Art rating: 20 most expensive paintings by Russian artists that were sold at auctions

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

On auction of Russian art in 2004, 26 works by Ivan Aivazovsky, the most expensive artist sold, grossed $ 6.7 million. A few years later, this record was challenged by a whole list of paintings by Russian artists of the first magnitude. According to the results of the sale in 2011, for the first time, the works of Ilya Repin, as a representative of classical painting, entered the top ten most expensive paintings by Russian artists. In this review, an art rating of the most expensive paintings by Russian artists.

No. 1. Kazimir Malevich (1879-1935)

"Suprematist Composition" (1916) - $ 60 million (sold in 2008. Sotheby's)Kazimir Malevich is the founder of Suprematism. Thanks to his work "Black Square", he gained worldwide fame. But the most expensive creation of the artist was "Suprematist Composition" (1915), sold for 60 million dollars. And no matter how paradoxical it looks now, but at one time the artist lived very poorly, not even receiving a pension from the Union of Artists. He personally designed himself a supermathematical coffin in the shape of a cross and bequeathed to be buried in it with outstretched arms. This was done by his students.

No. 2. Vasily Kandinsky (1866-1944)

"Study for Improvisation No. 8" (1909) - $ 23 million (year of sale - 2012. Christie's)

Kandinsky is the founder of abstractionism, painter, graphic artist, poet, theorist of fine arts. Non-objective art, cosmological fantasies, expression, rhythmic decorativeness are reflected in his work. At the Sotheby's auction over the past decade, 6 more paintings by the artist were sold for a total of $ 52 million.

No. 3. Marc Chagall (1887-1985)

"Jubilee" (1923) - $ 16.3 million (year of sale - 1990 Sotheby's) Marc Chagall is a recognized leader of avant-garde art. In the post-revolutionary years, fate threw him from city to city, from country to country. He lived and worked in Germany, France, where he studied painting and monumental art. At the auction of Sotheby's and Christie’s over the past decade, four more paintings by the artist were sold for $ 32 million.

No. 4. Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947)

1. "Madonna Laboris" (1931) - $ 13.5 million (year of sale - 2013 Bonhams)The plot of this canvas is interesting: the Blessed Virgin Mary lowers her scarf from the fortress wall of Paradise in order to secretly lead human souls into it, which the apostle, the gatekeeper of Paradise, does not pass. This canvas was unexpectedly sold for seven times the original price.

And one more surprising fact: for many years this work was the property of one American family. And who Roerich was, the owners did not even suspect. Nicholas Roerich's creative heritage comprises 7000 paintings. At the previous auction, three canvases of the painter were sold for $ 7 million.

№ 5. Nikolay Feshin (1881-1955)

Little Cowboy (1940) - about $ 11.9 million (sold in 2010 by MacDougall's)This canvas belongs to the American period of creativity, when the artist left Russia for the state of New Mexico, USA. During this period, the painter painted many paintings reflecting the life of cowboys and Indians. And at home, the artist also managed to gain an artistic reputation. Repin - Feshin's teacher, although he did not like the artist, but always recognized in him an undoubted talent.

№ 6. Natalia Goncharova (1881-1962)

"Spanish flu" (c. 1916) - about $ 11 million (year of sale -2010. Christie's)

Goncharova is the brightest representative of the avant-garde and one of the most sought-after Russian authors on the art market. The artist's works are very expensive and are sold even more. In 2007, at Sotheby’s auctions, her works “Picking Apples”, “Lady with an Umbrella”, “Blooming Trees” were sold for $ 12.6 million, and in 2008 the cost of the paintings “Flowers” and “Bells” was $ 16.9 million.

No. 7. Ilya Mashkov (1881-1944)

Still Life with Fruit (1910) - about $ 8.1 million (year of sale - 2013. Christie's)Ilya Mashkov, a member of the Jack of Diamonds movement, has recently become quoted at the auction. The main value of the painting "Still Life with Fruit" is that this picture took part in the very first exhibition of the "Jack of Diamonds" association in 1910. And the canvas put up for auction in 2005, Still Life with Flowers (1912), was sold for $ 3.4 million.

No. 8. Ilya Repin (1844-1930)

"Parisian Cafe" (1875) - about $ 7, 7 million (year of sale - 2011 Christie's)This is an early painting by Ilya Repin, the frivolous plot of which caused a storm of protest from art critics. The lady of the half-light, the fallen woman who dared to come to the cafe unaccompanied - this was the reason for the indignation. Neither Tretyakov nor other collectors of paintings dared to buy this canvas. It was only in 1916 that the Parisian Cafe was acquired by a Swedish collector. For 95 years, this canvas has been shown to the general public only three times, the last of which was in Moscow at an exhibition before the auction. Since the entire legacy of the artist has long been sold to museums, his paintings are very rarely at auction. But six years earlier, the painting "Family Portrait" (1905) was sold for $ 1.9 million.

No. 9. Boris Kustodiev (1878-1927)

"Carrier" (1923) - about $ 7.5 million (year of sale - 2012 Christie's)In 1924, this striking canvas was one of the main exhibits at the prestigious exhibition of Russian art in New York. The exposition of the exhibition was collected from the works of 100 best painters from Russia. And in 1936 "Cab" became the property of the famous Soviet physicist Pyotr Kapitsa. The heirs of the scientist sold this canvas in 2012 for $ 7.5 million. In the previous auction at Sotheby's, the paintings "Odalisque" (1919), "Village Fair" (1920), "Picnic" (1920) were sold for a total amount of $ 8, 3 million

No. 10. Vasily Polenov (1844-1927)

"Which one of you is without sin?" (1908) - about $ 7 million(sale year -2011 Bonhams)

What is noteworthy is that this large-scale canvas is an author's copy of the original painting "Christ and the Sinner" kept in the Russian Museum, which was once bought from Polenov by Emperor Alexander III himself for 30 thousand rubles. A copy, depicting an episode from the New Testament, was exported to America about a century ago, and ended up in the collection of an American university. After hanging there for 80 years, it was very successfully sold at auction, which significantly made up for the budget deficit of the institution.

№ 11. Konstantin Somov (1869-1939)

"Rainbow" (1927) - about $ 6, 3 million (year of sale -2007 Christie's)Works by Somov in 1924 were included in the exposition of the same prestigious exhibition in the United States as the works of Kustodiev. Having presented his work in America, the artist never returned to Russia - he settled in France. His exquisite works, celebrating the Silver Age, have enjoyed great success in the auction over the past decades. Over the past two years, the paintings "Russian Pastoral" (1922), "Pierrot and the Lady" (1923), "View from the Window" (1934) were sold at Christie's auctions for $ 8.6 million.

No. 12. Vasily Vereshchagin (1842-1904)

"Pearl Mosque in Agra" (1870-80) - about $ 6, 2 million (year of sale - 2014 Christie's)

The famous battle painter Vereshchagin was fond of oriental subjects for almost his entire life. He brought many paintings and vivid sketches from his travels in Central Asia. In 1888, almost all of the 110 exhibits of the exhibition organized for the artist in the United States were auctioned off and remained in America. To date, at the Russian auction, his canvases are very expensive. Wailing Wall (1885) and Taj Mahal. Evening (1876) were sold for $ 5, 9 million

№ 13. Vladimir Borovikovsky (1757-1825)

“Portrait of Countess L. I. Kusheleva with sons Alexander and Gregory (1803) - about $ 5.1 million (year of sale - 2014 Christie's)

This highly artistic museum-level painting is the oldest from the rating list. The price originally set at the auction was increased sixfold. Several years earlier, the ceremonial portrait of Count Kushelev was sold for $ 2.6 million.

No. 14. Ilya Kabakov (1933)

"Bug". (1985) - about $ 5 million (sold in 1998 by Phillips de Pury)This painting, in contrast to the previous one, is rated the most "fresh" painting. At the auction of modern art Phillips de Pury, this canvas took a record that has not been broken for 20 years.

No. 15. Alexander Yakovlev (1934-1998)

"Portrait of the artist Vasily Shukhaev in his studio" (1928) - about $ 4.8 million (year of sale - 2007. Christie’s)

This is a portrait of the artist's best friend Yakovlev. The Russian Museum has a double portrait of friends, where they are in the roles of Harlequin and Pierrot. In the same year, the artist's canvas was sold - "Fight of Kings" (1918) for $ 1.8 million, and in the previous "Three women in a theater box" (1918) for $ 1.97 million.

No. 16. Ivan Aivazovsky (1771-1841)

"American ships at the rock of Gibraltar" (1873) - about $ 4.6 million (year of sale - 2007 Christie's)The brilliant works of a world-scale Russian marine painter are constantly popular at world auctions. An interesting fact: Aivazovsky himself counted about six thousand of his works, and today, around the world, the calculation is already over 60 thousand. But be that as it may, the appearance of the artist's original works at auctions always causes a stir. During the period 2005-2007, ten paintings by the artist at the Sotheby’s auction were sold for $ 19.7 million.

No. 17. Pavel Kuznetsov (1878-1968)

“Eastern city. Bukhara "(1928) - about $ 4 million (year of sale - 2014. MacDougall's)Kuznetsov was a student of Arkhipov, Korovin, Serov. He was a member of the associations "World of Art", "Union of Russian Artists", "Four Arts". In his work, he romantically embodied the poetry of the East. The Bukhara series of paintings put him on a par with artists of a very high level.

No. 18. Boris Grigoriev (1886-1939)

"Shepherd in the Mountains" ("Klyuev the Shepherd") (1920) - $ 3.72 million (year of sale - 2008, Sotheby's)In the 20s of the last century, the artist had the glory of a "historian of the Slavic soul." In his works, as no one has managed to show the spirit and essence of the Russian character. Since the 2000s, his work has been highly valued at the auction: seven of the artist's works have been sold for $ 14.2 million.

No. 19. Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin (1878-1939)

"Still life. Apples and Eggs "1921) - $ 3.6 million (year of sale - 2012. MacDougall's) Art Nouveau trends, symbolism in the form of religious and oriental motives were reflected in the artist's work. Two years earlier, a portrait of the boy Vasya was sold for $ 2.7 million.

No. 20. Yuri Annenkov (1889-1974)

"Portrait of A. N. Tikhonov" (1922) - about $ 2.26 million (year of sale - 2007. Christie's) The portrait of the writer Tikhonov, a friend of the Annenkov family, is made in the form of a collage using glass, plaster and a natural doorbell.

Having looked through the art rating of the most expensive Russian artists, we are once again convinced that "the best way for an artist to raise the price of his work is to die." Only one of the aforementioned list, Ilya Kabakov (1933), currently lives in New York and is a foreign honorary member of the Russian Academy of Arts.

But times are changing and now even a talented child who draws pictures can earn a lot of money from his works: A 5-year-old girl transforms acrylic blots into stunning paintings and helps cancer patients.