Matvey Genrikhovich Manizer (russian: Матвей Генрихович Манизер, – 20 December 1966) was a prominent Russian sculptor. Manizer created a number of works that became classics of

socialist realism Socialist realism is a style of idealized realistic art that was developed in the Soviet Union and was the official style in that country between 1932 and 1988, as well as in other socialist countries after World War II. Socialist realism is ch ...

Life

Manizer was born in Saint Petersburg into the family of Genrikh Manizer (russian: Генрих Манизер, german: Heinrich Maniser), a prominent Memel-born artist of

Baltic German Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...

descent. As a student Manizer attended the Saint Petersburg State Artistic and Industrial Academy, and the art school of the

Peredvizhniki Peredvizhniki ( rus, Передви́жники, , pʲɪrʲɪˈdvʲiʐnʲɪkʲɪ), often called The Wanderers or The Itinerants in English, were a group of Russian realist artists who formed an artists' cooperative in protest of academic restr ...

from 1911 through 1916. From 1926 he was a member of the

Association of Artists of Revolutionary Russia The Association of Artists of Revolutionary Russia (russian: Ассоциация художников революционной России, ''Assotsiatsia Khudozhnikov Revolutsionnoi Rossii'', 1922–1928), later known as Association of Artists ...

. In 1941 he moved to Moscow. Working in an

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

and realistic style, Manizer produced a great number of monuments situated throughout the Soviet Union, including some twelve portrayals of

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

. Manizer was awarded the

People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. Nomenclature and significan ...

(1958), Member of USSR Academy of Arts (1947), vice president of USSR Academy of Arts (1947-1966), chairman of the

Saint Petersburg Union of Artists Union of Artists of Saint Petersburg (russian: Санкт-Петербургский Союз художников) was established on August 2, 1932, as a creative union of the Leningrad artists and arts critics. Prior to 1959, it was called " Le ...

from 1937 to 1941, and three-time laureate of the

Stalin Prize Stalin Prize may refer to: * The State Stalin Prize in science and engineering and in arts, awarded 1941 to 1954, later known as the USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, ...

. Manizer's wife (1890-1971) was also sculptor, with her work at

Moscow Metro The Moscow Metro) is a metro system serving the Russian capital of Moscow as well as the neighbouring cities of Krasnogorsk, Reutov, Lyubertsy and Kotelniki in Moscow Oblast. Opened in 1935 with one line and 13 stations, it was the first unde ...

's Dinamo station. Their son, (1927-2016), was a noted painter. Among Manizer's students was the Stalin Prize-winning Fuad Abdurakhmanov. Manizer is buried in Moscow's

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist ...

Work

* , , Leningrad. A 1925 work commemorating Soviet politician

V. Volodarsky V. Volodarsky (russian: В. Володарский; December 11, 1891 – June 20, 1918) (born: Moisey Markovich Goldstein) was a Marxist revolutionary and Soviet politician. He was assassinated in 1918. Biography Early years V. Volodarsky ...

. * , Frunzensky District, Saint Petersburg. A 1932 work commemorating those who died in the 1905 Bloody Sunday massacre. * Monument to Vasily Chapaev,

Samara Samara ( rus, Сама́ра, p=sɐˈmarə), known from 1935 to 1991 as Kuybyshev (; ), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with ...

. A 1932 multi-figure and equestrian sculptural composition commemorating

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

commander

Vasily Chapayev Vasily Ivanovich Chapayev or Chapaev (russian: link=no, Василий Иванович Чапаев; 5 September 1919) was a Russian soldier and Red Army commander during the Russian Civil War. Biography Chapayev was born into a poor peasan ...

. * ,

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

, 1933. * 80 bronzes of Soviet citizens for the

station

Ploshchad Revolyutsii Ploshchad Revolyutsii (russian: Пло́щадь Револю́ции) is a station on the Moscow Metro, in the Tverskoy District of central Moscow. The station is named after Revolution Square, under which it is located. It is on the Arbatsko-P ...

, 1938 * ,

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. A 1935 multi-figure sculptural composition commemorating Ukrainian poet and humanist

Taras Shevchenko Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko ( uk, Тарас Григорович Шевченко , pronounced without the middle name; – ), also known as Kobzar Taras, or simply Kobzar (a kobzar is a bard in Ukrainian culture), was a Ukraine, Ukrainian p ...

. * Monument to

Valerian Kuybyshev Valerian Vladimirovich Kuybyshev (russian: Валериа́н Влади́мирович Ку́йбышев; – 25 January 1935) was a Russian revolutionary, Red Army officer, and prominent Soviet politician. Biography Early years Bo ...

in Samara, 1938 * Monument on the ,

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, 1938. * Monument to Lenin in

Ulyanovsk Ulyanovsk, known until 1924 as Simbirsk, is a city and the administrative center of Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Volga River east of Moscow. Population: The city, founded as Simbirsk (), was the birthplace of Vladimir Lenin (born ...

, 1941, for which Manizer was awarded the

second class * Bronze sculptures of the

Heroes of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

Matvey Kuzmin Matvey Kuzmich Kuzmin ( rus, Матве́й Кузьми́ч Кузьми́н, p=mɐˈtvʲej kʊˈzmʲin; 3 August 1858 – 14 February 1942) was a Russian people, Russian peasant who was killed in World War II. He was posthumously the oldest per ...

and

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya Zoya Anatolyevna Kosmodemyanskaya ( rus, Зо́я Анато́льевна Космодемья́нская, p=ˈzojə kəsmədʲɪˈmʲjanskəjə; September 13, 1923 – November 29, 1941) was a Soviet partisan. She was executed after acts of s ...

in the Moscow Metro station Partizanskaya, 1943, for which Manizer was awarded the Stalin Prize first class * Monument to the Metro Builders, in the Moscow Metro station Elektrozavodskaya, 1944 * in

Novosibirsk Novosibirsk (, also ; rus, Новосиби́рск, p=nəvəsʲɪˈbʲirsk, a=ru-Новосибирск.ogg) is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the Russian Census ...

. A 1949 work commemorating twice-Hero of the Soviet Union

Alexander Pokryshkin Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. * Monument to

Ivan Pavlov Ivan Petrovich Pavlov ( rus, Ива́н Петро́вич Па́влов, , p=ɪˈvan pʲɪˈtrovʲɪtɕ ˈpavləf, a=Ru-Ivan_Petrovich_Pavlov.ogg; 27 February 1936), was a Russian and Soviet experimental neurologist, psychologist and physiol ...

Ryazan Ryazan ( rus, Рязань, p=rʲɪˈzanʲ, a=ru-Ryazan.ogg) is the largest city and administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. The city is located on the banks of the Oka River in Central Russia, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 Census ...

, 1950, for which Manizer was awarded the Stalin Prize second class * Monument to Lenin outside

Luzhniki Stadium Luzhniki Stadium ( rus, стадион «Лужники», p=stədʲɪˈon lʊʐnʲɪˈkʲi, ''Stadion Luzhniki'') is the national stadium of Russia, located in its capital city, Moscow. The full name of the stadium is Grand Sports Arena of the ...

. A version of his 1940 Ulyanovsk monument to Lenin built for the

1958 World's Fair Expo 58, also known as the 1958 Brussels World's Fair (french: Exposition Universelle et Internationale de Bruxelles de 1958, nl, Brusselse Wereldtentoonstelling van 1958), was a world's fair held on the Heysel/Heizel Plateau in Brussels, Bel ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, placed outside the

Central Lenin Stadium Luzhniki Stadium ( rus, стадион «Лужники», p=stədʲɪˈon lʊʐnʲɪˈkʲi, ''Stadion Luzhniki'') is the national stadium of Russia, located in its capital city, Moscow. The full name of the stadium is Grand Sports Arena of the ...

in 1960. * ,

Bolotnaya Square Bolotnaya Square (russian: Болотная площадь, ''Bolotnaya ploshchad'') is a square in the center of Moscow, in Yakimanka District, south of the Moscow Kremlin, between the Moskva River (north) and the Vodootvodny Canal (south). Th ...

, Moscow. A 1958 work commemorating painter

Ilya Repin Ilya Yefimovich Repin (russian: Илья Ефимович Репин, translit=Il'ya Yefimovich Repin, p=ˈrʲepʲɪn); fi, Ilja Jefimovitš Repin ( – 29 September 1930) was a Russian painter, born in what is now Ukraine. He became one of the ...

. * Heroes Monument, Jakarta. A 1963 work commemorating those who fought for

Indonesian Independence The Proclamation of Indonesian Independence ( id, Proklamasi Kemerdekaan Indonesia, or simply ''Proklamasi'') was read at 10:00 on Friday, 17 August 1945 in Jakarta. The declaration marked the start of the diplomatic and armed resistance of t ...

. * , Leningrad. A version of his 1932 work, made in 1933 and installed in 1968.

References

online biography from Saint Petersburg Encyclopedia

online biography (Russian language)
1891 births 1966 deaths Artists from Saint Petersburg People's Artists of the USSR (visual arts) Soviet sculptors Full Members of the USSR Academy of Arts Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery Soviet painters Baltic German people from the Russian Empire Stalin Prize winners Recipients of the Order of Lenin Vera Mukhina Institute alumni Saint Petersburg State University alumni {{Russia-sculptor-stub