“Beyond its Time. The Adventure of a Collector”, Russian Museum Málaga

Oct 26

I visit Málaga at least once a year. It is an amazing city with a extroverted people, quality of life, amazing food, and the sun is always shining! In addition to all this, the city government has been making a lot of emphasis on the cultural aspect and supporting and promoting the diffusion of art, hosting various museums and developing exhibitions throughout the year. Last time I had the chance to visit the Russian Museum.

The ongoing exhibition was “Beyond its Time. The Adventure of a Collector”. It presents several hundred pieces resulting from the collecting passion of José María Castañé, who owns one of the most interesting private collections in Spain. Not only for the quantity of works it holds but also for the quality of the Russian and non-Russian art it contains, as well as a documentary section illustrating the great conflicts of the 20th century.

“Beyond its Time. The Adventure of a Collector”, Colección Museo Ruso, Malaga 2024

“Landscape”, Aristarj Lentulov , (Watercolour over pencil) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Winter in Pskov accros the river”, Arnoild Lajovsky, Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Railway Station” , Nikolai Rusakov, (Oil on canvas) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Winter Landscape”, Ivan Vladimirov , (Oil on Board,) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Village market”, Boris Kustodiev , (Gouache over pencil,) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Self-Portrait”, Boris Solotareff , (Watercolour and gouache over pencil), 1922 Paris, Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

The first section, dedicated to Russian art and curated by Ivan Samarine, displays an outstanding collection of Russian drawings, paintings and watercolours, many of which have not been seen before in Spain, as well as historical documents and other treasures of international art. In these rooms, visitors will encounter the main movements, themes and concerns of Russian art from the end of the 19th century until the end of the Second World War.

Many of the most famous Russian artists of the period are represented in the rooms, such as Natan Altman, Alexander Deineka, Zinaida Serebriakova, Vasili Kandinsky, Natalia Goncharova and Liubov Popova.

“Girl amidst trees in bloom”, Kuzma Petrov Vodkin , 1904 (Watercolor over pencil) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Portrait of N.N.Sukhanov, Yuri Annenkov , (Pencil) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

If there is one dominant theme in the repertoire, it is the manifest interest in the avant-garde. Many of the pieces date from the period between 1910 and 1930, a time when Moscow and St. Petersburg experienced an extraordinary creative surge. For two decades, artists from these two cities were at the forefront of modern art.

“Cubist Nude”, Vladimir Baranoff Rossibé, Jersón 1888, Auschwitz 1944 (Watercolor and gouache)

Visiting the exhibition, Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Painterly Arxhitectonic”, Liubov Popova , (Oil on canvas) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Untitled”, Liubov Popova, (Tempera, gouache, watercolor and pencil) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Fugue”, Rudolf Bauer, 1937, (Oil on canvas) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

This exhibition contains an extraordinary collection of Russian drawings, paintings and watercolours. In its galleries, visitors will encounter the main movements, themes and concerns of Russian art in the period from the end of the 19th century to the end of World War II. Many of the most famous Russian artists of that period are represented, and experts and lovers of culture and art will find much to admire, learn and discuss.

“Frohlicher Austieg” Vassily Kandinsky, 1923, (Watercolor, gouache, tempera), Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Portrait of Richard Addinesell”, David Hockney, 1971 , (Quill and colour drawing on paper) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

“Father and Son”, Xenia Hausner , (Oil on canvas 94,5 × 164cm) Portrait of José María Castañé Ortega and son, 2004

“The River Dniepr”, David Barliuk, (Oil on canvas) Russian Museum, Málaga 2024

The second section of the exhibition brings together a large number of written documents, as well as photographs, posters, drawings and graphic documents from books and magazines of enormous historical value. This section was curated by José María Faraldo, a professor at the Complutense University of Madrid and one of the Spanish historians who has most deeply studied the archives and the recent past of Central and Eastern Europe, becoming a specialist in totalitarian, fascist and communist movements.