Still Life of Fruit and Fowers

Nicolai Cikovsky
Am. 1894-1984

Still Life of Fruit and Fowers

oil on canvas
30 x 26 inches
framed: 36 x 32 1/2 inches
signed and dated 1948

Provenance:
David Golding, New York City
Private collection, Morristown, New Jersey


Nicolai Cikovsky's educational journey unfolded in Russia during a tumultuous era marked by profound cultural, political, and social changes. His early artistic training took place in Russia at the Vilna Art School, Penza Royal Art School, and Vkhutemas Higher Art and Technical Studies. Departing from Russia in 1923, a period following the conclusion of the Civil War (1917–1922), Cikovsky embarked on a remarkable reinvention of his career in the vibrant city of New York.

Employing a semi-Cubist style, he showcased his art at the Charles Daniel Gallery, later expanding his presence to include exhibitions at the Downtown Gallery and the Whitney Museum of American Art in the early 1930s. Cikovsky's artistic focus primarily revolved around the depiction of figures and landscapes. In 1942, he initiated a tradition of spending his summers in North Sea on Long Island's East End, eventually establishing a permanent residence there by the early 1970s. Cikovsky actively participated in the Hampton Bays Art Group, an informal collective of artists who frequently exhibited together in the region, alongside notable figures such as Burliuk, the Soyers, Milton Avery, George Constant, Arshile Gorky, and others.

Furthermore, Cikovsky was a valued member of prominent New York City institutions, including the National Academy of Design, where he held the titles of Associate (1968) and Academician (1970). He was also affiliated with the National Institute of Arts and Letters and the Society of Painters, Sculptors, and Engravers.

Nicolai Cikovsky's work may be found in the following collections:

Whitney Museum of American Art, New York
Museum of Modern Art, New York
Brooklyn Museum, New York
Art Institute of Chicago
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
St. Louis Art Museum, Missouri
Los Angeles Museum
Worcester Museum of Art
University of Arizona, Tucson
Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.
Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, D.C.
Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C.
W. R. Nelson Gallery, Kansas City
Milwaukee Art Institute
Phillips Memorial Gallery, Washington, D.C.
University of Minnesota


Some of the artist's exhibitions include:

Museum of Modern Art, New York
Whitney Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1932-1949
National Academy of Design, New York, 1947-1949; Purchase Prizes: 1959, 1960, 1964, and Isaac N. Maynard Prize in 1964
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 1932-1955, 1966
Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh
New York World's Fair, 1940
Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois, 1931 (medal), 1932 (Harris Bronze Medal and Logan Purchase Prize), 1933 (prize), 1960-1961
Downtown Gallery, New York, 1933, 1938
Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C., 1930-1957, also solo
Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio
Worcester Museum of Art, Massachusetts, 1933 (first prize)
Society of Washington Artists, 1937-1939 (medals), 1940-1941
Newark Museum of Art, New Jersey
Glasgow Museum, Scotland
Salons of America
Whyte Gallery, Washington, D. C., 1939, solo
Associated American Artists, New York, 1944, 1946, 1949, 1952, 1956
Studio Gallery, solo
Washington D. C. Public Library, solo
IFA Gallery, solo


The artist's extensive teaching experience includes:

Ekaterinenburg Higher Tech Art Institute, Russia, 1919-1921
St. Paul School of Art, 1934-1935
Cincinnati Art Academy, 1935-1936
Art Institute of Chicago, 1937
Art Students League of New York
College of Notre Dame, Maryland
Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C.