The influence of Ukiyo-e on the artistic language of easel graphics of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva in the 1900s-1920s (on the example of St. Petersburg collection of woodblock prints)

Abstract

The article reviews and analyzes the key easel graphic works by A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva from St. Petersburg collection of woodblock prints, created over the period from 1900s to 1920s. These works resemble the genre of Japanese art Ukiyo-e. The subject of this research is the uniqueness of the artistic language and the means of its expression in the works of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva. Alongside other Russian artists of the turn of the XIX – XX centuries she was affected by Ukiyo-e, but perceived the Japanese wood engraving on a more profound level. The author examines the works of accomplished in this period, as well draws parallels with the woodblock prints of Japanese masters, using the formal-stylistic method. This approach is relevant as it reveals the role Japanese woodblock prints played in the establishment of artistic language of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva. Within the Russian art history, this research is one of the few attempts of conducting comparative analysis between the woodblock prints of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva and the works of Japanese masters, which defines the scientific novelty. The conclusion is made that the influence of Ukiyo-e can be traced in the compositional solution and in use of particular Japanese motifs in her works. The artist also contributed to the establishment of woodblock prints as an independent genre of graphic art, having enriched it with the images and color introduced by the Japanese masters.