BIG WINGS HANGED OVER ME
The starting point for artist Shamil Shaaev's research is Rudolf Nureyev's autobiography, published two years after his fateful decision in 1961 at the Paris airport. Nureyev, soaring above the disapproving Soviet guards, landed directly into the hands of French police and sought political asylum. The wings looming over Nureyev's head acquire symbolic weight—they are the wings of the TU airplane that was supposed to return him to Moscow. The artist takes these words out of context, guiding us through real life on a false trail, leading the ballet context to fairy-tale plots. Focusing on Nureyev's early years abroad, the artist demonstrates the multiplicity of interpretations of his legacy. He invites the viewer to immerse themselves in a multilayered reality where the personal and political are closely intertwined in a continuous pursuit of freedom and self-expression.
Nureyev's story begins on the edge of harsh reality and a fairy-tale dream. He was born during a hungry, pre-war time, on a train rushing along the shores of Lake Baikal. He later often repeated that fate itself had destined him to be a citizen of the world. Ballet plots, filled with romantic heroes, wanderings, and dreams, sharply contrasted with the harsh reality of the Soviet state. In a country where the artist's body was under strict control and discipline, where the repressive nature of ballet practice prevailed, the stage became the only refuge, a space for escape into another world.
In the picturesque series "17 Exercises" Shamil Shaaev reveals this part of the artist's life, creating fairy-tale variations based on a single narrative motif. The number 17 is symbolic here: Nureyev was born on the 17th, and it was on the 17th that he decided to stay in France, which he considered a significant moment in his life. The series of graphic works "Siegfried Danced"—executed in fine pencil lines—conceptually questions the traditional understanding of rhythm, exploring it as a temporal structure and dynamic movement, and contrasting it with the frozen-in-time plots of painting. The series is based on documentary footage of a ballet on the stage of the Kirov Theater, shot on the eve of Nureyev's departure from Leningrad on tour to Europe.
The fabrics depicted in the artist's plots refer to Rudolf Nureyev's stage costumes, becoming a visual metaphor for an artificial shell hiding the true reality. They serve as an allusion to decorativeness, which, both in ballet life and in the political system, masks true emotions, fears, and conflicts. In the series "Flowers Bloom Forever," Shamil Shaaev meticulously explores the color, texture, and pattern of the stage costume from "Swan Lake," in which Nureyev performed in the early years after deciding to stay in Europe. The lilac shades refer to the outer side of the costume, while the flesh tones refer to its inner part, symbolizing the dancer's physical shell and inner essence. The Florentine lily from the costume's pattern transforms into a metal structure reminiscent of a fence. This element carries duality: its decorative form retains aesthetic appeal, but the sharp petals serve a protective function.
Frequently performing in the stage costume for "Swan Lake," which sparkled on the outside and gave his character a dramatic form, Nureyev would sew up the worn spots on the inside, as if marking the performance as a wound, an act not only of physical but also emotional sacrifice. The colors in the works—black, blue, gold, and emerald—are not chosen by chance. The artist refers to Nureyev's memories: when he first found himself at the Kirov Theater (now the Mariinsky Theater), he was captivated by the beauty of the silvery-blue curtain, the lush boxes, and the gilded interiors. These colors mentally took him back to his youth when he performed in villages around Ufa. The homemade stages were often decorated with simple red cotton fabrics with large blue flowers—fabrics that could be found in a traditional Tatar home.
In the series "Kirov Theater," Shamil Shaaev refers to theatrical architecture as a symbolic space combining the features of both a temple and a palace, where the inner life reflects political reality. Here, architectural precision coexists with submission, purpose, and service. The ideal viewer position in the central loge of the mezzanine — the Royal Loge — implied a single viewer for whom everything was arranged. The view from the loge formed an invisible line, identifying the two main points of the theatrical space—the stage and the hall. In the 20th century, the merger of theater and politics only deepened, and over time, party officials appeared in the Royal Loge, symbolizing new power and statehood.
Shamil Shaaev's project "Big Wings Hanged Over Me" is a visual narrative about a dancer whose fate and creativity intertwined with the political, becoming a symbol of the struggle for personal and artistic freedom. The project is the result of initial research, which will continue at the International Summer Academy of Fine Arts in Salzburg in August 2024th.
Dmitry Ryabkov
The starting point for artist Shamil Shaaev's research is Rudolf Nureyev's autobiography, published two years after his fateful decision in 1961 at the Paris airport. Nureyev, soaring above the disapproving Soviet guards, landed directly into the hands of French police and sought political asylum. The wings looming over Nureyev's head acquire symbolic weight—they are the wings of the TU airplane that was supposed to return him to Moscow. The artist takes these words out of context, guiding us through real life on a false trail, leading the ballet context to fairy-tale plots. Focusing on Nureyev's early years abroad, the artist demonstrates the multiplicity of interpretations of his legacy. He invites the viewer to immerse themselves in a multilayered reality where the personal and political are closely intertwined in a continuous pursuit of freedom and self-expression.
Nureyev's story begins on the edge of harsh reality and a fairy-tale dream. He was born during a hungry, pre-war time, on a train rushing along the shores of Lake Baikal. He later often repeated that fate itself had destined him to be a citizen of the world. Ballet plots, filled with romantic heroes, wanderings, and dreams, sharply contrasted with the harsh reality of the Soviet state. In a country where the artist's body was under strict control and discipline, where the repressive nature of ballet practice prevailed, the stage became the only refuge, a space for escape into another world.
In the picturesque series "17 Exercises" Shamil Shaaev reveals this part of the artist's life, creating fairy-tale variations based on a single narrative motif. The number 17 is symbolic here: Nureyev was born on the 17th, and it was on the 17th that he decided to stay in France, which he considered a significant moment in his life. The series of graphic works "Siegfried Danced"—executed in fine pencil lines—conceptually questions the traditional understanding of rhythm, exploring it as a temporal structure and dynamic movement, and contrasting it with the frozen-in-time plots of painting. The series is based on documentary footage of a ballet on the stage of the Kirov Theater, shot on the eve of Nureyev's departure from Leningrad on tour to Europe.
The fabrics depicted in the artist's plots refer to Rudolf Nureyev's stage costumes, becoming a visual metaphor for an artificial shell hiding the true reality. They serve as an allusion to decorativeness, which, both in ballet life and in the political system, masks true emotions, fears, and conflicts. In the series "Flowers Bloom Forever," Shamil Shaaev meticulously explores the color, texture, and pattern of the stage costume from "Swan Lake," in which Nureyev performed in the early years after deciding to stay in Europe. The lilac shades refer to the outer side of the costume, while the flesh tones refer to its inner part, symbolizing the dancer's physical shell and inner essence. The Florentine lily from the costume's pattern transforms into a metal structure reminiscent of a fence. This element carries duality: its decorative form retains aesthetic appeal, but the sharp petals serve a protective function.
Frequently performing in the stage costume for "Swan Lake," which sparkled on the outside and gave his character a dramatic form, Nureyev would sew up the worn spots on the inside, as if marking the performance as a wound, an act not only of physical but also emotional sacrifice. The colors in the works—black, blue, gold, and emerald—are not chosen by chance. The artist refers to Nureyev's memories: when he first found himself at the Kirov Theater (now the Mariinsky Theater), he was captivated by the beauty of the silvery-blue curtain, the lush boxes, and the gilded interiors. These colors mentally took him back to his youth when he performed in villages around Ufa. The homemade stages were often decorated with simple red cotton fabrics with large blue flowers—fabrics that could be found in a traditional Tatar home.
In the series "Kirov Theater," Shamil Shaaev refers to theatrical architecture as a symbolic space combining the features of both a temple and a palace, where the inner life reflects political reality. Here, architectural precision coexists with submission, purpose, and service. The ideal viewer position in the central loge of the mezzanine — the Royal Loge — implied a single viewer for whom everything was arranged. The view from the loge formed an invisible line, identifying the two main points of the theatrical space—the stage and the hall. In the 20th century, the merger of theater and politics only deepened, and over time, party officials appeared in the Royal Loge, symbolizing new power and statehood.
Shamil Shaaev's project "Big Wings Hanged Over Me" is a visual narrative about a dancer whose fate and creativity intertwined with the political, becoming a symbol of the struggle for personal and artistic freedom. The project is the result of initial research, which will continue at the International Summer Academy of Fine Arts in Salzburg in August 2024th.
Dmitry Ryabkov
