Symbolism in Russian Painting of the Early 20th Century: the Vitality of Plastic Expressiveness

The purpose of the article is to reveal the understanding of vitality as the intensity of innovative plastic expressiveness in Russian painting of the early 20th century. It was in that period, since the turn of the 20th century, that the means of artistic expression and the tasks of art were changing fundamentally, which had a great impact on the future development of art. This study, based on the relevant theoretical and methodological perspective of the material already explored, allows identifying the conceptual aspects of Russian artistic culture of the indicated period and outline further area of scientific research. The author proceeds from the belief that vitality is an innovative vital capacity of art that is expressed in the strain of the artist’s creative energy embodied in the plastic expressiveness of the work. The appeal of a number of Russian painters of the early 20th century in line with symbolism to the innovative aspects of the plastic thinking and the consistent fixation of plastic innovations reveal this provision, demonstrating the uniqueness of Russian art in the world artistic culture of the epoch. In this context, it is important to foreground both the recognized achievements of such masters as M. Vrubel or V. BorisovMusatov and the early period of creativity of N. Roerich, K. Bogaevsky, p. Kuznetsov, M. Saryan or K. Malevich. The research problem determines a complex approach, which involves the combination of historical, cultural, chronological, and comparative methods and the formal-stylistic analysis. One of the most important results of the study is the identification of the significance of vitality as innovative plastic expressiveness for the evolution of art of the Modern times.