Georgy
Kreskentievich Lukomsky

Russian art historian and painter, representative of art Nouveau and snatches-regional direction of art-historical thought.

Was born in Kaluga. After an unsuccessful attempt to enter the St. Petersburg Academy of arts (1903) studied at the private art schools of Kazan and 1903-1915 (with breaks) at the architectural Department of the Academy of arts. In 1907-1913 he worked at the Moscow Studio of K. F. Yuon. Many traveled to Western Europe, Russia and Ukraine, studying ancient architecture. In 1918 he became Chairman of the architectural Department at the all-Ukrainian Committee for protection of monuments of history and antiquities, a position held scientific documentation of many buildings in Kiev, and in early 1919 he organized and led the Museum on the basis of the collection of Bohdan Khanenko (now the Kiev Museum of Western and Oriental art). Later, through the Crimea went to Constantinople, and in 1920 settled in Paris. From 1940 he lived in London after the war, often run in France.

Lukomsky died in nice on March 5, 1952.

The son of an engineer-technologist of communications, impoverished nobleman Podolsk province, came, according to family legend, of the family of Gediminas (brother Lukomski, a specialist on heraldry, genealogy, sphragistics — signed the first work of pseud. V. Olgerdovich-Lukomsky). Lukomsky studied in Kaluga and Orel real schools. Art education in the drawing school of the Orel Sychev, in the St. Petersburg school of painting and drawing Goldblatt, at the Kazan art school and in St. Petersburg Academy of arts (1903-13). In Kazan entered the circle of lovers engaged in the description and measurements of the local monuments of civil and Church architecture, being a pioneer in this field. Two winters spent in exploring the surroundings of Kazan, capturing on paper a small Church, later moved to its magnificent graphics.

After the first year at the Academy of arts, in the summer of 1904, I went abroad to Europe. This trip was the beginning of the tours, which Lukomsky did every summer. Being in Paris in 1905, worked here until the spring of 1906. Petersburg climate was contraindicated artist suffering from lung disease. From November 1907 he lived in Moscow, visited the Studio of K. Yuon, who continued to study the picture. But soon the teacher he began to learn from the student of a brilliant style to represent buildings.

After ten years of education, graduated from the Academy of fine arts. In the summer of 1909 staged at the Academy exhibition of his works abroad, accompanying her reading reports. The exhibition was a major success. After it was printed in the magazine “Architect”, “Apollo”, “Old years” and has published many articles and books about architectural monuments in Ukraine — Kamenetz-Podolsk, Chernigov, Kiev, Lviv, Vishnevetsky castle, Baturin has the Palace, Kozeletska Cathedral and other structures with their photographs and drawings. Further attention Lukomski was also attracted by the city of the Russian province of Kursk, Kostroma, Vologda, Voronezh, their way of life, traditions and legends. Master architectural landscape, whose work was in line with artistic searches of “World of art”, Lukomsky, soulful feel of the past, sought to resurrect the grandeur of cathedrals and manors, to save them from oblivion. Books and albums Lukomski contain a huge material, including the monuments of the dead later, especially in the Ukraine.

S. Makovsky wrote in 1913: “Pencil and watercolor drawings Lukomski belong to those fine and true architectural and artistic documents, which are so few in Russia, bad mindful of the treasures of their distant and recent past”. Among the most significant works of L.: “the Ancient theatres and traditions in the history of the evolution of theatre buildings” (vol. 1. SPb., 1913); “Galicia in its antiquity. Essays on the history of architecture XII-XVIII centuries." (PG" 1915); "the Monuments of ancient architecture of Russia in the types of artistic construction, part 1. Russian province” (ed. 2. PG" 1916); "the Old manor Kharkiv province." (h,1. PG., 1917). After the February revolution came in the all-Russian Collegium on Affairs of museums. As Chairman of the Tsarskoe Selo artistic-historical Commission (July 1917 — Nov. 1918) developed together with A. Benoit project of the museums of Tsarskoye Selo, organized the registration, repair, restoration and study of the palaces and parks; opposed the looting of the former residence of Nicholas II — Alexander Palace. At the end of 1918 he came to Kyiv, where he headed the architectural Department at the all-Ukrainian Committee for protection of monuments of history and antiquity. Conducted the registration and description of 160 civil buildings. In February 1919 he was appointed guardian of the collection of B. and V. Khanenko, has made its catalogue (1259 artistic works, 10 thousand books, including 3 thousand in art history); in December 1919 it was donated to the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences (“2nd Kiev state Museum”); Lukomski subsequently published several descriptions of the collection (1921, 1925).

20.10.1919 went to Constantinople, thence to Venice and Berlin. Collaborated in the newspaper “Latest news” and “Yesterday” in French editions, arranged exhibitions of Russian art. In the book “the Artist in the Russian revolution” (Berlin, 1923) described its activities to rescue the art treasures. Explained their departure abroad with envy and intrigue, claimed that from the first days of the revolution art in Russia was “undergoing a stage of the Renaissance” — thanks to the support of the authorities, but to an even greater extent thanks to the efforts of the artist — “hero of art who defended the breast of his palaces and temples.” Denied “emigrant idle speculation” about the deaths in Soviet Russia of the monuments of Church architecture. He moved in 1924 to Paris, was Secretary of the Paris group “World of art”. In 20-ies published in the USSR and abroad, introduced European readers with Russian culture. In the 30s worked on a book on the history of Russian art XIX-XX centuries, published in 1945. Then in London he published his book “the History of modern Russian art. 1840-1940”.