George Russu

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George Russu
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BornMarch 01, 1880.
Cetatea de Baltǎ, district of Tîrnǎveni, Transylvania, Romania.
DiedMay 14, 1977.
Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
Alma materAkademie der Bildenden Künste, München, Bavaria, Germany.
Known forRomanian Byzantine art.
Notable work
Iconostasis, drawing, painting of icons and murals, illustration for woodcuts, and church mural restoration.
StyleByzantine art. Influenced by 1. Byzantine tradition, 2. Christian tradition, 3. Renaissance tradition of illustrated book printing, 4. Romanian wood art tradition, and 5. Neo classical art tradition from München, Germany.

George Russu (March 01, 1880 - May 14, 1977) was a Romanian Byzantine artist.[1] [2]. According to George Racoveanu, a Romanian writer and journalist who in 1949 wrote the book [3] entitled "The New Roumanian Woodcuts for Book Illustration with 35 Original Woodcuts by George Russu" about George Russu's work as an illustrator for woodcut, considered George Russu's work as representing the sixth and last important period in the history of woodcut and icon painting in Romania. The depth and breath of the work of George Russu puts him in a unique position as a Byzantine artist in Romania. Beyond that, his work style can be compared to that of Renaissance artists, who excelled in many domains of visual arts both religious and secular, many of whom where illustrators, engravers, and painters. George Russu was active in: 1. The design of Romanian Orthodox Church iconostasis [4], 2. The painting, of religious Romanian Orthodox church icons and of religious and secular mural paintings, 3. The graphic art, including drawings in pencil and in acrylic used as basis for woodcuts in religious book illustrations, 4. The restoration: he had many roles as a restorer of icons and mural paintings in various Romanian Orthodox Churches, and 5. The activity of educator and teacher. George Russu's artistic style was sober based on elegant, strict, and complex line drawings that form the structural basis for representing religious content based on the Byzantine tradition. This style can be immediately recognised through his oeuvre.

Early Life and Family

George Russu was born in Cetatea de Baltǎ, district of Tîrnǎveni, Transylvania, Romania, and he died in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. His father was Joan Russu (1857 - 1927) and his mother was Maria Christea (1862 - 1944). The father of Joan was Stefan Russu (1833 - 1927) and his mother was Pelagia Maries (1933 - ?). The father of Maria Christea was Gheorghe Christea (1832 - 1930) and her mother was Domnitza Coman (1842 - 1937). Gheorghe Russu's uncle, the brother of Maria Christea, was Ilie Christea (1868 - 1939), also known as Miron Christea [5] - his monastic name, was Prime Minister of Romania (1938 - 1939) and the first Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church (1925 - 1939). Gheorghe Russu married Cornelia Marcovicean (1900 - 1979) in June 23, 1920. He had a single daughter Domnitza Russu (1921 - 2012).

Education

George Russu studied at the grammar school in the city of Bistrița called Nǎsăudului, and continued with his high school studies in the same city. The last two years he finished in the high school of Braşov. Since he was a child he developed an interest to become a Christian Orthodox priest. This can be understood given that his family, from the side of his mother, Maria Christea, had a long tradition of priesthood - at least seven generations of men were priests. The brother of Maria Christea, Miron Christea, was the last man in this tradition, and the most famous of all of them. We can therefore imagine the role of Miron Christea on the young Gheorghe Russu. After completing his high school in Braşov, he enrolled in the Theological Pedagogical Institute, the Andreiana Institute in Sibiu. After four semesters he stopped his studies at the Andreiana Institute because he felt that he did not have the inclination for a monastic life. This was a decision to change the form but not the content of what was driving his main interest in life: religion. He decided not to be a priest but a religious artist. In his own words: "I left it (The Andreiana) for the study for which I felt a special attraction since I was a child." Although he did not pursue studies to become a priest, he embraced a career as a religious, Byzantine artist. In this sense he still did dedicate himself to the religious cause by producing important work for the decoration of churches and book illustration in Romania.

Gheorghe Russu studied at the famous art school Akademie der Bildenden Künste in München, Bavaria, Germany [6]. He received a full scholarship to study in this school through the support of his uncle, Miron Christea. This was the first of many instances when Miron Christea supported Gheorghe Russu. Students of this school that became famous, include, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Giorgio de Chirico, and Franz Marc. Among his teachers we can mention Julius Diez [7] (1870 - 1957), Franz von Stuck (1863 - 1928), and Angelo Jank (1868 - 1940). In particular, he was close to Julius Diez, becoming his friend. Julius Diez was his mentor, supporting him in his interests in religious painting and illustration for woodcuts. Gheorghe Russu was part of the group of Julius Diez collaborating on the execution of murals in famous institutions throughout Europe.

Professional Activities

After his graduation, George Russu continued in München and worked in the group of Julius Diez. His focus was in Byzantine art, but he collaborated with this group in the creation and execution of mural paintings in buildings, such as, of the Technical School in München in 1908 and of the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria in 1909. As part of the Julius Diez group George Russu was in contact with modern classical art, such as, paintings practiced in this group, which had the influence, among others, of the Art Nouveau. It is during this period that Gheorghe Russu produced paintings in this style, but with religious thematics. If we compare his work during this period with that of Julius Diez and Franz von Stuck, both of which, in broad terms, painted in the classical style but with a focus on mythology and fantastic themes, we can clearly see their influence. Representative of this initial period are paintings in the classical style depicting religious or historical events and mural paintings.

After this period, in 1928, we witness a culmination of representative work in icon paintings, in illustration for woodcut, and in various iconostasis projects. This means that Gheorghe Russu created his style in the span of about twenty years. He had an atelier in München were he worked on different projects and he regularly travelled to Romania. From 1928 we have documented some important work, such as, four large - imperial - icons of the Virgin Mary with Christ the child (Theotokos), Christ the Pantocrator, and the two icons of the archangels Michael and Gabriel. Also, the German magazine of woodcut (Holzschnitt) of 1928 [8] published an article about Gheorghe Russu's work on woodcut, discussing, in particular, some large size woodcuts. Finally, in also in 1928 the small wooden church in Toplița was completed in its current format. It contains the design and execution of the iconostasis by Gheorghe Russu. He continued his activities still based in München until 1933. This is an important year for two reasons. First, Gheorghe Russu completed his contribution to the design and partial execution (Imperial icons) of the iconostasis of the Cluj-Napoca Orthodox cathedral. For both iconostasis, in Toplița and Cluj-Napoca, he was invited and supported financially by Miron Christea. The king Carol II took part at the inauguration ceremony of the Cluj-Napoca Orthodox cathedral. Second, given the growing political instability in Germany with the rise of the National Socialist German Workers' Party, Gheorghe Russu decided to leave Germany and return to Romania.

Gheorghe Russu participated in the First World War, first in Viena as an Austro-Hungarian officer from 1914 on, and then he joined the Romanian army in 1916 [9]. He contributed as an artist in the supervision of the construction of monuments to the memory of the heroes of the First World War. His artistic role was in the painting of large scale murals, such as, the Allegory of Peace in Târgu Mureș [10] and the "Time" and "Music" mural studies for a chapel. He also produced historic paintings, such as, "The Unification of Transylvania and Romania" and "Possession of Miron Christea" for the Museum of the Patriarchy of Bucharest.

In 1938 George Russu became chief artist at the Metropolitan Liturgical Holy Books Printing Mill. Also, in 1938 Miron Christea become Prime Minister of Romania, in addition to being the Patriarch of the Christian Orthodox Romanian church. But in 1939 he dies. This means that Gheorghe Russu lost his main supporter and mentor. From this period on he increases his activities in the domain of graphic arts and as a restaurer. In 1944, because of the advance of the Russian troupes in the direction of Romania, George Russu went to Germany and took refuge there until 1949. During this year he was invited by the new Patriarch Justiniano to become the chief of the Monuments Commission of Romania where he continued until 1970 when he retired at the age of 90 years. In 1950 he becomes professor at the Bucharest Byzantine Art School and member of the Church Paintings Committee.

Work

George Russu's art inherits multiple traditions: 1. Byzantine tradition, 2. Christian tradition, 3. Renaissance tradition of illustrated book printing, 4. Romanian wood art tradition, and 5. Neo classical art tradition from München, Germany. In combining elements of these multiple traditions George Russu's main contributions are as follows.

Iconostasis

Two known designs and execution of iconostasis by George Russu in Romania are: 1. The iconostasis of the small wooden church in the Monastery of the Holy Prophet Elijah in Toplița, commissioned by Miron Christea. This iconostasis was made out of carved lime with delicate ornamentation and paintings executed by George Russu [11] [12]. This work was realized by George Russu in his atelier in München, and it was afterward transported to Toplița. 2. The iconostasis of the Romanian Orthodox church of Cluj-Napoca [13] is 11 meters in height by 7.6 meters in width. George Russu had two contributions to this iconostasis. First, the design of the iconostasis which was built in wood with a layer of silver covering all its frontal part and which was sculpted and decorated by the master Moise Schiopu from Rupea. Second, the execution of the four main icons, - imperial icons - of the iconostasis. All other paintings were created and executed by the Romanian artist Anastasie Demian (1899 - 1977).

Drawing

The drawings of George Russu were used for different purposes. First, to develop ideas and concepts. In the majority of the drawings, Gheorghe Russu used graphite on paper, and only seldom sanguine on paper. There are different types of studies that Gheorghe Russu developed: 1. Plant drawings. Gheorghe Russu used throughout his work, from paintings, drawings, and woodcuts, ornamentation motifs based on flowers and plants, following the Brâncovenesc style. This used the technique of graphite on paper. 2. Drawings of buildings using the technique of sanguine on paper. These were used in the process of building restoration. 3. Drawing sketches were used as studies for the festive icons. The characteristic in all these studies is the use of thin lines that give an indication of the shape of objects without drawing precise boundaries. For drawings of the backbone of object shape two types of techniques were used: graphite and acrylic based techniques. In both these cases the objects' boundaries are clear and sharply drawn. The largest number of these drawings, in graphite on paper, comprises studies for woodcuts. These were not only focused on religious art, but also on book illustration, such as highly ornamented drop caps. Also, George Russu draw a complete series of the Zodiac signs. A smaller number of these drawings combine graphite and acrylic, while some are based solely on acrylic.

Painting

The majority of the paintings of George Russu are of religious nature, and they consist of icons and murals. His influences combine medieval Romanian religious art, late Renaissance Brâncovenesc [14] style, and the German influence [15] due to his education and collaboration at the Akademie der Bildenden Künste in München. In a broad sense we can separate the paintings of George Russu between secular and sacred. The secular paintings have a German style influence and they describe scenes involving a multitude of characters - people, animals, imaginary creatures - in different events. They exhibit a free flow of structures - human, animal shapes. The sacred paintings follow the Byzantine style [16] [17] [18] of Romanian religious painting describing images of the Virgin Mary, Christ in majesty, archangels, and sacred festive motives like Christ's baptism, entry in Jerusalem, and his resurrection. The icons are divided into the ones that correspond to the imperial part of the iconostasis, which are large in size - typically 90 centimeters in height and 70 centimetres in width, and another set that describe various sacred festive motives that are displayed in the row above that imperial icons. The latter are about 56 centimeters in height and 40 centimeters in width. Both sets of icons are painted with acrylic on wooden panels. The large icons also contain a wood sculptured frame with Brâncovenesc style motives, and they are painted in silver.

Woodcut

The art of woodcut of George Russu, which is part of his graphic art, has two main focuses: book illustration and large scale woodcuts. George Russu contributed to the art of woodcut [19] through his masterful drawings that were the starting point and the basis of the wood relief blocks. George Russu did not produce woodcuts himself, but relied on the work of the highly talented Prof. Albert Fallscheer, as well as of his students, Mr. Caspar and Mr. Döhler from the Academy of Fine Arts in München. The first characteristic that strikes our attention in Russu's woodcuts is the precision of line drawing: the line thickness is variable but the way they follow their curvature is geometrically precise. The second characteristic is the richness of the ornamentation. In addition to the use of abstracted images of the Acanthus flowering plant (Acanthaceae family), George Russu uses images of geometrical forms, and, in the majority of cases these ornamentations are perfectly symmetrical with respect to the vertical axis - centre part - of the illustration. The third characteristic is the scene composition and the expression of the images of the saints and of the religious festive events. As George Racoveanu discusses in his book on George Russu's woodcut work, the expression of these woodcuts is not meant to be earthly, but divine. The art of illustration of George Russu follows the tradition of Renaissance artists, such as, Erhard Ratdolt (1442 - 1528), Francesco Colonna (ca. 1433 - ca. 1527) and Aldus Manutius (1449/1452 - 1515), Albrecht Dürer (1471 - 1528), and Stephan Plannck (ca. 1457 - 1501) for the illustration of books. These books were created through the then new technique of movable woodblocks or movable-type printing devised by Johannes Gutenberg (ca. 1400 - 1468) which allowed the combination of text and illustration in a single pattern. George Russu also follows the tradition of Romanian woodcut art that focuses mainly on the illustration of religious books, from the Macarian (1508 - 1522) to the Neamt Monastery [20] periods (1809 - 1860). The compositional style of George Russu still follows the tradition - Romanian woodcut in the style of Byzantine art - but the lines are clear, with variable thickness. In woodcut, George Russu made: 1. Book ornamentation - initial letters and page border ornaments, 2. Compositions for yearly religious calendars and diplomas, 3. Romanian Christian Orthodox mass guide ornamentation, 4. Larger scale compositions, usually fitting the size of a whole page (such as, A4 format), 5. Very large compositions, such as, the Pietà the dead Christ laying in his clothes being venerated by the Virgin Mary and by his Apostles. In all of these these compositions the style of George Russu is instantly recognisable: the facial and bodily expressions of the saints are magnanimous and they describe a strong presence.

Restauration

George Russu started to intensify his work as a restorer in the 1940's in parallel with that of graphic art. In 1949 he becomes chief of the Romanian Monuments Commission, a position he hold until his retirement in 1970. He worked during this period on different restoration works. The one that is specially important is the mosaic painting restoration at the Tismana Monastery between 1955 and 1959. This monastery is considered one of the oldest and beautiful monasteries in Romania. It was inaugurated in August 15, 1377. Its church was built in 1650. The restoration was described in detail in the article [21] by George Russu and Duiliu Marcu. Duiliu Marcu was one of the most important architects in Romania in the period between the two world wars.

Summary of Contributions

From the oeuvre of George Russu we can conclude that he absorbed various influences and created a sophisticated Byzantine art for the twentieth century. In this art, the precision of line drawing, scene composition, and ornamentation took a central rôle. He created unique objects of art - icons, iconostasis - and reproducible objects of art. His icons follow the Byzantine tradition of painted religious art, while his graphic arts follow the Renaissance tradition of book illustration and printing.

Retirement and Death

After his retirement as the chief of the Romanian Monuments Commission, George Russu, moved to Brazil to live with his daughter Domnitza Russu, in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. Due to his advanced age and having eye problems, he was not able anymore to perfom his work. He did nevertheless participate in artistic events and was the object of articles about him and his work. George Russu passed away in Curitiba on May 14, 1977. In 1990 (December 14 to 30) his daughter, Domnitza Russu, organised in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil, a posthumous exposition of the work of George Russu called "George Russu Um Mestre da Arte Romena" (George Russu a Master of the Romanian Art), sponsored by the Secretaria de Estado da Cultura (Curitiba, Paraná) and by IBM Brazil. This exposition came with small brochure with a text by the art critic Adalice Maria de Araújo entitled "O Byzantinólogo George Russu" (The Byzantologist George Russu) [22]

Righteous Among Man

In July 27, 2007 George Russu was given the title "Righteous Among Man" at the Yad Vashem Memorial - The World Holocaust Remembrance Center - in Jerusalem, Israel [23]. George Russu, who in 1942 was working at the Czernowitz Metropolitan Church, saved the family of David Slackman, who was working at the church's press, from being deported from the city's ghetto. George Russu and the church's bishop Tit Simedrea were responsible for hiding Davi's family in the basement of the church. David's son, Marcel Slacman (Mair Shay) proposed George Russu to the Yad Vashem Memorial as a "Righteous Among Man".

References

  1. ↑ de Araújo, Adalice (May 13, 1973). "George Russu Pintor de Ícones" (PDF). No. 5356. Diario do Paraná. p. 21.
  2. ↑ Dragulin, Gheorghe (January 8, 2012). "George Rusu, un pictor bisericesc uitat". Ziarul Lumina.
  3. ↑ Racoveanu, George (October 3, 1949). Noua Gravura Romaneasca in Lemn Pentru Ilustrarea Cartii cu 35 Gravura Originale de George Russu (Racoveanu The New Romanian Woodcuts for Book Illustration with 35 Original Engravings by George Russu). Freising, Germany: Verlags-Buchdrükerei des Freisinger Tagblatt.
  4. ↑ Vitto, Fanny (2017). "The Origin of the Iconostasis in Early Christian Churches in The Holy Land". Actual Problems of Theory and History of Art. 7: 222–231. doi:10.18688/aa177-2-23.
  5. ↑ Cristea, Cristea. "Patriarch Miron of Romania".
  6. ↑ Akademie der Bildenden Küsten. "Matrikelbuch 3 (1884-1920)". Matrikelbücher.
  7. ↑ Rich, Braungart (1920). Iulius Diez. Munchen: D. und R. Bischoff.
  8. ↑ Fallscheer, Albert (October 1928). "Rumänische Kunst im Holzschnitt (Romanian Art in Woodcut)". Der Holzschnitt (39): 1–4.
  9. ↑ Szekely, Csaba-Istvan (2011). George Russu (1880-1977) in The Holocaust of Memories. Romania: S.C. Alutus S.A., Miercurea Ciuc. pp. 41–45. ISBN 978-973-7875-59-4.
  10. ↑ de Araújo, Adalice (May 1, 1973). "George Russu Pintor de Ícones" (PDF). No. 5356. Diario do Paraná. p. 21.
  11. ↑ "Manastirea Sfantul Proroc Ilie din Toplita".
  12. ↑ Szekely, Csaba-Istvan (2011). George Russu (1880-1977) in The Holocaust of Memories. Romania: S.C. Alutus S.A., Miercurea Ciuc. pp. 41–45. ISBN 978-973-7875-59-4.
  13. ↑ Muntean, Marcel (February 2016). "Artistul Gheorghe Russu, fǎuritorul iconostasului de la catedrala mitropolitanǎ Adormirea Maicii Domnului de la Cluj (The artist Gheorghe Russu, maker of the iconostasis in the metropolitan cathedral of the Assumption from Cluj)". Tabor Romanian Review for Culture and Spirituality. 2: 51–65.
  14. ↑ Văetişi, monahia Atanasia (2010). Barancovan Art. Brancovan Art. The last synthesis in Romanian Art. Romania. Retrieved 21 January 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  15. ↑ Kirch, Lisa (2017). The Changing Face of Science and Technology in the Ehrensaal of the Deutsches Museum, 1903-1955. Munchen: Deutsches Museum. ISBN 978-3-940396-66-2.
  16. ↑ Papaioannou, Kostas (1965). Byzantine and Russian Painting. London: Heron Books. ISBN 9855320891.
  17. ↑ Cavarnos, Constantine (2010). Guide to Byzantine Iconography, Volume One (2nd ed.). Belmont, Massachusetts, US: Institute for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies. ISBN 978-0-943405-05-6.
  18. ↑ Efremov, Alexandru (2002). Icoane Romanesti. Bucharest, Romania: Editura Meridiane.
  19. ↑ Fallscheer, Albert (October 1928). "Rumänische Kunst im Holzschnitt (Romanian Art in Woodcut)". Der Holzschnitt (39): 1–4.
  20. ↑ Racoveanu, George (1940). Gravura in Lemn la Mǎnǎstirea Neamtul, cu 60 de planse afar din text, (Woodcut at the Neamt Monastery, with 60 drawings in addition to text). Bucarest: Fundatia Regala Pentru Literatura si Arta.
  21. ↑ Marcu, Duiliu; Russu, George (1958). "Descoperirea Frescei din Secolul al XVI-lea dela Manastirea Tismana (The Discovery of Frescos from the 16th century from the Tismana Monastery)". Buletinul Monumente Si Muzee (1): 41–56.
  22. ↑ Araujo, Adalice (December 14, 1990), "O Bizantinologo George Russu (The Byzantologist George Russu)", Exposition "George Russu um Mestre da Arte Romena" (George Russu a Master of the Romanian Art)
  23. ↑ Szekely, Csaba-Istvan (2011). George Russu (1880-1977) in The Holocaust of Memories. Romania: S.C. Alutus S.A., Miercurea Ciuc. pp. 41–45. ISBN 978-973-7875-59-4.

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