The Nevsky Pickwickians was an informal circle of art-loving and intellectual friends who were students at the
University of St. Petersburg,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
at the end of the 19th century. The group originally included
Alexandre Benois (effectively its leader),
Léon Bakst
Léon Bakst (russian: Леон (Лев) Николаевич Бакст, Leon (Lev) Nikolaevich Bakst) – born as Leyb-Khaim Izrailevich (later Samoylovich) Rosenberg, Лейб-Хаим Израилевич (Самойлович) Розенбе ...
,
Walter Nouvel,
Dmitry Filosofov and
Konstantin Somov.
In 1890, Filosofov introduced his cousin
Serge Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, p ...
to the group. Although at first the older members considered Diaghilev to be provincial, he quickly learned from the other members (especially Benois), and eventually displayed his innate talent for organization and administration.
[Walsh (1999), p. 129.]
In 1898, members of The Nevsky Pickwickians founded the journal ''
Mir iskusstva'' (''World of Art'') with financial backing of
Princess Maria Tenisheva and
Savva Mamontov.
Diaghilev went on to become the impresario of the
Ballets Russes
The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Revolution disrupted society. ...
which gave its first performances in Paris in 1909. Over the course of the next twenty years (until Diaghilev's death in 1929), the company continued as one of the period's most influential performing arts organizations. Its success was due, in no small part, to the participation of "Nevsky Pickwickians" Benois and Bakst, who designed sets and costumes for many of its productions.
References
;Notes
{{Reflist
;Bibliography
*Garofala, Lynn. ''Diaghilev's Ballets Russes.'' (New York: Da Capo Press, 1998)
*Walsh, Stephen. ''Stravinsky: A Creative Spring.'' (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999)
Saint Petersburg State University