Michail Revyagin on loan
Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 8:46PM Neill Roan was in Lancaster county on a business trip last week and stayed out here in quiet Marietta with us in our pile of brick and stone by the Susquehanna. Before he left on Friday morning, I prevailed on him to hand over one of his pipes, promising that I'd do a drawing or two and return the pipe to him on his next visit. He pulled this one, out of his bag and handed it to me, a big, bold chunk of sculpted briar, ivory, and vulcanite. I've done several drawings of it and believe it or not, I have NOT fallen to the sore temptation to load it up with my best vintage tobacco and pretend that it's mine. But the thought has danced with evil glee in my mind.
Rather than to humiliate myself by stumbling around with words trying to describe this grotesque, beautiful object of functional art, I'll refer you to Neill's article, just posted this afternoon, about this fascinating and gifted artist from Russia: http://www.apassionforpipes.com/neills-blog/2011/10/4/michail-revyagins-transfigurations.html A drawing done on Sunday afternoon appears with the article. Here's what I did after reading it this evening, left with a deeper appreciation of Revyagin's work. One of these days, probably after I finish limping my way through helping my children get their college degrees, I'll own one of Misha's extraordinary pipes myself.
Michail Revyagin Troll Bulldog, 11 9/16 x 8 1/4, 9B graphite and watercolor pencils
Scott A. Stultz
A perfect, sparkling crisp fall morning and a completely irresistable impulse do draw outdoors found me walking up to the balcony with a press pot of strong coffee, a pair of pipes, sketchbook and pencils to appreciate a few minutes out under the blue sky before getting in front of the computer for a day of design and modeling in AutoCAD. Two artisans working on opposite sides of the world, Adam Davidson in South Carolina's low country and Michail Revyagin in Russia, with altogether different formal aesthetics, producing stunning objects. What a privilege to have their work in front of me to inspire the day!
Reader Comments (1)
Scott, your ability to tune into the artist's vibe, then have that show up in your own work, is awe-inspiring. I can only wish that Misha will see these sketches, himself, so that he can experience for himself the empathic nature of your work as it expresses his work.
The minimal – and strategic – use of color is very moving in this study, Scott. Thanks for making this work.