Natalia Goncharova

Posted on by The Wandering Art Historian

If you are considering visiting the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, FL to view the Art of the Stage: Picasso to Hockney exhibit, I implore you… do not go for the Picassos or the Hockneys.  Honestly, they were the least impressive works in the entire exhibition.  Instead, go for the really wonderful array of works by the Russian Avant-Garde artists of the early 20th century, specifically those by Natalia Goncharova.

The artists of the Russian Avant-Garde spent the early 20th century traveling back and forth between Russia and Western Europe.  They were influenced by all the new art movements popping up at the time, including Cubism, Fauvism and Futurism.

Goncharova was a prominent figure in early 20th century Russian art having studied in Moscow and traveling to Europe and bringing all the crazy new modern ideas about art back to her homeland.  Eventually forced to leave Russia after the Revolution, she settled in France and made numerous contributions to the Ballets Russes in the form of set designs and costumes.  Two examples of her work for the theatre are the images attached to this post.

Seeing her work not only on display, but celebrated in this exhibition was a delight!  Her work with the Ballets Russes brought a distinctly Russian influence to Western Europe and changed the art of the theatre forever.

For more information on the exhibition Art of the Stage: Picasso to Hockney, please visit…

Art of the Stage

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I am writer and artist with a degree in art history who loves to talk to people about art. I have spent the last seven years building up The Wandering Art Historian “brand” as a way to connect with people who want to learn more about art. I give lectures and presentations and teach classes and host book club discussions with a creative or artistic connection. I also write about local artists, events, museums, and exhibitions to promote the arts in Central Florida. In 2021, I had a creative crisis. I struggled with authenticity in the art making process. I decided to make myself vulnerable and find out what a real, genuine Adrienne H. Lee artwork would look like. The process was challenging and emotional and revelatory. I learned that if necessity is the mother of invention, then authenticity is the mother of reinvention. I reinvented myself and learned an entirely new medium. The resulting artwork surprised me, and it will surprise you, too. Some people wish for a fairytale ending. For me, the fairy tale is only the beginning.