Artwork
The model. Standing figure.
The model. Standing figure. is an oil painting by the Cubism Synthetic artist Lyubov Popova. It dates from 1913 and is held in the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery.
About this work
The painting is titled "The model" and it's a standing figure. It's from 1913 and made with oil paint. The artist, Lyubov Popova, created this work, and that's a fact we can start with.
You can find this painting at the Tretyakov Gallery, which is where it's held. To learn more about the style and methods used in this painting, look into the technique of glazing.
Overview
It remains part of the permanent collection at the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, where it is preserved as an example of pre-revolutionary artistic inquiry.
Lyubov Popova created The Model. Standing Figure in 1913 as an oil painting during her early engagement with avant-garde experimentation. The work reflects her transition from figurative study toward abstract composition, aligning with broader trends in Russian modernism.
It remains part of the permanent collection at the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, where it is preserved as an example of pre-revolutionary artistic inquiry.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts a standing female figure, rendered not as a realistic portrait but as a structural arrangement of planes and tones. The title suggests a conventional artistic subject, the model, but Popova subverts expectation by dissolving anatomical detail into geometric fragments. The figure becomes a vehicle for exploring form rather than a narrative presence, signaling a shift from representation to abstraction.
Technique & Style
Popova employed oil paint to build layered surfaces with controlled brushwork, using glazing to modulate color and depth. Her approach draws from Synthetic Cubism, incorporating flattened forms and intersecting planes to suggest volume without illusionistic perspective. The palette is restrained, emphasizing tonal contrasts over chromatic variety, reinforcing the painting’s structural rigor.
History & Provenance
Painted in 1913, the work emerged during Popova’s formative years in Moscow, before her full embrace of Constructivism. It entered the Tretyakov Gallery’s collection in the early Soviet period, likely through state acquisition of avant-garde works deemed culturally significant. Its preservation reflects institutional recognition of early 20th-century Russian modernism despite later ideological shifts.
Context
In 1913, Russian artists were rapidly redefining art’s purpose amid political and cultural upheaval. Popova’s work responded to European movements like Cubism and Futurism while seeking a distinctly Russian visual language. The Model.
Standing Figure occupies a pivotal moment, between figuration and abstraction, where the human form was being reimagined as a compositional element rather than a subject of empathy.
Legacy
Though Popova later abandoned figurative work for pure abstraction and design, this painting remains a key document of her artistic evolution. It illustrates how early Russian modernists engaged with international styles while developing unique formal solutions. The work continues to inform scholarly understanding of the transition from Cubist experimentation to Constructivist ideology in Soviet art.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Lyubov Sergeyevna Popova (Russian: Любо́вь Серге́евна Попо́ва; 24 April 1889 – 25 May 1924) was a Russian-Soviet avant-garde artist, painter and designer.
