Osmolovsky “Bread”, 2010, wood

“Bread” (Хлеба) is a wooden relief by Anatoly Osmolovsky (b. 1969), dated 2010 and measuring 50 × 35 × 5 cm. It belongs to the “Bread” series, which the artist began in 2007: the random pattern of a bread crumb is turned into a mirror-symmetrical design and carried over into wood. The object is held in the collection of Don Auction House in Rostov-on-Don.

Formally the piece is simple: a flat board reproducing the texture of a slice of black bread – the pores and cavities of the crumb. Yet the accidental pattern is mirrored onto itself, so that every pore acquires an exact counterpart and what happened by chance in the oven reads as a deliberate ornament. Reliefs in the series are milled in wood from a three-dimensional scan of a slice of bread. By the artist’s own account it took about two years to solve the technical problem of reproducing the texture without losing its credibility, and the work on the series coincided with the appearance of CNC (computer numerical control) machines in the civilian sector in Russia.

The dark surface and the panel format bring works of the series close to an icon board, and when several reliefs of the same order are hung together they form something like an iconostasis on the wall. Osmolovsky links the series to an interest in early Russian icon painting that took hold of him in the mid-2000s, and describes that interest as purely aesthetic. Hence several equally valid readings of a single object – from eucharistic bread to a Rorschach blot and the non-objective painting of the Russian avant-garde. The series leaves interpretation open, and individual works are exhibited and sold on their own.

The series began in 2007. A bread iconostasis was shown that same year at the exhibition “I Believe!”, curated by Oleg Kulik within the programme of the 2nd Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art at Winzavod; in 2007 Osmolovsky also took part in Documenta 12 in Kassel and received the Kandinsky Prize in the “Artist of the Year” category. A work from the “Bread” series is in the collection of the Moscow Museum of Modern Art. Anatoly Feliksovich Osmolovsky was born on 1 July 1969 in Moscow. In 1989 he co-founded the group E.T.I. (Expropriation of the Territory of Art), whose action of 18 April 1991 on Red Square, where the participants spelled out an obscene word with their bodies, is usually taken as the starting point of Moscow street actionism. Through the 1990s he worked with actions and performance; in the 2000s he moved to the object and to sculpture, which produced the series “Bread” and “Worship”. He took part in the Venice Biennale in 1993, 2003 and 2013, and in 2011 founded the BAZA Institute.

At Don Auction House contemporary art sits alongside twentieth-century Russian painting and sculpture: see the sections Contemporary art, Sculpture and Russian painting, the full listing in the catalogue and the list of names under Artists. Works in this selection: 630 works. Estimate range: from 380 to 7 000 000 ₽; from 4 000 to 100 000 $ (some works are priced in US dollars). Sales are held online on the BidSpirit platform; the schedule is under Auctions, and the terms of participation and payment are set out on Buy a painting. If you own a work by Osmolovsky or another contemporary artist and are considering a sale, see Sell a painting. Viewing can be arranged in advance.

Questions and answers

What exactly is depicted in “Bread”?

A slice of black bread: the pores and cavities of the crumb are carried over into wood and mirrored, so that the accidental structure of the baking reads as a symmetrical ornament. There is no image in the usual sense – this is a relief that reproduces a texture.

What is the work made of and how large is it?

Wood; a relief measuring 50 × 35 × 5 cm, dated 2010. In this series the surface is milled from a three-dimensional scan of a slice of bread, which is why it follows the porous structure of the crumb.

Why is the “Bread” series compared to an iconostasis?

The dark surface and the panel format refer to the icon, and when a group of such reliefs is hung together the row reads as an iconostasis. The artist connects the series with his interest in early Russian icon painting, while an individual work is self-sufficient and can be shown on its own.

Who is Anatoly Osmolovsky?

An artist, theorist and curator, born on 1 July 1969 in Moscow. A co-founder of the group E.T.I. (1989) and a figure of Moscow actionism in the 1990s; since the 2000s he has worked with the object and with sculpture. He took part in Documenta 12 (2007) and in the Venice Biennale (1993, 2003, 2013), received the Kandinsky Prize in 2007 as Artist of the Year, and founded the BAZA Institute in 2011.

How can I buy a work by Osmolovsky at Don Auction House?

Works are offered in online sales on the BidSpirit platform: the schedule is published under “Auctions”, and registration, payment and handover are described on the “Buy a painting” page. The work can be viewed by prior arrangement.

Anatoly Osmolovsky, “Bread” – a wooden relief of 2010

Questions and answers