Subscribers only In this file photo taken on September 15, 2021, a woman looks at paintings by French painter Pierre Bonnard during a press visit of the exhibition "The Morozov Collection - Modern art icons" at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. It was lent to the Fondation Louis Vuitton for their 'Icônes de l’art moderne' exhibition in Paris and won't be sent back to Russia.īy Cédric Pietralunga Published on Apat 04h32, updated at 17h35 on April 11, 2022 The art piece belongs to Petr Aven, reputedly close to Putin. Six porcelain dessert plates made for Prince Yusupov, director of the Imperial porcelain factory, who founded a private factory on his estate to manufacture gifts for the court.War in Ukraine: A painting from the Morozov Collection owned by a Russian oligarch will remain in France
Gold-mounted porcelain snuff box, a gift from Catherine to Orlov. Porcelain from the Orlov service, made by the Imperial factory for Count Orlov, lover of Catherine the Great. Portrait of Madame Bestuzheva (1806) by Vladimir Lukich Borovikovsky, a favourite of Catherine the Great. The Treasure of the Angels (1905) by Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich, showing the Holy City on the hills of northern Russia. The Face of Russia, by Boris Dmitrievich Grigoriev, described by art historian Clare Sheridan as "the greatest work of art to come out of Russia since the revolution".
The most obvious place would be Moscow's Tretyakov gallery, which has works by Ilya Repin and Alexander Ivanov, who feature in the Rostropovich collection, though a new gallery may be created in Moscow as a memorial to the exiled musician. It is not clear where Mr Usmanov intends to exhibit his purchases. Since the jailing of Mikhail Khodorkovsky in 2004, Russia's oligarchs have learned to avoid politics and concentrate on making money. Despite enjoying friendly relations with Vladimir Putin's government, he has not tried to change the paper's independent and oppositional stance. He is also the owner of Russia's liberal business newspaper Kommersant. He is the majority shareholder in Metalloinvest and has a vast metals empire. Mr Usmanov, 53, who is married with two children, has made his fortune from ferrous metals and investment. Mr Usmanov has a lower public profile in Russia than some of his more flamboyant fellow billionaires.īut he is still a household name, according to the latest edition of Forbes magazine, with a fortune estimated at £2.75bn. Yesterday's purchase comes as Russia's oligarchs are keener than ever to demonstrate their patriotic credentials before parliamentary elections in December and a presidential poll in March. It is now valued at up to £1.2m.Ībandoning a major auction is highly unusual, leaving the buyer responsible for the costs of preparing the sale as well as the actual collection.Ī Christie's auction was cancelled at the last minute this summer when a consortium backed by Prince Charles bought Dumfries House, a Scottish mansion, and its contents. They had to cut a hole in the wall to get it into their flat. There is also a monumental 1905 Byzantine-style painting by Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich, The Treasure of the Angels, which the couple bought at Sotheby's nine years ago for £288,000. The pictures included The Face of Russia, one of seven paintings by Boris Dmitrievich Grigoriev, described as the greatest work of art to leave Russia since the revolution and believed to be worth up to £2m. Sotheby's considered it the most important Russian collection in private hands. The two-day sale was to include the entire contents of their homes in London and Paris, including paintings, furniture, porcelain and glass once owned by Catherine the Great. He left with his cello and dog, followed by his wife, Galina Vishnevskaya, with their children and two suitcases.įor 30 years they bought Russian art, long before the present sky high prices. He was expelled in 1974 for sheltering the dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn. Rostropovich, who died in April aged 80, was one of the most internationally beloved musicians of the 20th century. "For Russian culture and Russia as a whole all things relating to the name of Mstislav Rostropovich are invaluable," he said. The head of Roskultura, the Russian government agency for culture and cinema, Mikhail Shvydkoi, welcomed the news that the collection would return to Russia. He has said he is keen to acquire more shares, up to a controlling interest. Only two weeks ago Mr Usmanov became the latest Russian tycoon to buy into English football, with a 15% stake in Arsenal acquired from the club's former vice-chairman David Dein for £75m.