Marianne von Werefkin (Marianna Verevkina)
Marianne von Werefkin was born on September 10, 1860, in Tula. She was the daughter of the commander of the Ekaterinburg regiment. She received her first private lessons in academic drawing at the age of fourteen, and in 1880 she became a student of Ilya Repin in his St. Petersburg workshop.
Later, in 1888, she had an accident—she accidentally shot herself in the right arm while hunting, which led to a significant interruption in her art education. But thanks to her perseverance, she resumed painting after a long course of treatment. In the Verevkin apartment, located in the Peter and Paul Fortress where her father served as commandant, many young St. Petersburg artists gathered to encounter the work of their European contemporaries.
In 1892, in Repin's workshop, she met an officer and talented artist, Alexei Jawlensky, who became her friend, companion, and protégé. A year later, they opened their own studio, and in 1896, after her father's death, they moved to Munich to continue their studies. The Munich Art Salon, created on her initiative, became one of the centers of lively artistic exchange, and the Lukasbruderschaft society, which she organized, included Kandinsky.
Thanks to a decent pension as the daughter of the fortress commander, they travelled extensively in Europe. At this time, Marianne almost completely abandoned painting and devoted herself to shaping Jawlensky as an artist. As for their personal relationship, it is generally accepted that they had none. For her, the love of art replaced everything. Obviously, for this reason, when in 1901 it was discovered that their maid was pregnant by Jawlensky, Marianne found the strength to forgive them, and their creative and platonic relationship continued.
She returned to her own work in 1906, and in 1907 her first bold Expressionist works appeared. She, Jawlensky, Kandinsky, and Münter often spent time together in Murnau, at Gabriele's house. In 1909, the New Association of Artists (Neue Künstlervereinigung München, or NKVM) was born from this collaboration. A few years later, Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc split up and created their own group, The Blue Rider (Der Blaue Reiter). Werefkin was not included in the Blue Rider, but she sometimes exhibited with them.
Despite the inevitable influence of such great artists, her style was very distinctive: temperamental, intense, and dramatic.
With the outbreak of World War I, Werefkin and Jawlensky emigrated to Switzerland, where they joined the local artistic community. In Lugano, Werefkin worked with ballet productions by Alexander Sakharov. In 1921, they eventually separated: Marianne left for Ascona, and Jawlensky married.
In Ascona, the sixty-year-old Werefkin resumed her creative activity with renewed vigor. She organized the Big Dipper association, created a museum of modern art in this small town, and, of course, worked prolifically.
In her last years, her worsening illness interfered with her work, and her paintings sold poorly: her art was considered too modern. In the late 1920s, the artist met Carmen and Diego Hagmann, who became her patrons for the rest of her life. They also helped with the export of her paintings from Germany, where the Nazi campaign against "degenerate art" had begun.
Marianne von Werefkin died on February 6, 1938, and was buried at the Russian cemetery in Ascona. The whole town came to her funeral.
Autumn (School), 1909
Self-Portrait, 1910
Ice Rink, 1911
Night Shift, 1924
