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Portrait of Pavle Beljanski

Zora Petrović1943

The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection

The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection
Novi Sad, Serbia

The friendship of Zora Petrović and Pavle Beljanski was the most valuable in her life. They shared a passion for art and patriotism, characteristic of the generation of people who came to Serbia between the two world wars from the regions which were formerly under the rule of large empires, people who were conscious of their role in the development of their national culture. Sincere and honest, Zora Petrović was a reliable advisor in the selection of paintings for Pavle Beljanski’s collection, and he gave her some undoubtedly valuable support in her work. Zora Petrović’s painting and her understanding of art were completely compatible with the image Pavle Beljanski had about the specific national visual expression, for which spontaneity, emotionality, colour scheme, a wealth of subject matter and directness of execution were central. Pavle Beljanski had probably initiated the idea of a cycle entitled “The Lament of Kosovo” in which Zora Petrović was supposed to achieve a synthesis of form and colour, complete her work and add to it a new, historical and philosophical dimension. Out of the friendship between Zora Petrović and Pavle Beljanski, whom she met almost on a daily basis when he was in Belgrade, came several faithful portraits of Beljanski, wearing a suit and tie and a handkerchief in his pocket while sitting in an armchair in her studio. These portraits, a unique diary of a friendship, have a characteristic thin layer of paint and blurred colours, signaling a kind of caution or desire of the artist to oblige a sensitive friend, or at least not to disappoint him.

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  • Title: Portrait of Pavle Beljanski
  • Creator: Zora Petrović
  • Creator Lifespan: 1894 - 1962
  • Creator Gender: Female
  • Creator Death Place: Belgrade
  • Creator Birth Place: Dobrica, Banat
  • Date Created: 1943
  • Signatures, Inscriptions and Markings: signed in the bottom left corner: З. П.
  • Provenance: The painting was among 185 artworks Pavle Beljanski donated to the nation in 1957.
  • Physical Dimensions: w82.7 x h104.5 cm
  • Exhibition History: since 1965 - the permanent exhibition of The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection, Novi Sad; 2005 - the exhibition Pavle Beljanski: Diplomacy and Art
  • Type: Oil on Canvas
  • Rights: The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection, The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection
  • External Link: http://www.pavle-beljanski.museum/en/artwork.php?artwork=120
  • Medium: Oil on Canvas
The Pavle Beljanski Memorial Collection

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