Today, 8 December, at 12.30 in the exhibit halls of the Tretyakov Gallery in Krymsky Val will be a panel presentation Natalia Goncharova « Bathers "(about 1922, oil on canvas, 260 x 500) after completion of the restoration. This unique piece, not previously known or professionals or the general public for a long time was in the reserves of the Tretyakov Gallery and has recently been fully restored.

monumental triptych "Bathers" Natalia Goncharova was received the Tretyakov Gallery in 1989, together with a collection of other works in the gift bequest widow M. Larionov Alexandra Klavdievny Larionova-Tomilina. For many years he was kept in the Paris workshop Goncharova and Larionov and not on display because of their large size. Despite the abundance of monographs on artists, it was not published in any of them. The right part of the composition has been reproduced only once in isolation from the rest of the panel after the arrival in Russia in the catalog of the exhibition "Masterpieces from the Parisian heritage. Painting. Mikhail Larionov - Natalia Goncharova, held at the Tretyakov Gallery in 1999. However, due to poor preservation of the picture and was not included in the exhibition. Now, after decades of storage on the shaft, a three-part panel passed a complex restoration and presented to the audience.

Natalia Goncharova (1881-1962) - the greatest artist of the twentieth century, one of the leading masters of Russian avant-garde. Her work occupies a significant place in the history of domestic and international modernist art school of the last century. However, Goncharova, Mikhail Larionov stands at the origins of neo-primitivism, which develops folkloric tradition of national culture.

In his luchistskih "works 1913-1914 period, she tried to go beyond the objective world, is looking for a way to abstraction.

In 1915 at the invitation of Sergei Diaghilev Goncharova joined his ballet company, much fruitful work as a theatrical artist. However, Goncharova theater was only one area of her talent, she felt herself primarily a painter. In 1919, finally settling in Paris, Goncharova returned to the easel creativity. One of the most important works of this period was the monumental three-part panel "Bathers". First shown at the "Salon of the Independents in 1922 and had a great repercussion in the French press, it is, in fact, a kind of declaration of a return to painting. It is no accident that the theme of the triptych Goncharova chooses a classic motif bathers.

In "Bather" spectacular talent Goncharova was combined with the experience of theatrical decorator. Perfect mastery of the image plane is so large, sophisticated rhythmic patterns and harmonious composition of large forms can speak about every part of the triptych as an independent monumental work.

In 1923, the composition of the left side panel was used to posters of one of the first charity balls in favor of the Russian émigré artists - the famous "Big Bala artists" in the hall Bule, who became one of the brightest pages of the artistic life of Paris.

Restoration

Triptych "Bathers" has long been in storage at the Tretyakov Gallery cliches to a special shaft for paintings. State of preservation of a panel at the time of inspection, it was very unsatisfactory. Prolonged works without a stretcher, in unlocked form led to deformations of the canvas, the appearance of warping, room and breaks with loss of the paint layer. From the impact of the binder, a component of oil paints, canvas has lost elasticity and become brittle. The most severely affected the right side of the triptych.

restoration council meeting at the Tretyakov Gallery was decided to hold the restoration panels.

first phase of work consisted of to restore the elasticity of the canvas and colorful layer. To do this, the reverse side of works has been treated with a special compound. The next stage of restoration was the removal warping and wrinkles of the canvas on the vacuum table. After the surface of products has leveled off, all the threads of the canvas breaks were connected back to back and recorded on the back side. Then part of the triptych were duplicated on a new canvas and stretched on Tablet stretchers. The missing paint layer was brought soil restoration and implemented toning.

After the unique restoration carried out in 2009, a work first presented to the public. This, of course, outstanding event of artistic life, which will substantially expand the idea of the work by Natalia Goncharova, the extent of her personality and contribution to world art of the twentieth century.

artwork on display in Hall number 20 on March 15, 2010.

Source : Press release of the State Tretyakov Gallery