Золотое руно - La Toison d'Or, No. 5 - 1906
Moscow: Imprimerie de la Société J. N. Kouchnerev et Cie. 1906. First edition. Softcover. Folio. [8], 96pp. Original illustrated wrappers. Frontispiece. Decorative head-, and tailpieces. Striking fifth issue of "La Toison d'Or" (The Golden Fleece), a luxurious artistic and literary review published in Moscow between 1906 and 1909. The title is a reference to the St. Petersburg Symbolist* circle called the "Argonauts," (name of the band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece). Contributors included many of the foremost Russian artists and critics of the day, among them Aleksandr Blok (who edited the literary criticism section) and Leon Bakst, for the artistic section.
Throughout the 34 issues of its existence, the Symbolist magazine set out to introduce the second generation of Russian Symbolist poets, writers and artists such as Vyacheslav Ivanovich Ivanov, Konstantin Dmitriyevich Balmont, Ivan Alekseyevich Bunin, Sergey Alexeevich Sokolov-Krechetov, Mark Krinitsky, Boris Nikolaevich Bugaev, Anatolii Arapov, Basil Milioti, Nikolai Feofilaktov, Vasily Denisov, Anne Goloubkine, Pavel Kuznetsov, Nikolai Sapunov, Martiros Saryan, Nikolay Petrovich Krymov, Alexander Sredine, Nikolai Pavlovich Ulyanov, Mikhail Fyodorovich Larionov, Sergei Sudeikin, Alexej Jawlensky, Petr Utkin, Boris Anisfeld, and many others. The phase involving the second generation of Russian Symbolist painters is referred to as the Blue Rose Movement, and was most active in Moscow from 1904 to 1908. These artists were not only known for their contribution to Russian Symbolism, but also for the very evolution of modern Russian painting. The name “Blue Rose” comes from the title of their one and only group exhibition which took place in Moscow over a two-month period in the spring of 1907. The primary aim of the artists was the transcendence of mundane reality, a communication with the beyond or the absolute, which they achieved through the use of certain symbols such as women, babies, fountains and rainbows.
This fifth issue of "La Toison d'Or" features 5 photographic reproductions of Pavel Kuznetsov's paintings, including one in color titled "l'Amour Maternel" (Maternal Love); 3 b/w photographic reproductions of Basil Milioti's art; two of Nikolai Sapunov's paintings; four b/w photographic reproductions of Anne Goloubkine's sculptures (busts); two depicting paintings from A. Lindemann; ten b/w photographs depicting paintings from Vasily Denisov, Nikolai Feofilaktov, T. Lugovski, M. Sabachnikov, Alexander Sredine, Boris Anisfeld, Alexej Jawlensky, Nikolai Pavlovich Ulyanov, Nikolay Petrovich Krymov, and Mikhail Fyodorovich Larionov. Includes also four b/w photographic reproductions of embroidered bags and pillow cases by A. Lindemann. Each photographic plate is protected by a tissue-guard.
The literary section contains 6 poems by Vyacheslav Ivanovich Ivanov (1866-1949), a Russian poet and playwright associated with the Russian Symbolist movement; Konstantin Dmitriyevich Balmont (1867-1942), a Russian symbolist poet, and one of the major figures of the Silver Age of Russian Poetry; Ivan Alekseyevich Bunin (1870-1953), the first Russian writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature; Sergey Alexeevich Sokolov-Krechetov (1878-1936); V. Zorgenfrei; Alexander Diesperov; and 6 texts and essays by Mark Krinitsky (Mikhail Samygin, 1874-1952); George Tchereda; Boris Nikolaevich Bugaev (1880-1934), better known by the pen name Andrei Bely, a Russian novelist, poet, theorist and literary critic, whose novel "Petersburg" was regarded by Vladimir Nabokov as one of the four greatest novels of the 20th century; Vasily Vasilievich Rozanov (1856-1919), one of the most controversial Russian writers and philosophers of the pre-revolutionary epoch; D. Imgardt, “Zhivopis i revoliutsiia - La Peinture et la Révolution” (Painting and Revolution); "Музыка и эстетика - La Musique et l'Esthétique" (Music and Aesthetics) by Konstantin Romanovich Eiges (1875-1950), a Russian composer, teacher and pianist. Includes chronicles and musical and literary critics by Konstantin Synnerberg, V. K.; Wolfing; Nikolai Tarovaty; A. Batschinski; A. Koursinsky; B. Popov; B. Diks; Sergei Kretchetov; Nikolai Jarkov, and Sigurd.
Magazine rebacked, but retaining most of the original spine. Creasing along edges of front cover. Back cover repaired and remargined, with minor text loss. Lower back corner bumped, thus slightly affecting pages throughout. Text in Russian and French. Wrappers in overall fair, interior in good to very good condition. f to vg. Item #33108
* Russian Symbolism was an intellectual and artistic movement predominant at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. It represented the Russian branch of the symbolist movement in European art, and was mostly known for its contributions to Russian poetry (from Wikipedia).
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