Elie Grekoff (11 October 1914 – 16 July 1985) was a
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
artist of
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
n birth.
Life
Grekoff was born in
Saratov
Saratov (, ; rus, Сара́тов, a=Ru-Saratov.ogg, p=sɐˈratəf) is the largest city and administrative center of Saratov Oblast, Russia, and a major port on the Volga River upstream (north) of Volgograd. Saratov had a population of 901,36 ...
, in the province of the Don, the son of a railway engineer.
During the
Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
he drifted with his family across
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, according to the ebb and flow of combat. They stayed for a time in a family property near
Sevastopol
Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
, but in 1920 took refuge in
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. In
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
and its surroundings, life became for exiles became increasingly difficult. From the age of ten, Elie had to work. He was unable to attend a school for Russian immigrants for more than a year, although he managed to spend a few months, at the end of his stay in Turkey, at the American School. In 1928, when he was fourteen, the family decided to settle in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. Grekoff, his father and one of his brothers, at first became farm workers in the south, before working in the "Hutchinson" factories in Chalette close to
Montargis
Montargis () is a communes of France, commune in the Loiret Departments of France, department, Centre-Val de Loire, France.
Montargis is the seventh most populous commune in the Loiret, after Orléans and its suburbs. It is near a large forest, ...
. After a year they moved to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, continuing to work in the a "Hutchinson"-owned factory. Grekoff undertook a TSF night school course, and joined his older brother in a small radio factory. In 1935, as a result of a chance encounter, Grekoff destiny changed.
Ever since he had been a child, Grekoff had dreamed of being a painter, and in 1935 a friend recommended him to an architect who was willing to welcome him into his office.
Grekoff felt architecture was not his calling, and soon abandoned it to enter the Fernand Léger Academy. Very quickly, Léger recognised his potential. In 1937 Grekoff executed his first wall mural. For the International Exhibition in Paris, he was in charge of decorating a large roof panel.
With the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Grekoff was mobilised, captured in 1940, and spent six months in captivity in Laval. In then spent another six months as a nurse-paramedic in the
Val de Grace. It was during his captivity that he met the owner of Editions de Cluny, who, immediately after their release, commissioned him to illustrate several luxury edition books, including "''
Les fleurs du mal"'' by
Baudelaire
Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticism inherited fro ...
(etchings); "The blind clairvoyant" by Father Bruckberger (etchings); and "Hell" by Patrice Tower Pine (lithographs).
The result such a success that the publisher of Crezevault Adressat commissioned seventy two lithographs from him for an edition of "''Crime and Punishment"'', which took Grekoff two years to complete. His Russian heredity and hard work resulted in a work that was considered to be in profound harmony with that of
Dostoevsky
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...
.
In 1949 he illustrated ''Poèmes. Les Stupra. Album dit Zutique (extraits)'' by
Arthur Rimbaud
Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he starte ...
, providing 17 homoerotic engravings for a luxury edition of just thirty copies, a few of which were hand coloured.
In 1954 he illustrated ''Tirésias'' by
Marcel Jouhandeau
Marcel Jouhandeau (July 26, 1888 Guéret – April 7, 1979) was a French writer.
Biography
Born in Guéret, Creuse, France, Marcel Jouhandeau grew up in a world of women presided over by his grandmother. Under the influence of a young woman from ...
, for an edition of 120, providing 20 wood engravings, 15 of which were published in the book, and 5 in a separate slipcase as ''refusées'' prints. Sold "under the counter", and condemned by a court in 1964, it is now considered a masterpiece of homoerotic publishing.
In 1959, with the assistance of Peter Monteret, he painted frescos for the hall of a girls high school hall in
Compiègne
Compiègne (; pcd, Compiène) is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. It is located on the river Oise. Its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois''.
Administration
Compiègne is the seat of two cantons:
* Compiègne-1 (with 19 c ...
.
After the war Grekoff become noted for his work in tapestry: almost all Grekoff tapestries were woven in
Aubusson workshops.
Until 1962, Grekoff compositions consisted in large measure of human themes: somewhat melancholic young men, girls and children, in arcadian settings. In 1962, Grekoff left Paris for the quiet of the
Anjou Anjou may refer to:
Geography and titles France
*County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou
**Count of Anjou, title of nobility
*Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France
**Duke ...
countryside. People no longer appeared in works; replaced by nature – trees, insects, birds and skies.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grekoff, Elie
French artists
1914 births
1985 deaths
White Russian emigrants to Turkey
Turkish emigrants to France