Grotesque Picture Of Provincial: Among Remizov's most characteristic books are Posolon (1907; Following the Sun), a collection of mythological tales; Pyataya yasva (1912; Eng. tr., The Fifth Pestilence, 1927), a grotesque picture of provincial life; V pole blakitnom (1922; Eng. tr., On a Field Azure, 1946), a novel about a girl's childhood; Zga (1925; Darkness), fantastic stories; Vsrikhrennaya Rns (1927; Russia in a Whirlwind), memoirs of reality and dreams during the revolutionary days in Russia; Melyusine (1952; Melusine), a 17th century tale of foreign origin rewritten in a modern way; Myshkina dndochka (1953; the Pipe of a Mouse), about life in Paris during German occupation; Ogon veshchei (1954; The Fire in Things), a book of literary criticism; and Martyn Zadcka (1955), a record of the author's dreams.
What makes this picture rather complex is the fact that it contains not only elements of motherliness and artistic tradition, but also of the grotesque, motifs which contradict our normal visual experience: for example, the arm which appears to be most in the foreground is the smallest one, while the one at the back is distorted and larger than life; and the horizon is not absolutely straight, but goes up a little, although this is hardly noticeable.
Finally, there is a certain Mediterranean ambience which reminds us of Greek and Roman antiquity and of the origins of everything that is classical. The orderly balance of the picture is no longer disturbed by the grotesque or the chaotic, but permeated by an idyllic, arcadian atmosphere, thus confirming Picasso's ability as a master painter, but almost devoid of any provocative charm. Owing to Picasso's continual desire for variety, his "Pipes of Pan" were to sound the final note of this period in his art.
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Photography
