Page 1 / 4
The life of Nicholas Roerich's life, work and activity were closely linked to the Russian Tsarist Empire and the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. By birth, Roerich belonged to the upper middle-class elite of the Tsarist Empire. He went through a typical career, studying law and art at St. Petersburg University. This left two career paths open to him: entry into government service and the career of a Russian civil servant, or a career within the artistic elite of the Tsarist Empire. Roerich's work at the university caused a sensation, and with the purchase of his first work by the influential Russian art collector Tretyakov, the stage was set for his artistic career. The First World War and the Russian Revolution of 1917, significantly changed the course of Roerich's life. As a member of the bourgeois elite, Roerich emigrated to the USA in 1917. Traveling through India, Tibet, and the Himalayas in the 1920s, Roerich found his artistic and spiritual home. However, he did not lose sight of the developments in his Russian homeland and also processed them artistically.
His early work is characterized in the sign of the times by paintings on Russian history, in which elements of Russian icon painting are also taken up and processed. Roerich used striking areas of color and a strong stylization of the people and objects depicted. Another focus of Roerich's work was his collaboration with the modern Russian theater of the pre-revolutionary period. He designed stage sets and costumes for performances of the Simin Opera Theatre, and his theatrical creations gained international recognition far beyond Russia. His artistic work is divided into three life themes. Firstly, dominantly at the beginning, scenes from Russian history, alongside Buddhist-inspired motifs and landscapes of the Himalayas and themes of the modern Soviet Union. His paintings and drawings, characterized by a strong symbolism, show parallels to modern developments in graphic art and design of the early Soviet period in the 1920s.
Roerich's reception of Buddhism led him to theosophical approaches to philosophy, though he certainly, and increasingly in the late period, drifted into esotericism. One sign of this development was his close association with Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, one of the most enigmatic figures in esotericism and the secret sciences of the time. Roerich's initiatives also related to the political sphere. An influential philosopher and artist in his time, Roerich was committed to outlawing war. In 1935, under his leadership, an international treaty was signed, known as the Roerich Pact, which included the protection of national cultural property during acts of war and is considered a precursor to the Hague War Regulations. These activities earned Roerich a multiple nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The life of Nicholas Roerich's life, work and activity were closely linked to the Russian Tsarist Empire and the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. By birth, Roerich belonged to the upper middle-class elite of the Tsarist Empire. He went through a typical career, studying law and art at St. Petersburg University. This left two career paths open to him: entry into government service and the career of a Russian civil servant, or a career within the artistic elite of the Tsarist Empire. Roerich's work at the university caused a sensation, and with the purchase of his first work by the influential Russian art collector Tretyakov, the stage was set for his artistic career. The First World War and the Russian Revolution of 1917, significantly changed the course of Roerich's life. As a member of the bourgeois elite, Roerich emigrated to the USA in 1917. Traveling through India, Tibet, and the Himalayas in the 1920s, Roerich found his artistic and spiritual home. However, he did not lose sight of the developments in his Russian homeland and also processed them artistically.
His early work is characterized in the sign of the times by paintings on Russian history, in which elements of Russian icon painting are also taken up and processed. Roerich used striking areas of color and a strong stylization of the people and objects depicted. Another focus of Roerich's work was his collaboration with the modern Russian theater of the pre-revolutionary period. He designed stage sets and costumes for performances of the Simin Opera Theatre, and his theatrical creations gained international recognition far beyond Russia. His artistic work is divided into three life themes. Firstly, dominantly at the beginning, scenes from Russian history, alongside Buddhist-inspired motifs and landscapes of the Himalayas and themes of the modern Soviet Union. His paintings and drawings, characterized by a strong symbolism, show parallels to modern developments in graphic art and design of the early Soviet period in the 1920s.
Roerich's reception of Buddhism led him to theosophical approaches to philosophy, though he certainly, and increasingly in the late period, drifted into esotericism. One sign of this development was his close association with Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, one of the most enigmatic figures in esotericism and the secret sciences of the time. Roerich's initiatives also related to the political sphere. An influential philosopher and artist in his time, Roerich was committed to outlawing war. In 1935, under his leadership, an international treaty was signed, known as the Roerich Pact, which included the protection of national cultural property during acts of war and is considered a precursor to the Hague War Regulations. These activities earned Roerich a multiple nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.