This lecture is dedicated to one of the photographic trends that developed worldwide from 1890s to 1930s.

At the end of XIX century photography, due to its relatively short existence in comparison with other visual technologies, lacked its own cultural memory and, therefore, had to develop the concept of photographic art almost from scratch. To fill this cultural vacuum, the easiest way for photographers was to borrow aesthetic principles from traditional visual practices, first of all from painting and graphic arts. In the end of XIX century impressionism and symbolism were such art styles, so pictorialism developed under the influence of those trends in traditional art.

This lecture looks at the development of Russian Pictorialism in the context of global photography, from the first works of A. Mazurin, A. Trapani, and A. Greenberg to the artistic experiments of A. Rodchenko.

The lecture is illustrated with rich visual material and the listeners will be able to see unique works by pictorialist photographers as part of the "Pictorial Photography" exhibition.