Nikolai
Ivanovich Kulbin

It is difficult to imagine the artistic life of the Russian avant-garde 1910s without the tireless activity, ideas and creativity II kulbina, its mastermind, theorist and organizer. Noteworthy is the very fate of this talented man. When the actual state Councilor, assistant Professor, military doctor of the General staff of the Russian army first participated in an art exhibition ("Main currents in art", St. Petersburg, 1908), he was forty years old, and any special education in arts, he had not. But he has been at the forefront of modern science (the researcher x-rays, the author of several scientific papers, books, inventions) and had a universal synthesizing way of thinking. The ideas of the philosophical thought of the XX century the unity of the purposes of science and art, the action of each small particle of the universe are the same laws of the Universe, whether it is the Kingdom of minerals, plants, animals or the human society, the realm of human thought and creativity, was and ideas Kulibina, so it so quickly and naturally took the place of one of the leaders in the new art. For several years he managed to organize in Petersburg the group of "Triangle" (1908), to invite to Russia the famous Italian futurist F. T. Marinetti (1914), open several exhibitions (not only contemporary art, but also retrospective), to master the technique of lithography, and to act as an Illustrator of books and artist of the theater, to read a series of lectures on the intersection of science, literature, music and art theory (at the highest advanced level in any of these areas), to write some articles for the Russian magazines about art, in which were provisions, became the program for Luisma M. Larionov, V. Kandinsky abstract art, primitivism and other artistic platforms. Efforts Kulibina theorist was directed to the goal of "dynamic development of the universe" - the creation of a living theory based on the data of the exact Sciences and allowing a person, who himself is a "cell of the body of the living earth", as revelation reading the book of the Universe, awakening the poet, becoming gradually "color of earth" - being "loving, thinking and willing". In his own work Kulbin tried to embody the shaping of "energy", to reveal the essence of the dynamic momentum of growth that is present in a particular subject, person, event. Assimilating the experience of the Impressionists V. van Gogh, Mikhail Vrubel, the fauves, turning to the icon and primitive art, Kulbin created works of different genres: landscape "Sea view" (1916-17), the composition "the last judgement" (1910), a portrait of the personification of "the Sun" (1911), portraits of poets Vladimir Khlebnikov, A. Kruchenykh, artists D. Burliuk, S. Yu Sudeikin, theater N. N. Evreinov and A. A. Mgebrov. The artist who looked always forward looking to new, to discoveries, Kulbin never engaged in "nisprovergatelem" artistic treasures of the past. Every line, they are written, indicating the views of the person "loving and thoughtful". And it's important that he has fulfilled the mission consciousness of the Russian avant-garde at the time of his birth and growth.