On Wednesday, March 24, passed away Sanovich Igor, one of the largest collectors in Moscow, a man of encyclopedic knowledge and an outstanding artistic taste

Wednesday, March 24, died Sanovich Igor, one of the largest collectors in Moscow, a man of encyclopedic knowledge and an outstanding artistic taste. He was one of the last "ideological" gatherers, rely exclusively on intuition and their own instinct, and never - the commercial side of the issue.

• Igor G. Sanovich in his apartment-museum
  2003. Photo by A. Kronik first published in the book "His circle»

Sanovich often said: "The Old Man if you can give a picture at the exhibition - writing. This is what little you can really do for the artist. This phrase describes very clearly his.

Igor Sanovichu was 86 years old.

With the permission of the author publish fragments of memories Alexander Kronik about Igor Sanoviche of his book "the circle" (2010):

«End of the nineties brought me another incredible meeting: in a house Moseshvili I met with legendary domestic collectibles Igor Sanovichem. In the late 1950's collector Yakov Zak wrote hodivshuyu listed in the Moscow and Leningrad "Poem", dedicated to the most famous and passionate collectors of the time. Even then, more than half a century ago, Igor Dyachenko was part of their circle.

"long Sanovicha not see He's better than many of us: He's just a joke not hurt , and laugh at the most times! But if you change, Again, do not you over it laugh - He had perfect control Mechanics exchange affairs! And you do not believe an hour? Then special conversation - Remove headpiece Before his iconostasis: Here miracle-long series of Party standing of his store! "

Sanovich passed the Great Patriotic War, in 1945 the group took a break three times Berlin. In 1952 he graduated from the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies, and before retirement worked at the Institute of Oriental Studies, USSR Academy of Sciences. Sanovich friend of Lilya Brik, Alexander Tyshler , Dmitry Krasnopevtsev , Vladimir Weisberg , Pavel Kuznetsov , Leo Zhegin, Cyril Zdaneviches , Academician Arkady Migdal, and many prominent artists, writers, art historians and scientists, long since become part of history. He was a phenomenal collection, or rather collections of: Russian icons and Western primitives, paintings and drawings of all time, Persian, Western and ancient miniatures, porcelain beads. Also: Jewish Studies, Chinese and Persian portable art, Japanese prints and netsuke, found in excavations of Scythian, Alan, Greek settlements of objects ...

All of these collections are mainly composed of outstanding works often the central in the creation of a particular artist, the best examples of a genre of art, things perfect in terms of origin and often have museum value.

in a small apartment in the south-west of Moscow which should rather be called an apartment-museum, incomprehensible way perfectly coexist with each other huge "oilcloth» Pirosmani , leaf Robert Falk , Mikhail Larionov and Pavel Kuznetsov, still lifes Vladimir Weisberg, Vladimir Yakovlev and Dmitry Krasnopevtsev Sienese Madonna of the XIII century, a massive Ossetian chain from the source, porcelain figurines and plates Natalia Danko Soviet agitfarfora, Empire furniture, rare objects of Chinese and French porcelain, Scythian gold, virtuoso Japanese ivory netsuke figurines, amulets and articles of Faberge, and Durer and etchings, rare books and a huge number of interesting items, even an approximate enumeration of which would take a lot of space.

Nikita Gashunin and Igor Sanovich in the studio Gashunina. Moscow. July 28, 2003. Photo Alex Kronik first published in the book "His circle»

Collection is strikingly not tied to a certain type of fine art, nor the time nor the place of origin of its constituent artifacts. All these treasures together only one thing: for decades they were going to a collector having a fantastic taste, flair and encyclopedic knowledge, and most importantly - enchanting gift of foresight and talent to feel the energy of the object. I have no doubt that he, Ali Baba got into this flat, red would be ashamed of the poverty of his cave. Meeting with the Assembly Sanovicha literally shocking. Moreover, the more knowledgeable and enlightened invited him "to show" a lucky man, so the impact is stronger.

I do not know what he had in mind Yakov Zak, writing, and if you change, again you laugh at him ...", but exchanges with Igor Sanovichem - the most interesting and exciting in my life collector. And his stories about his friends artists, curious cases of his huge collector practices of their own understanding of ethics is always a collector of unique and significant. Once I was curious, wondering whether he art during the war, when he was about twenty years. "In the war actually was not before - said Sanovich. - But the cases were different. Once, at the end of the war, we stopped for the night in a German castle, where there was a lot not just beautiful things, but these masterpieces. In the room where I slept on the wall hung a small landscape by Cezanne. I immediately recognized his hand ".

" Well, and was tempted to take it as a war trophy? "- I could not resist.

Suddenly the gloomy, Igor G. harshly replied: "I have nothing from them it was necessary ..."»

Sources: book" its terms "A. Kronik (publication of text and pictures made with the permission of the author) and forum ARTinvestment . RU