New Homages and Epistolas by Andrew Levitsky

Author

Lamonova Oksana

a Ph.D. in Art Studies, a senior research fellow at the Fine, Decorative and Applied Arts Department of M. Rylskyi Institute of Art Studies, Folkloristics and Ethnology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine).

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6937-421X

New Homages and Epistolas by Andrew Levitsky

Abstract

Levitsky is a well-known contemporary Ukrainian graphic artist, master of intaglio (gravure printing), participant and laureate of international exhibitions and projects. The artist is a regular participant in the “Homage à trois” (“Tribute to the Three”) project taking place in Barcelona, Spain, on the initiative of the International Association of the Graphic Artists Duana de les Arts – AIDA – since 2021. The project is aimed at honouring writers celebrating anniversaries. The participants are asked to create works dedicated to them and their heritage. AIDA has chosen Honoré de Balzac (1799–1850), Gertrude Stein (1874–1946) and Joan Salvat-Papasseit (1894–1924) in 2024. Andrew Levitsky has dedicated two intaglio prints to Balzac. The homage «Balzac and Ukraine. Evelina Hanska» recalls the French writer’s love story and, at the same time, his two trips to Ukraine (1847–1848, 1849–1850). The homage «The House with the Cat Playing Ball» (named after Balzac’s early novel) presents a generalized, somewhat ironic image of Paris. The intaglio dedicated to Gertrude Stein is titled «Picassomania» and recalls the American writer’s friendship with famous artists, including Pablo Picasso. The images from a poem by the Catalan poet who died young are depicted in the homage to Joan Salvat-Papasseit «A Rose on the Lips». This intaglio has received the first prize in the «Joan Salvat-Papasseit» category. In 2025, Jane Austen (1775–1817), Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) and Thomas Mann (1875–1955) have been selected by AIDA. The homage to Jane Austen is entitled «Old Friends. Persuasion» and alludes to the English writer’s last novel; at the heart of this intaglio is Andrew Levitsky’s favourite image of a tree, which he considers to be the most perfect creation of living nature. The work has received the third prize in the Jane Austen category. The second intaglio is dedicated to the English writer, «Flute for Elizabeth», somewhat ironically refers to her most famous novel “Pride and Prejudice”. Two homages to Andersen feature characters from his famous fairy tales «The Ugly Duckling» and «The Steadfast Tin Soldier» also appear. Four works are dedicated to Thomas Mann and his heritage: “The Magic Mountain”, “The Sword of God”, “Death in Venice”, and “The Decline of a Family”. The first two resemble Andrew Levitsky’s «panoramas» in style – intaglio in the form of friezes or scrolls, on which natural and fantastic images coexist harmoniously. The artist conveys symbolically the main idea of the novel «Buddenbrooks. The Decline of a Family» in the third intaglio. The homage “Death in Venice” is very expressive and elegant. Andrew Levitsky recalls Thomas Mann’s novella as well as its famous film adaptation by director Luchino Visconti (1971). The artist’s works in the genre of author’s postcards (Epistola), created between 2022 and 2024, are also analyzed in the article.

Keywords

Andrew Levitsky, Ukrainian graphic art of the 2020s, the project «Homage à trois» (“Tribute to Three”) (Barcelona, Spain), intaglio, homage (honour), author’s postcard (Epistola).

References

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