Illustrations of Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment, by Mikhail Shemyakin, 1964-67
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Illustrations of Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment, by Mikhail Shemyakin, 1964-67 (Pencil and various other media, including aquarelle and collage, on paper).
(Scroll down past the color images and use Google Translate or similar software to read the captions in English.)
Mikhail Shemyakin or Chemiakin (born 1943) is a Russian painter associated with the non-conformist art of St. Petersburg. A victim of persistent political persecution, he was finally exiled in 1971 and moved to New York in 1981. These are some of his illustrations for Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, a series that he worked on from 1964 to 1969.
Why might have this particular story appealed to a Soviet-era artist, and how does Shemyakin's interpretation differ from contemporary or Western European readings? Dostoevsky's works held a somewhat dubious status in different periods of Soviet history, tending towards complete rehabilitation and acknowledgment as great 'Russian classics.' We might also compare Shemyakin's private and tormented vision with the 1970 Soviet film by Lev Kulidzhanov.
via ArtEveryDay.org
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