NADIR ALMEEV AND “PROMETHEUS” DESIGN BUREAU: EXPERIENCE OF COOPERATION. ON THE EXAMPLE OF THE LIGHT-MUSICAL FILM “SMALL TRIPTYCH” (1975)

Abstract

The article considers the little-studied pages of the development of light music in Kazan on the example of the cooperation of graphic artist Nadir Almeev with “Prometheus” Student Design Bureau under the guidance of physicist Bulat Galeev. The artist Nadir Almeev is a master of graphics, professionally proficient in various etching techniques: etching, aquatint, reserve, dry needle. In 1977-1990, he regularly studied at the Senezh Studio-the Central Educational and Experimental Studio of the Union of Artists of the USSR under Evgeniy Sidorkin and Sergey Zarovniy. The artist’s creative search was reflected in such series as “Icarus” (1969),” Memory of running “(1977),” Bullfight “(1980),” Per aspera” (1996),”Spleen” (1995) and others, combining the unrestrained imagination with strict organization. No matter what topics Nadir Almeev touches on, no matter what technique he works in, he surprisingly constructs an entire Universe at once from individual strokes and inconspicuous details. Since 1966 Nadir Almeev collaborated with the Tatar Book Publishing house, with the newspaper “YashLeninchy”, since 1975 with the Kazan newsreel studio: he participated in the creation of the films “Jalil, the Wanderer of Struggle” (1976), “Cosmic Sonata” (1982), illustrated books and booklets. He is member of the Union of Artists of the USSR since 1985. A bright, but little-studied stage of the artist’s work was the film “Small Triptych” (1975). The film appeared to be an attempt to combine several types of art together, while expressing deep, philosophical thoughts. So, the activity of the members of “Prometheus” Student Design Bureau was to create a new, independent art of light music, where sound, light and image will be equal components of a single design, a reflection of the real “polyphony” of the surrounding reality. This article for the first time reveals the features of the creative method and the innovative role of the artist Nadir Almeev in the development of the Kazan school of light-music on the example of the first in the Soviet Union rolling light-music film to the music of Grigoriy Sviridov “Small Triptych”. The original sketches created by the artist for the film in the author’s technique using hydrotype pigments on wet paper are analyzed. A series of abstract sketches, devoid of any illustrative content, are arranged according to the musical development of the work. The purpose of this article is to reveal the role and significance of Nadir Almeev in the activities of “Prometheus” Student Design Bureau. Key words: synthesis of arts, synthesis, light-music, graphics, hydrotype printing, Grigoriy Sviridov, Bulat Galeev, Nadir Almeev.