Srbija - nacionalna revija - broj 54 - engleski - niska rezolucija

P A L E T T E
Purified Art
“In general, Dimitrije Avramović is a particularly interesting
artistic figure, an extraordinary phenomenon in the history
of Serbian art, like Kornelije Stanković in Serbian church music.
Avramović, unfortunately, did not have time to express his full
potential, but what came out of his painting brush carried the
seal of genuine, purified art, the move of the ancient elevation we
meet in the faces of German classicist Anselm Feuerbach. If we
were to determine an artistic ranking for Avramović, we would
place him between Teodor Kračun and Đorđe Krstić.” (Božidar S.
Nikolajević, PhD: “Memories”)
painting. He made the best transcripts of
twenty charters. The original of Nemanja’s
Charter of Chilandar was later lost, so today
we know it only from his transcript. In
that period, he also became the founder of
Serbian caricature. In agreement with Ilija
Garašanin, with the approval of Prince
Aleksandar Karađorđević, he drew and
lithographically duplicated, often at his
own expense, caricatures directed against
Hungarians and their revolution in 1848.
They were in the spirit of German caricatures,
which spread after the fall of Napoleon.
His successes brought him membership
in the Society of Serbian Literacy
in 1847, as the first Serbian artist granted
with such honor. The authorities, however,
never rewarded him with a permanent
workplace. They employed others. He returned
to Novi Sad and continued painting.
He wanted to go to Rome and Italy,
but soon after he passed away. According
to the words of his sister Katarina, he came
from a kafana one day, banged his top
hat against the floor yelling: “Now, we’re
doomed!” and fell down. The news about
the death of the Russian emperor had such
an effect on this passionate Russophile.
Almost the entire movable painting heritage
of this master was later moved to the
National Museum, thus Belgrade in a way
corrected the injustice made to him.
Artistically, Dimitrije Avramović is
very significant. He introduced a new
subject into icon painting: St. Nicholas returns
sight to Stefan of Dečani. The Portrait
of Vuk Karadžić is crucial for that kind
of Serbian art and more valuable than
his frescoes in the Cathedral Church is
the gallery-format painting Apotheosis of
Lukijan Mušicki. He carefully prepared for
it, by drawing studies and two versions in
oil on canvas, and made a masterpiece in
the third version. This painting represents
him as a romanticist formed on classical
experience, precisely as a Nazarene. The
movement of returning to the masters of
early Renaissance, renewal of Christian
spirituality in the form of precise drawing
and pure colors of sacral incidence,
spreads from Nazarenes to Pre-Raphaelites
and symbolists. Avramović, in that
aspect, is one of the forefathers of the
classical approach in Serbian paintings,
as well as the forerunner of irrational and
symbolic. Caricatures confirm him even
more in that sense, so Dejan Medaković
noticed well that this educated painter is
also the forerunner of surrealists. The example
of Dimitrije Avramović shows how
valuable, rich, not completely interpreted,
even misunderstood, the world of old
Serbian art is.
60 SRBIJA • BROJ 54 • 2016.