 | ||||||
  "PUSHKINIANA" OF LYFAR "While reading and rereading Pushkin I understood that it was easier to live with Pushkin and my love to him began transforming into his worship". Serge Lyfar "In 1930s there began fruitful literary, publishing and social activity of Serge Lyfar. Consequently there appeared books by A.S. Pushkin and about A.S.Pushkin published by him: A.S.Pushkin "The journey to Arsrum" (1934, two editions with the preface by S.M.Lifar), "The letters of Pushkin to N.N.Goncharova"(1936, preface of S.M.Lyfar), A.S.Pushkin "Evgeniy Onegin", anniversary edition (1937, foreword by C.M.Lifar), M.L.Gofman "Fiancee and wife of Pushkin" (1935), Directory to Pushkin's centenary in French " Centenaire de Pouchkine. 1837 - 1937. Exposition" (1937, preface by S.M.Lyfar), S.Lyfar "My Foreign Pushkiniana" (1966). As we can see in 1930s S.Lyfar showed the largest interest to A.S.Pushkin's life and creative work , to the search and collection of Pushkin relics. It looked as if in this way he continued traditions of collecting books, which during the last years of his life seized his spiritual teacher S.P.Diagilev as well. S.Lyfar supported and developed the generous traditions of collecting and popularizing native relics not only in 1930s, but during the rest of his life. As for the collection of original Pushkin's materials and relics two factors shoud be taken into consideration. First, Lyfar's great personal love to Pushkin. He declared: "Pushkin was and will remain my joy, rayt of sun in my life forever". The second essential circumstance stimulated Lyfar's activity in searching and popularizing Pushkin's materials and relics was centenary of the poet's death. It was widely celebrated in Paris, France where on 16 March of 1937 in the grand foyer of Playel Hall the exhibition "Pushkin and His Epoch" was opened. Considerable part of the exposition was taken by the relics from Lyfar collection. Almost everywhere the personal role of Lyfar was noted not only for the part of disposal of exhibits but for the direct arranging of the exhibition. S.Lyfar merits in the arranging the exhibition were underlined by the founded in Paris special Pushkin Committee which consisted of some famous representatives of Russian culture ( I.Bunin, M.Fedorov, M.Gofman and others.). Lyfar was presented with a special memorandum and Gold anniversary medal. In 1958 in his brochure "The influence of Russian culture on the World one" Lyfar wrote about the fate of his collection:" My printed and manuscript collection comprises many valuable documents connected with Pushkin and his creative work. I told myself long ago that I have a moral right to possess these documents only temporarily and in essence they belong to Russian and Russian people". Before his tour to Moscow , on April, 9 1958 Lyfar sent the telegram to the Minster of culture of the USSR N.Mykhailov he already knew and informed him: "On the day of my arrival to Moscow I would be happy to hand over some precious articles belonging to the Russian culture and in particular those referring to Pushkin". Among them as he later wrote there were:"1)The manuscript of two stanzas of the 6th chapter of "Eugeniy Onegin" ; 2) Pushkin's passport, which was issued while exiling the poet to the South of Russia; 3) Pushkin's seal; 4)Portrait of Pushkin by Tropinin". Besides S.M. Lyfar still kept 10 Pushkin's letters to N.N.Goncharova which came to him from Diagilev. The latter acquired them from the grand duke Mykhail Makhailovych, the husband of Pushkin's granddaughter S.N.Torbi, passed in 1927" (Shleev). "In 1935 on the eve of the centenary of the poet's death, S.Lyfar and literary critic M.Gofman made a facsimile edition of the letters, covering them with detailed comments (Гофман М., Лифарь С. Письма Пушкина к Н.Н. Гончаровой. Юбилейное издание.Париж,1935.) (Gofman M., Lyfar S. Pushlin's Letters to N.N.Goncharova. Jubilee edition. Paris, 1935) S.Lyfar sincerely wished to present the original letters by Pushkin to Russia but under the condition that he would be given the possibility to conduct the ballet "Fedra" by J.Oric in Bolshoy theatre in Moscow. Soviet bureaucrats of culture not only rejected the propositiont but also refused to give entering visa to Lyfar though it could be expected. Pushkin's letters were left at Lyfar. The will (Lyfar died on December, 15, 1986) was made on behalf of his wife, Swedish countess Lilian Allenfeldt. She started talks with the Miunistry of Culture of the USSR, proposing to buy Pushkin's relics. The necessary means were found. The solemn assignation of Pushkin's letters to the Ministry of culture of the USSR took place on December, 31, 1989. In addition those L.Allefeldt sold two more letters by the poet (One original, the other in the list) which had been kept in the collection of S.Lyfar. The letters came to the Pushkin House, where S.Lyfar must have meant them to be kept. (Varunts V. S.P. Diagilev: Memoirs never written // Musical Academy. 2001. #2, p. 125.)
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
Literature on Serge Lyfar
