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Amshey
Markovic Nuremberg

Russia • 1887−1979

Biography and information

Amsha Markovich Nuremberg (April 21, 1887, Elisavetgrad - January 10, 1979, Moscow) - Ukrainian and Soviet artist, graphic artist, art critic.

Features of the artist Amshey Nuremberg: Amsha Nuremberg demonstrated his commitment to the Paris school of painting throughout his career. After some time working in avant-garde techniques, Nuremberg returned to realism, in which French impressionism was clearly visible. Soviet propaganda poster or a picturesque portrait, landscape or still life - Nuremberg always put paramount importance on the painting tasks, which he perfectly solved - both compositionally and coloristically. As the artist himself wrote, “I strive to introduce everything natural and ordinary into the foundation of my art. I seek motives and material for my work in ordinary life. In a random gesture, a slight movement, in a slightly noticeable joy, sadness. "

Famous paintings by the artist Amshey Nuremberg: "Hunting", "The bourgeois bastard", "Old woman".

Amsha Nuremberg was born in Elisavetgrad (now Kropyvnytsky), in a large Jewish family of the owner of a fish shop. The best possible education was given to children, and they tried to develop talents. Amshay’s drawing abilities were noted in a secondary school, where he taught Theodosius Kozachinskystudent Ilya Repin. After school, thanks to the support of the philanthropist, Amsha left for Odessa. He entered the Odessa Art College at the painting and sculpture department, where he studied in class Kyriaka Kostandi. In 1911, after graduating from college, the young man went to Paris, where his friends already lived Oscar Meshchaninov, Leon Edenbaum, Isaac Malik.

The artist settled in the famous hostel "The Hive", where over the course of the year he shared one studio with Marc Chagall. Amsha took lessons at private art academies, and worked with friends on design orders. They starved, painted fences, studied and painted. Nuremberg learned to draw from Chagall from memory, borrowed a rich palette from the Impressionists, got acquainted with the technique of caricature, worked in the Parisian Herald newspaper ... But a big creative breakthrough failed. Amsha fell ill with tuberculosis and after treatment was forced to leave for his homeland, to Ukraine.

In Elisavetgrad, Amsha began teaching. Two years later, the artist moved to Odessa, where he joined the public and exhibition activities, became a member of the Society of Independent Artists. In 1915, Nuremberg married a young ballerinaPolina Nikolaevna Mamicheva (1894 - 1978), which after her husband became interested in painting. In 1925, their daughter Nelya, the future soloist of the Bolshoi Theater of the USSR, was born to them.

Pedagogical activity attracted Nuremberg: in 1918 he founded the Free Workshop art studio in Odessa, and a little later, the Children's Academy school. Together with him, artists were committed to the latest French art movements, including Sigismund Olesevich, Theophil Fraerman, Isaac Malik - they called this company: "Odessa Parisians." During the Civil War, Nuremberg headed the Odessa Committee for the Protection of Monuments and Antiquities. Having enthusiastically accepted the Soviet regime, the Odessa Parisians expressed their commitment to a new life, decorating Odessa by May 1, 1919 with campaign posters. The team was led by Nuremberg, his closest assistant was Alexandra Exter. And a month later, Nuremberg was appointed People's Commissar of Arts of Odessa.

In the early 1920s, Nuremberg moved to Moscow. Here his talent and love for caricature found its application - he worked in the “Satire Windows ROSTA” (Russian Telegraph Agency), collaborated with Vladimir Mayakovsky, with cartoonistsIvan Malyutin and Mikhail Cheremnykh. And if posters were a good help for the family budget, then the group"Jack of Diamonds" became a creative outlet for Nuremberg. He took part in the exhibitions of “bubovaletovtsev”, wrote an artistic declaration of society, for many years was friends with Peter Konchalovsky, Robert Falk, By Alexander Osmerkin. In 1924, Nuremberg's book Paul Cezanne was published, dedicated to the life and work of the idol of all members of the Jack of Diamonds society. The artist continued his teaching activities, gave lectures on contemporary art at VKHUTEMAS, and became the first art observer for the newspaper Pravda. In the spirit of that time, Amsha Markovich changed his name and began to be called Iona Alexandrovich.

In 1927, the artist again came to Paris - this time as a representative of the young country of the Soviets. He lectured on young Soviet art, wrote articles and notes for newspapers and magazines. In 1928, with the support of sculptor Oscar Meshchaninov, exhibited two works at the Paris Autumn Salon. A year later, the family returned to Moscow - allegedly due to the fact that Pauline fell in love with a rich Frenchman. The artist moved away from public life, limiting himself to work in the Artist’s House.

After the persecution of everything that did not correspond to Soviet ideas about art began, Nuremberg had a hard time: the Impressionists were stigmatized as a "bourgeois trend", his beloved Chagall was christened the "formalist", Osmerkin was expelled from the Surikov Institute. The artist destroyed almost all of his work in the Paris period. But if he wrote Lenin, the leader was always portrayed “in Paris”, in extreme cases - “in the Swiss mountains” or “on the grave of Karl Marx”. In 1932, Nuremberg became a member of the Moscow Regional Union of Artists and remained in its ranks until his death.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Nuremberg family left for evacuation to Tashkent, where the artist worked for two years in the Uzbek Union of Artists. After returning to Moscow, he was invited to work at the Museum of the Revolution, where he worked until his retirement. Nuremberg continued his active creative work - he painted, prepared articles and publications on art, prepared and published the book “Memoirs, Meetings, Thoughts on Art”, which was published in 1969; the full text of the memoirs was published in 2010 thanks to the artist’s granddaughter, Olga Tangyan. Amsha Markovich died at the age of 91, only one year surviving his beloved and only wife Polina.