Τρίτη 26 Φεβρουαρίου 2013

The song of songs --Stasys Krasauskas





















The well-known and popular works of Lithuanian artist Stasys Krasauskas (1929-1977) have brought forth a number of studies by art critics and inspired commentaries by writers. During his lifetime the artist commented on his own works, yet the secret of their origin and vitality has not been fully disclosed. Krasauskas's artistic ideas have spread throughout various art contexts, they have been re-created in poetry, music, dance, stage-design, painting and sculpture.

The illustrations for the biblical "The Song of Songs" portraying the pure beauty of young figures, intertwined in graceful poses, is a hymn to earthly love. Krasauskas, one of the first Lithuanian graphic artists to begin illustrating world classics, had a perfect sense of interpretation. The elevated and serene spirit of the masterful oriental poetry is revealed quite effectively by the rhythm of flat figures resembling archaic figures cut onto stone slabs. The illustrations evoke associations with the frescoes of ancient Egypt. The motifs of nature are both symbolic and decorative. The metaphorical images of the sun, wings, flowing water, a twig of vine, symbolize love's warmth and tenderness, its vitality and upsurge. Full of serenity, the cycle is composed like a variation of a musical theme, each separate print ever disclosing new sides of the same motif.