The Collector : The Story of Sergei Shchukin and His Lost Masterpieces

A fascinating life of Sergei Shchukin, the great collector who changed the face of Russia's art world Sergei Shchukin was a highly successful textiles merchant in the latter half of the nineteenth century, but he also had a great eye for beauty. He was one of the first to appreciate the qualities of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists and to acquire works by C zanne, Matisse, and Picasso. A trailblazer in the Russian art world, Shchukin and his collection shocked, provoked, and inspired awe, ridicule, and derision among his contemporaries. This is the first English-language biography of Sergei Shchukin, written by art historian Natalya Semenova and adapted by Shchukin's grandson Andr Delocque. Featuring personal diary entries, correspondence, interviews, and archival research, it brings to light the life of a man who has hitherto remained in the shadows, and shows how despite his controversial reputation, he opened his collection to the public, inspiring a future generation of artists and changing the face of the Russian art world. CONTENTS 6 ILLUSTRATIONS 8 A NOTE ON THE TEXT 11 PREFACE 12 Prologue 33 PART ONE THE COLLECTOR BROTHERS 39 CHAPTER I. The Gentleman Who Slept in His Box at the Bolshoy 39 CHAPTER II. Luther’s Bible 45 CHAPTER III. The Tragic Tales of the Older Brothers Nikolai and Petr 51 CHAPTER IV. Dmitry Shchukin ‘The Dutchman’ 67 CHAPTER V. Ivan Shchukin Portrait of the Younger Brother as a Parisian Dandy 79 PART TWO Sergei Shchukin 93 CHAPTER VI. An Oligarch in Moscow 93 CHAPTER VII. Strangers on a Train 103 CHAPTER VIII. The Storm 115 CHAPTER IX. The Debacle 128 CHAPTER X. In the Footsteps of Moses 140 CHAPTER XI. The Price of a King’s Wife 157 CHAPTER XII. Harmonie en Rouge 169 CHAPTER XIII. The Two Orphans 181 CHAPTER XIV. Quo Vadis? 192 CHAPTER XV. La Danse and La Musique 203 CHAPTER XVI. The City of All- Night Revels 219 CHAPTER XVII. Picasso the Hypnotist 228 CHAPTER XVIII. Portrait of a Chinese Patriarch 241 CHAPTER XIX. The Acropolis of the Arts 252 CHAPTER XXI. The World’s First Museum of Modern Art 269 CHAPTER XXII. Time Regained 281 Postscript: The Collector of the Future 291 ENDNOTES 292 SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY 307 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 310 INDEX 314 A fascinating life of Sergei Shchukin, the great collector who changed the face of Russia’s art world

Sergei Shchukin was a highly successful textiles merchant in the latter half of the nineteenth century, but he also had a great eye for beauty. He was one of the first to appreciate the qualities of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists and to acquire works by Cézanne, Matisse, and Picasso. A trailblazer in the Russian art world, Shchukin and his collection shocked, provoked, and inspired awe, ridicule, and derision among his contemporaries.
 
This is the first English-language biography of Sergei Shchukin, written by art historian Natalya Semenova and adapted by Shchukin's grandson André Delocque. Featuring personal diary entries, correspondence, interviews, and archival research, it brings to light the life of a man who has hitherto remained in the shadows, and shows how despite his controversial reputation, he opened his collection to the public, inspiring a future generation of artists and changing the face of the Russian art world. "A fascinating life of Sergei Shchukin, the great collector who changed the face of Russia's art. world Sergei Shchukin was a highly successful textiles merchant in the latter half of the nineteenth century, but he also had a great eye for beauty. He was one of the first to appreciate the qualities of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists and to acquire works by Cézanne, Matisse, and Picasso. A trailblazer in the Russian art world, Shchukin and his collection shocked, provoked, and inspired awe, ridicule, and derision among his contemporaries. This is the first English-language biography of Sergei Shchukin, written by art historian Natalya Semenova and adapted by Shchukin's grandson André Delocque. Featuring personal diary entries, correspondence, interviews, and archival research, it brings to light the life of a man who has hitherto remained in the shadows, and shows how despite his controversial reputation, he opened his collection to the public, inspiring a future generation of artists and changing the face of the Russian art world."-- Provided by publisher "Sergei Shchukin was a highly successful textiles merchant in the latter half of the nineteenth century, but he also had a great eye for beauty. He was one of the first to appreciate the qualities of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists and to acquire works by Cezanne, Matisse, and Picasso. A trailblazer in the Russian art world, Shchukin and his collection shocked, provoked, and inspired awe, ridicule and derision among his contemporaries. This is the first English-language biography of Sergei Shchukin, written by art historian Natalia Semenova and adapted by Shchukin's grandson André Delocque. Featuring personal diary entries, correspondence, interviews, and archival research, it brings to light the life of a man who has hitherto remained in the shadows, and shows how despite his controversial reputation, he opened his collection to the public, inspiring a future generation of artists and changing the face of the Russian art world."--Provided by publisher