Free Copy

A photocopy shows a picturesque profile of a woman (head and part of the neck), probably part of a larger composition (in the background, there are cut-out images of leaves, flowers, and fruit). The peculiarities of the tonal reproduction in this print do not allow us to assert its authenticity, as well as the differences in other prints of the image (in the archive of Antonina Ivanova, there is another photograph of the same work, made in polychrome, where the fragment is even more cut off). The specificity of the interpretation of the image of a woman makes it possible to assert that the artist combined inspirations from the visual practices of ancient Egyptian murals, frescoes and easel paintings of the Italian Quattrocento, in particular the works of Piero della Francesca (for example, the head of the Queen of Sheba from a fresco of 1452–1466). Decorative ribbons to support hairstyles and hair styling typical of sporting activities are also a combination of historical images. The Ukrainian-language caption on a similar photograph, but in colour, gives the conditional title "Free copy" and the address "Moscow, 32 Kirova Street, flat 2" (this is the basis for identifying this city as the place where the photo was taken, and also allows us to assert that Antonina Ivanova's freedom of movement was restricted in the post-war period due to her illness).

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery