Yuri Lukshin's
"KALEVALA"

Yuri Lukshin's ex-librises

Now it is impossible to imagine, that about ten - fifteen years ago all that is placed in our selection simply did not exist. And this is only a small part from the works created for these years by the big master from St.Petersburg on the basis of "Kalevala". Probably, there is an original continuity in the fine arts in continuation of innovative ideas even if between the predecessor and the follower there was a significant time pause. So, the ideas, the discoveries in the new interpretation of the inexhaustible "Kalevala", which have arisen in the first half of the XXth century of the outstanding artist Pavel Filonov, have found their logical completion at the end of the century in the creative works of the master, our contemporary, somehow similar to him. Probably, the fact that both innovators belong to the Petersburg school is not casual.

The choice of Yuri Lukshin on the external attributes would seem casual.

Visiting Petrozavodsk frequently, the artist simply could not but pay attention to the original cult of "Kalevala". But this worship of the unique literary work has only sped up the process of maturing of the idea to plunge into inexhaustible depths of the epos, the mine of popular information. Yuri Lukshin by that time was ready to the decision of this global creative task. It seemed, the destiny itself has sent the artist in the necessary direction.

Yuri Lukshin has started his graphic perusal of "Kalevala" when the 150-th anniversary of its first publication was celebrated all over the world. The great national creation which Elias Lennrot (1802-1884) has invested with brilliant literary form, by then was enriched with numerous art interpretations. This fact has not affected at all the decision of the petersburger as Yuri Lukshin has already had crystallized his own representation of the artistic, philosophical, poetic and historical world of "Kalevala".

The first Yuri Lukshin's book illustrations and easel paintings from the Kalevala cycle have drawn the most intent attention of critics and judges of art of drawing. Looking at this violence of colors and uncontrollable imagination of the master, it has become clear, that there has appeared the unknown interpreter of the deep philosophical layers made in 50 runos of the unique creation.

Yuri Lukshin has initially chosen the extremely fruitful approach in perusal of "Kalevala", with all fibers of the delicate soul of the artist having felt, that before him there is both the epos, and the poem. The artist has got a lot also from comprehension of the uniqueness of "Kalevala", as of the ancestor of the Finnish language.

The confession of the artist at this point cause many reflections: "For me "Kalevala" is a path of recognizing the voices of ancestors, voices of the World the Protoplastic, the song, the spell, the pray to the World Spirit of the Human Race.

The latent music of runos is in it. The Waters gave the Eternal breath of Life. Music of the runos of "Kalevala" is the music of the Waters. The ancient poets - the runo-singers - are, as a rule, the children of water coast...

"Send me the power from the Water,
The Water has a great power..." -

These are the words of the Eternal - the elder runo-singer Vaino (Vainamainen). It is not casual, that many great poets and storytellers were blind: Homer, Milton, Perttunen. In the consciousness of the blind poet there is an aggravation of internal essence of the External World. They see the deep world of Human Life through the nature, music of the Word the Protoplastic, the Word the Mark, the Word the Spell.

The fantasy and the poetry of runos is boundless. The powerful spirit of primitive - mythological Creativity is in their air. The structure of poetry demands the reference to color, and image. The action of poetry of runos occurs in the polychrome space of the paper, the canvas, the wall...

Children and old men live on the songs of the epos "Kalevala". For the first ones it is getting acquainted with the world, for the second it is the Enlightenment of the World. In the simple and wise circuit there is the eternal struggle of Goods and Evil, the outline of all life of the World. Poetry of "Kalevala" creates an alloy, a magic alloy of imagination and reality from this circuit.

These reflections of the creator explain to the full, why Yuri Lukshin managed to tell so weighty and new word in the plastic disclosing of poetics and philosophy of the legendary "Kalevala". The extreme responsiveness of the Russian soul to everything great and fine in the world history has showed to the world one more tremendous example since the Kalevala cycle of Yuri Lukshin in quantitative sense excites one's imagination, totaling already more than 150 outstanding works!

Starting the creation of the ex-libris cycle on the basis of "Kalevala" Yuri Konstantinovich Lukshin has absolutely reconstructed not only the style, the manner, but also the techniques. It can be noticed even at such significant reduction of the scale of the ex-librises.

As it is seen, all reproduced ex-librises of Yuri Lukshin are addressed to one bibliophile - Pekka Heikkila. This known collector, the inhabitant of small Finnish city of Tammela, the big expert on art of an ex-libris and the hot propagandist of "Kalevala", complains in his articles, that the young generation of his fellow countrymen has lost the serious interest to the national epos. Hardly it is possible to agree with such conclusion of the Finnish colleague. Just one fact speaks about much: each year the state holiday - the national day of "Kalevala" is celebrated in Finland. Non of the world masterpiece is awarded with such a great honor!

Also one should not forget, that from the moment of occurrence of "Kalevala" to the public 165 years ago, the Finns have started talking language of this epos. I shall tell more: "Kalevala" has fixed the Finnish language forever, has strengthened the growth of national consciousness of the people of Suomi and had been the sign phenomenon in the definition of the sovereignty of Finland. All these are the unique facts in the world culture.

Reverting to Pekka Heikkila, we shall especially note, that this engineer by his trade and the propagandist of national property of the Native land on the calling, makes a lot for "Kalevala" to be read and appreciated all over the world. Also it is necessary to recognize, that in the achievement of this purpose the Finnish collector has succeeded greatly.

The ex-libris serves as the irreplaceable assistant in this noble mission of Pekka Heikkila. Under the initiative of the collector from Tammela tens of artists from many countries have created magnificent book marks on the basis of "Kalevala". It is especially pleasant, that Pekka Heikkila has managed to attract such outstanding masters of art drawings of the XXth century to the Kalevala subjects, as Evald Okas, Mihail Verholantsev, Vladislav Stanishevsky, Vladimir Vereshchagin, Konstantin Kalinovich. Gennady Vereshchagin, Yuri Lukshin... Sometime the fellow countrymen of Pekka Heikkila who will turn 60 this year, will evaluate to the full this feat of the modest engineer from Tammela. Especially as the keen collector also theoretically propagandizes his favorite "Kalevala", frequently acting with analytical articles on this theme.

Yuri Lukshin to the full has evaluated the supertask of Pekka Heikkila, and therefore has embodied everything that the outstanding Finnish devotee likes in this product in the ex-librises on motives " Kalevala" so brilliantly.

Certainly, the name of the founder of the unique graphic and picturesque "Kalevala" is well familiar to the judges of the fine arts of Finland. The personal exhibition of Yuri Konstantinovich Lukshin was shown in Helsinki and the album of the Russian artist of " Kalevala" has been issued at the high polygraphic level.

The magazine "The Printing Trades Worker and the Publisher" issues the significant part of ex-librises of Yuri Lukshin on " Kalevala" for the first time. The artist has conceived the series from fifty ex-librises on the plots of all of 50 runos which have made the great epos. To let the readers have the full representation about multiaspectness of "Kalevala" creativity of the outstanding master from Saint Petersburg, we place some monumental easel sheets of Yuri Lukshin which extremely powerfully has reflected the long-term meditations of the big artist on the immortal images of "Kalevala".

Vitaly Bakumenko
"The The Printing Trades Worker and the Publisher" N12, 2000