History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

Aristide Maillol and Dina Vierny, his favorite model. History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

Dina Vierny was called “the history of twentieth-century art in one woman”. And so it was. Her fate – a novel with so rich exciting events and incredible encounters that her biography seems unbelievable, unthinkable. Dina Vierny belongs to the category of outstanding people. Dina Vierny was born on January 25, 1919 in Kishinev, Bessarabia (now Moldova) into a Jewish family. Her father, Jacob Aybinder (December 9, 1889, Kishinev, Bessarabia – December 12, 1943, the concentration camp in Auschwitz, Poland) was a pianist, her mother – a musician. In 1925, the family left Romania for Paris, where her father got a silent film accompanist sessions. There, when she was 15, a friend of her father, architect Jean-Claude Dondel introduced her to the famous sculptor, aged 73, Aristide Maillol, and Dina Vierny became his favorite model. She was Maillol’s muse for the last ten years of his life. Aristide Maillol saw in her the embodiment of his ideas about the woman, or the “eternal feminine”.

Dina Vierny

He sculpted her in a variety of nude in bronze, marble and other materials. Vierny posed for Matisse, Bonnard and Dufy, mainly during the holidays from classes at the University of Paris.

Aristide Maillol saw in her the embodiment of his ideas about the woman, or the “eternal feminine”

Dina Vierny was familiar with Breton, Duchamp, S. Polyakov, S. Sharshunov, appeared in films with Jean-Louis Barrault and Bernard Blier. She performed in pop group “October”, directed by Jacques Prevert. In 1938, she married the novice filmmaker Sasha Verni.

Dina Vierny. This beautiful, low-haired woman, endlessly energetic, never seemed tired and did not sleep, she was constantly having somebody to help

During the Second World War Dina Vierny participated in the resistance movement – first in Paris, then in Banyule – the estate Mayol, who hid her during the occupation. Verney carried out transportation of refugees across the Pyrenees into Spain, in collaboration with the Marseilles underground group of the American journalist Varian Fry, was arrested by French police and released on the intervention of Maillol, who referred her to Nice to Henri Matisse.

History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

However, Vierny soon went underground to Paris, where in 1943, was arrested again, this time by the Gestapo, and was released after six months in prison, when Maillol appealed to Arno Breker, Hitler’s favorite sculptor.

History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

September 27, 1944 Maillol died in a car crash, his fortune and all his collection he bequeathed to Dina Vierny. She became the owner of a gallery in Paris, one of the most successful. In 1995 opened the Museum of Maillol – “Fund Dina Vierny” (Rue de Grenelle, 61, the same District VI). In addition to works by Maillol there is the permanent collection of “naive artists” and Soviet nonconformists, exceptionally high level exhibitions. 18 sculptures by Maillol she donated to the French government on the condition of their placement in the gardens of the Tuileries (later she gave two more sculptures).

Dina Vierny, 1972

Dina Vierny knew Renoir and Van Dongen. She was a friend of Picasso and Dufy. She also met other artists such as Vuillard, Duchamp-Villon, Saint Exupery, Antonin Arthaud, Jean Pougny and all those she displayed in her Gallery.

History of twentieth-century art in Dina Vierny

Dina Vierny – co-author of numerous albums and catalogs of contemporary artists, including Francoise Gilot, Serge Polyakov, Erik Bulatov, Andre Beauchamp, Jules Paskina and Aristide Maillol. Image of Dina Vierny is in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 1973 edition in the article “Mayol” was assigned by her. Olga Sviblova shot a documentary about her in 1995.

Singer Dina Vierny

Dina Vierny is also known as a performer of criminals and camp songs in Russian (the album “Chanson” was first published in 1975 and reissued on CD-ROM. The record included “Madame Banja”, which was “a miracle is good,” and “Hold on, the engine,” and Hughes Aleshkovskii famous songs – “Okurochek”, “lesbian wedding” “Comrade Stalin, you – a great scientist.” These songs will be heard later in the USSR.

Russian Chanson by Dina Vierny, album cover

Fascinated by Russian Chanson, Dina wanted to sing it. As a professional in the field of art, she understood that all should be done professionally. And even in a very advanced age, she went to Paris for vocal classes.

May be blessed memory of her

Dina Vierny had two children from her marriage to the sculptor, winner of the Prix de Rome (1950) Jean Lorquin (1924—1999): Bertrand Lorquin, born 1957 – art critic, author and co-author (with his mother) directories of Maillol and other artists; Olivier Lorquin, b. 1949 – writer, director of Vierny fund.

Dina Vierny

After a visit to the Soviet Union in 1959, Dina Vierny began collecting art works by the informal Soviet artists. The gallery exhibitions of Vierny include I. Kabakov, E. Bulatov, V. Yankylevsky, Shemyakin, L.Masterkova.

Dina Vierny died in Paris, with couple of days left before her 90th birthday, on January 20, 2009.

Vierny’s collection

Dina Vierny is also known as a collector of antique dolls. She had an extensive collection of dolls and accessories, doll houses, rooms, carriages and wagons, as well as rare dolls made in France and Germany at the end of XIX – early XX century. Her collection of over than 20.000 objects is recognized as one of the best in the world primarily for their artistic level. In 1995, part of her collection was sold at Sotheby’s.

Dina Vierny’s collection of dolls

Her collection is full of wisdom and love. “ I have been collecting since the age of fourteen. My love and my understanding of all objects come from the surrealists. They opened my eyes on many things. It is the understanding of dreams and I have become a talented dreamer. So it is evident I would get on so well with the surrealists. I am interested and attracted to unusual objects. The strange object which is out of the ordinary, and which cannot be used for anything, is for me”.

Dina Vierny’s collection of dolls

“I also have beautiful objects that are useful. For me, objects are characters; I consider them like human beings” she used to say. At 14 it started with antiques, then carriages, autographs and even stain glass windows, but the which haunted Dina Vierny. “There is no single object that has not been reproduce in miniature for dolls» said Dina Vierny.”

Dina Vierny’s collection of dolls

Among the curiosities of the collection of Dina Vierny, there are many figurines in bronze and lead, painted items in Vienna in the late nineteenth century. Animals, cats, dogs and birds are obviously very present.