the savitsky collection, uzbekistan:

The Nukus Museum, also known as the Savitsky Collection, is the second largest collection of Russian avant garde art after the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. Located in Nukus, the capital of the autonomous region of Karakalpakstan, the gallery is named after Igor Savitsky, a Russian born artist who over his lifetime collected artworks by avant garde artists to ensure they would not be destroyed by the Soviet regime. It is an amazing collection placed in a very offbeat area (Nukus isn't really on the usual Uzbek tourist trail) but was so worth the two hour journey from Khiva. It is stunning. The gallery itself isn't up to the same level found in other places, but we where there to see the art. With flickering fluorescent lights, peach coloured walls and an odd plan, we were still blown away by the sheer beauty of what laid in front of our eyes. The artworks we did see were only a fraction of the collection, with it being rotated frequently. What Savitsky did is outstanding and we were quite in awe of his passion in building up such a strong, rich and incredibly inspiring collection. I remember reading a quote where Savitsky used to tell people that one day people from Paris would travel all the way to Nukus to visit the gallery, which would usually get a sceptical response. Well, there have been plenty of visitors, not only from Paris but all over the world. If you are in Uzbekistan, make sure you check out the Savitisky Collection.

Next: more form Khiva

Portrait of Zaure K. Saipov

Flight of Clouds B.A. Smirnov-Rusetskiy 1923

 

Rainbow A.P. Sardan

Grove S.I. Shigolev 1939

Self-Portrait V.A. Lisenko 

Crimson Autumn U.T. Tansiqbaev 1931

An Uzbek Man V.V. Rojdestvenskiy 1926

Despair A. Seytenov 1991

Rendezvous S.M. Luppov 1926

outside the museum