Biography Boris Anisfeld

self-portrait, 1910s

1910 - p. i. chaikovsky’s ballet 4 seasons, staged pupils of imperial school of choreography @ annual review on march 26, apparently first collaborative project of anisfeld , fokine. anisfeld executes bakst’s designs sheherezade in paris, , spends summer in concarneau in brittany.

anisfeld s costume design silver fish, 1911 (pencil, watercolor , silver paint)

1911 - during winter, anisfeld executes a. n. benois’ designs petrushka, , spring, in rome , paris, creates sets , costumes undersea kingdom. design work diaghilev’s russian ballet entirely own. spends summer in capri. new york metropolitan opera buys anisfeld’s sets boris godunov paris grand opera. on nov. 29, anisfeld signs contract management of imperial theatres execution of sets , costumes islamey. work completed not later jan. 15, 1912.

1911-1913 - anisfeld attends d. a. kiplik’s newly established workshop pictorial materials , technique, @ imperial academy. studies fresco technique.

1912 - after fokine breaks diaghilev, anisfeld reaches understanding fokin design productions 1913. artist spends summer in gris brenner in tyrol, , winter-with fokine-in berlin , stockholm. while in petersburg, lives on vasilevsky island, sredny prospekt, number 3/15, apt. 14.

1913 - on mar. 13, anisfeld signs contract management of imperial theaters design sets , costumes liszt’s les preludes. work completed on mar. 13. spends summer in hendaye, france, san sebastián, spain, , in millstatt in austrian alps. anisfeld takes apartment @ no.7 geislerovsky pereulok, 6-on petersburg side. final address in petersburg.

1914 - in feb. , mar. anisfeld in london, creates sets , costumes v. nizhinsky’s productions of l apres- midi d’un faune, les sylphides , le spectre de la rose, @ palace theater. theater’s fire brigade destroys set faune. liszt’s les preludes performed anna pavlova’s troupe on stage of manhattan opera. first time american audience has seen anisfeld’s theater work. artist spends summer in venice, takes part in baltic exhibition in malmö, sweden, , returns petersburg through finland @ outbreak of war. in petersburg, commissioned paint murals in villa of wife of banker a. m. wourgaft, on kamenny ostrov (stony island) time year or possibly little later, has preliminary discussions jousupoffs decorative work in fontanka palace.

1915 - anisfeld becomes member of jewish society encouragement of arts, , participates in number of charitable auctions support of needy artists , other social groups.

1916 - anisfeld makes trip bilbao, spain, in connection staging of undersea kingdom. paints f.i. chaliapin’s portrait.

1917 - in august, anisfeld gets exemption military service. completes @ least 8 major paintings exhibition @ brooklyn museum, receives export permit paintings, , leaves petrograd wife , daughter in sept. route takes him vladivostok, yokohama, thence vancouver , across canada new york. artist acquainted new york impresario max rabinov. in petrograd, s. abugov manages safeguard anisfeld’s apartment , studio time.

1918 - anisfeld arrives in new york letter of recommendation v. d. nabokov, editor of petrograd paper ryech, , collector of anisfeld’s theater sketches, addressed herman bernstein, new york publicist , translator of m. gorky , l. andreev. exhibition of anisfelds’s works mounted @ brooklyn museum. christian brinton, connoisseur of russian art, organizer. exhibition, in course of 2 years, travel several major american cities, sets off lively discussion merits of art.

1919 - anisfeld signs contract kingore gallery in new york on dec. 20. on dec. 27, metropolitan opera’s premiere of blue bird, sets , costumes anisfeld, celebrated @ ball in waldorf astoria presided on mrs. w. k. vanderbilt, initiated so-called campaign happiness.

1921 - association of russian , ukrainian artists organizes auction of works of anisfeld , roerich @ plaza hotel on may 28. sergei prokofiev’s opera love 3 oranges, sets , costumes anisfeld, premieres @ chicago civic opera. reviews mixed, anisfeld’s sets highly praised.

1922 - rimsky-korsakov’s opera snow maiden (snegourochka), sets , costumes anisfeld, opens @ metropolitan opera, , great success. max rabinov conceives of project establish institute performing arts @ stony point new york, anisfeld, s. sudeikin, l. bakst , iu. urban collaborators.

1923 - anisfeld joins scene painters union, along norman bel geddes.

1925 - anisfeld executes sets , costumes children s pantomime magic night. performed 5 times @ garrick theater in new york.

1926 - anisfeld becomes american citizen. wins gold medal philadelphia exposition painting hispania, , designs costumes 2 productions of mikhail mordkin’s russian ballet. metropolitan opera declines accept costumes , set designs production of turandot. max rabinov acting intermediary, anisfeld conducts negotiations possible project mexico city opera.

1928 - anisfeld moves chicago wife , daughter. after time in residential hotel, anisfeld , family move apartment building on ohio street. summer, artist undertakes automobile trip around american south west. visits santa fe, taos, , southern colorado.

1928-1958 - anisfeld spends summers in western us. (colorado , new mexico)

1929-1957 - anisfeld teaches @ art institute of chicago.

1930 - fire @ warehouse in stony point ny destroys sets snow maiden , love of 3 oranges.

1933 - anisfeld’s wife commits suicide. daughter, morella borisovna anisfeld, buys him house in central city colorado.

1934-1965 - artist teaches painting there small group of students summers. so-called boris anisfeld school of painting . lives in old town chicago, @ same location mid thirties until death, @ kogan apartments, purpose built apartment/ studio complex artists.

1958 - art institute organizes retrospective exhibition of anisfeld’s works, @ insistence of former students. anisfeld’s name returns oblivion. new york times publishes short biographical piece him.

1973 - anisfeld dies in new london, connecticut.