Andre Lanskoy (Russian/French 1902-1976)

Andre Lanskoy was known for his many abstract works including painting, prints and collages,  He did illustrations for The Diary of a Madman, a novel by Nikolai Gogol, but began his career with figurative paintings and still life.  

Lanskoy was born in Moscow on March 31, 1902.  His family moved to St. Petersburg in 1905 and then to Kiev in 1918.  He fought in the Tsarist White Army during the Russian Civil War until he was injured.  In 1921 he moved to Paris where he studied painting at the Academie de La Grande Chaumiere.

Lanskoys' success began when Wilhelm Unde took interest of his works at the Salon d' Automne in 1923/1924.  In 1925, he held his first solo exhibition in Paris followed by a group exhibition with fellow Russian artist Robert and Sonia Delaunay, Leopold Survage, and Ossip Zadkine.  Those early works were inspired by Van Gogh, Matisse and Soutine. 

By 1937 Lanskoy had given up figurative painting and began fully painting abstracts.  During this time he became friends with Nicolas de Stael and the two held an exhibition in 1948.  He subsequently exhibited at the New York Fine Arts Associates, documenta II and the Les Peintres Russes de l'ecole de Paris at the museum of Saint Denis. 

Andre Lanskoy died in Paris on August 22, 1976.