Life As Art Ph.D

Great people Gulrena QAJAR Life as art Ph.D. of Art history THIS ARTICLE WAS BORN OUT OF MANY YEARS OF ADMIRATION FOR THE PAINTINGS OF MIKAYIL ABDULLAYEV, RESPECT FOR HIS PERSONALITY AND SENSE OF PRIDE IN ACQUAINTANCE WITH THE MASTER. 50 www.irs-az.com Heritage_1_(12)_2013_last.indd 50 1/29/13 3:43 PM Lights of Mingachevir Mikayil Abdullayev Illustration for the “Dada Gorgud” epic what can you write about pedic knowledge of culture, fantastic he knew from travel, books, and his Mikayil muallim in a small memory and knowledge of Eastern own observations and refl ections. So article? Biographical facts, poetry and music? He knew how to Mikayil Abdullayev is a very milestones of creative work and heri- talk very nicely. He knew a lot and was bright, serious and dramatic paint- tage that has become the property of able to put it in an admirable form, be- er, even in the most unsophisticated the nation? His face, shrewd look, the witching the listener with his speech and simple genre paintings. They French beret etched in the memory – and attractiveness of his personality. are permeated by the profound dra- an attribute of free bohemia? Encyclo- He was happy to tell about the world ma of life that can be seen through a www.irs-az.com 51 Heritage_1_(12)_2013_last.indd 51 1/29/13 3:43 PM Great people talented guys - future outstanding painters Ogtay Sadikhzadeh, Boyuka- ga Mirzazadeh Abdul Khaliq and Gafar Seyfullayev. The talented Azerbaijani painter Azim Azimzadeh played an important role in the establishment of Mikayil as he sent him to an art college at the age of 14 in 1935. In 1938, the 17-year-old Mikayil participated in the spring republican exhibition with the landscape “In Mardakan”. After graduating from college in 1939, he entered the painting department of the Surikov Moscow State Art Institute. “Sevinj”. Canvas, oil paints, 1956 In an article published in the central Moscow magazine Iskusstvo in 1940, powerful composition with its strong He lived a happy life in arts ... Truly the well-known painter, teacher and typical plastic painting, line, picture happy are only those who work out rector of the institute, I. E. Grabar, men- and fi gurativeness. The harmony in of an irresistible inner need, not out tioned him among the best students. plastic, the softness in shape modeling of selfi sh ambitions, incentives in the But the institute was evacuated as and the fi nest silver color range charac- form of material wealth or fame - the Great Patriotic War began. Mikayil teristic of his style always highlighted ephemeral things, if we take a wider had to interrupt his studies and return his work at Soviet exhibitions. His pal- look at them. This incomparable home, but he was already infected ettes have no open bright colors, but sense of freedom and indepen- with creativity and constantly worked the gray colors were very bright and dence from anything in the pro- and learnt professionalism with inspi- harmonious and emitted light. The cess of creative work is the fate of ration and selfl essness. In 1943, his composition of paintings, the location select lucky people. They are not bur- work was put on display at an exhi- of fi gures in them and the solution of dened with hard creative work, and it bition at the State Tretyakov Gallery plans diff er for their originality. is the sole predestined way to achieve in Moscow. In general, the years of beauty. war proved to be extremely inter- He was gifted by God, his paint- esting for Mikayil Abdullayev: he ing was subtle, refi ned, harmonious, writes a lot of paintings, landscapes calm and joyful. He is not like anyone, and large compositions based on is independent from any taste in art poems by Nizami whose 800th an- and did not imitate any great artist or niversary was celebrated in the So- trend as young people usually do. He viet Union. He also writes portraits of just went his own way - through tire- wounded soldiers, historical compo- less work, searching for his own face sitions, art panels, campaign posters in arts, identifying individual aptitudes and is involved in military patronage. and expressing their understanding of In 1943-44, he wrote remarkably harmony and beauty. That is why he deep and lively portraits of Azerbai- immediately became noticeable dur- jani cultural fi gures. Among them is ing his studies at college. He already the only lifetime portrait of Azerbai- knew the basics of painting, composi- jani music luminary Uzeyir Hajibayov, tion and arts – that is how seemingly portraits of the great poet Samad Vur- easily he did everything! But it was gun, writer Mirza Ibrahimov, scholar certainly very diffi cult, and his eyesight and historian Sara Ashurbayli, actress left something to be desired. At col- Marziya Davudova and singer Shovkat lege, he was in the same group as very Mammadova, as well as a number of 52 “Girls on a rice fi eld”. www.irs-az.com Canvas, oil paints, 1970 Heritage_1_(12)_2013_last.indd 52 1/29/13 3:43 PM “Samad Vurgun”. Canvas, oil paints, 1956 lyrical portraits of women - “My Moth- er”, “Zahra Khanum”, “Zemfi ra”, etc. After the war, Mikayil Abdullayev continued his studies in the Moscow studio of Sergey Gerasimov, a talented Soviet painter and teacher, who val- ued independence and individuality most of all in his students. As a fourth- year student, Abdullayev creates the painting “Evening” during a summer course in his native Kara- bakh, which became a landmark in his work and conquered even his teachers. It caused deep repercus- sions among viewers with its emo- tion, wonderful simplicity of feelings, delightful mood of love, peace and joy from the beauty of life. The painting depicts Karabakh women returning from work on a country road at sun- set, is full of light and shines with the kindness and silver pearl palette of the painter. In 1949, Mikayil Abdullayev suc- cessfully completes his education, returns to Baku and begins work with joyful ecstasy on a series of paintings devoted to post-war industrial construction. The celebration of creation – this is the main theme of interest for the painter now. The largest Min- gachevir hydroelectric power plant of the Caucasus built at that time ap- peared in Abdullayev’s paintings as a romantic combination of nature, man and technology. The press noted that with Abdullayev’s help, the motif of a landscape with the lights of new build- ings became one of the most popular subjects of the Soviet landscape painting of the postwar years. According to Sa- mad Vurgun, during the construction of the Mingachevir hydroelectric power plant, simple country boys “compre- hended the language of machines”, plunging into the “divine work of creat- ing order out of chaos”. Mikayil Abdul- layev managed to embody this poetry of labor in his works warmly, simply, www.irs-az.com “Trial of Nasimi”. 53 Canvas, oil paints, 1970 Heritage_1_(12)_2013_last.indd 53 1/29/13 3:43 PM Great people sincerely and with great professional- by lush southern nature and fl ooded ism. These are “Mingachevir Lights” with dazzling hot sunlight. The picture (1948), “Terror in the South” (1950), has nothing that would resemble a Eu- “On the Banks of the Kura River”, ropean open-air or impressionism, but “Born at the Sea” (1954), “Build- a truly inspiring hymn is sung for the joy ers of Happiness” (1951), “Friends” of being and never-ending happiness.” (1953), and deeply personal, po- In 1958, for the painting “Joy” and etic portraits “My Mother” (1951), a series of Indian sketches, the painter “In the Morning. The Painter’s Wife” was awarded a medal and diploma of (1952),”Before the Mirror” (1955), the Soviet Academy of Arts. A distin- “Still Life with a Musk-Melon” guishing feature of Abdullayev’s work (1955),”Team Leader Rakhshanda” in this period is the intense fl avor that (1956), “For the Child”, “Joy” (1956). enhances the emotional content of The latter picture is the quintessence a picture, ringing, decorative palette, of the painter’s plastic and color quest and in-depth and energetic attitude. and embodies the ideal of the Azerbai- He continues a series of portraits “Indian women”. jani Madonna, a woman and mother of cultural fi gures - poet Suleyman Canvas, oil paints, 1959-1960 deeply connected with her native land Rustam, dancer Amina Dilbazi, writer oped the Indian theme, to which he and surrounding nature. This painting Hasan Seyidbayli and poet Samad Vur- devoted about 500 paintings and caused a great resonance in the All- gun. They are all full of romanticism graphic works. In 1971, M. Abdullayev Union Exhibition for the 40th Anni- and true love for models. was awarded the international Jawa- versary of the October Revolution A very important place in the harlal Nehru Prize. “This is the fi rst time and at the World Art Exhibition in painter’s creative work is taken by his that I’ve seen such sincere and expert Brussels in 1958. Academician Grabar foreign experiences expressed in works about my country, and they are wrote in Iskusstvo magazine: “Here is a the long series “In Italy”, “In Hunga- infi nitely dear to me as an Indian. This large canvas by M. Abdullayev named ry” and “In India”. Each of these cul- artist feels my people with his heart,” ‘Joy’ by the painter. It is extremely rich in tures left a deep mark on his art: Italian Indian Ambassador to the USSR Dhar color and light. It depicts a woman with landscapes and museums, Hungarian said.

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