The Karl Ernst Osthaus Museum offers an opportunity to get acquainted with the work of Edward Beckerman, a Russian in America.
Edward Beckerman was born in Sochi in 1958. The presence in the family of a creative man, namely the father, who was a famous sculptor, determined the direction of the boy’s development. Beckerman studied at the Bolshoi Theatre School, and was prophesied to be famous as a dancer, but a serious injury changed plans.
First sculpture, and then painting. Moving to America. Getting a scholarship to the best school in New York. But Edward chose his own way. Many critics of the time noted the independence, brightness, and atypical work of the young artist. He is just a fly in the ointment. The combination of two cultures in one person played an important role in the formation and development of Beckerman’s skills.
Mainly the artist works in oil on large formats. His works are combined in cycles. Each set of paintings obeys certain rules derived from Edward’s inspiration. The basis of the work is memories from dreams, so the images are like a whirlwind, a storm. No clear boundaries – what can be the boundaries in the games of the imagination? So, «Angels» seem to glow from within with every second of viewing more and more. Gentle scale creates a feeling of purity, holiness of paintings. «Faces», made in a darker palette, evoke a feeling of anxiety for some, fear for some.
«Flowers» – one of the most interesting cycles. Inside each of the plants there is a whole world. «Dreams and spirits» Beckerman worked for a long time – 8 years. Rejection of bright shades, details, more abstraction. The swab pattern fascinates, pulls after itself, inside the paintings. The dance past also leaves a mark: constant movement, as if the «heroes» of the paintings are about to jump out of the frames and involve the viewer in his eerie choreography. Works from these and other cycles deserve everyone’s attention and are unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. The emotions of what you see can be completely different, but not neutral.
The purpose of Edward Beckerman’s work is to try to penetrate, to look into the soul of the contemplator. All paintings of the artist are filled with an infinite number of symbols, images, mixed together, creating a circle of feelings, thoughts, events.
