Lydia Aleksandrovna Durnovo ( Russian: Лидия Александровна Дурново; 1885 – 1963) was a Soviet art historian and art restorer. ^[2] She specialized in medieval art, especially in early Russian painting and Armenian illuminated manuscripts ( miniatures) and frescoes. ^[3]

Born in the Russian city of Smolensk, Durnovo first attended a local gymnasium and a painting school before moving to Saint Petersburg where she attended the School of Technical Drawing of Baron Alexander von Stieglitz beginning in 1903. ^[1] She subsequently completed her postgraduate studies at the State Institute of Art History ( Государственный институт истории искусств) and the Archaeology Institute ( ru) between 1920 and 1923. ^[1] Durnovo worked as a research fellow at the Archaeology Institute, specializing in early Russian art. She was also the assistant curator of the Russian Museum. ^[1]

In October 1933 she was arrested for allegedly being an "active member of a counterrevolutionary fascist organization." She was deported to Siberia and eventually freed three years later, in November 1936. ^[4] Durnovo moved to the Armenian capital of Yerevan and became a member of the staff of the National Gallery of Armenia. Until 1951 she was devoted to the study of medieval Armenian frescoes and illuminated manuscripts. ^[1] She specialized in medieval Armenian art, ^[5] and by the mid-1950s Durnovo earned the reputation of an authoritative expert in the field. ^[1] She supervised the restoration of the Etchmiadzin Cathedral's frescoes. ^[2] She was rehabilitated by the Soviet government in 1956. ^[1]

Publications

• Собрание копий памятников древнерусской монументальной живописи Государственного института истории искусств. Л., 1925.
• Техника древнерусской живописи. Русский музей. Художественный отдел. Материалы по технике и методам реставрации древнерусской живописи. Л., 1926.
• Техника древнерусской фрески. Секция пространственных мастеров и научно-показательная часть. Техника стенописи. Гос. академия художественных наук. М., 1927.
• Икона Спаса Нерукотворного (№ 3045. Гос. русский музей). Сб. «Материалы по русскому искусству», т. I. Л., 1928.
• Древнеармянская миниатюра [Old Armenian miniature] (in Russian). Yerevan: Armenian SSR State Publishing. 1952.
  • Miniatures arméniennes (in French). Paris: Les Éditions Cercle d'art. 1960. OCLC  419609788.
  • Armenian miniatures. New York: H.N. Abrams. 1961. OCLC  741860570.
• Краткая история древнеармянской живописи [Brief History of Ancient Armenian Painting] (in Russian). Yerevan: Armenian SSR State Publishing. 1957.

References