold on our Auction AI, — is the first appearance at auction in Russia the work of Bahchanyana-настоящему sturdy collector's format. The work of the spirit is very "bahovskaya", very convincing. Based on — painted military poster, which is pasted collage letters. The plot of "are You going?" has been known since 1970-х years and many still apply today. It is important that this collage is reproduced in the book "Flies a lot". alive and Well, will not hold — will add, it looks all super.

Vladimir Bogdanov, AI

Sources: liveinternet.ru, artinvestment.ru