The glitter of Parisian evening streets, the full skirts of cabaret dancers, and the legends of Montmartre Hill inspired Sergei Kalinin’s new painting project, Le Moulin ("The Mill"), which includes thirteen large-scale canvases and graphic works.

IV
2012
Oil on canvas
200 × 265 см

The glitter of Parisian evening streets, the full skirts of cabaret dancers, and the legends of Montmartre Hill inspired Sergei Kalinin’s new painting project, Le Moulin ("The Mill"), which includes thirteen large-scale canvases and graphic works.

SeRGEY KALININ

"I first visited Paris (and for me, it was also my first Western city) in 1989, and I was amazed by its culture. The next time I was able to visit there was 10 years later, and it was a shock – how much the perception of people, nations, and, of course, women had changed in such a short time. This made me think about how the concept of beauty is transformed."

Le Moulin is based on the juxtaposition of two types of "sensual spectacles" - retro and modern: Moulin Rouge dancers of the 1950s sit side by side with the showgirls of Crazy Horse. Exploring the phenomena of classical and modern Parisian cabaret, the artist shows how the vibrant individualities of the golden age were replaced by a captivating yet cold, depersonalized beauty.

The cheerful and inwardly free Moulin Rouge dancers were filled with happiness and hope for a brighter future and, despite the poverty that surrounded them, lived by the principle of carpe diem. Meanwhile, the trained and uniformed girls of the Crazy Horse show are arranged in a precise, almost military-like formation and remain difficult to distinguish from one another. Crazy Horse is known to have a very strict selection process for dancers: to join the corps de ballet, candidates must have similar physical characteristics, and it’s rumored that some even undergo plastic surgery.

One of the interesting scenes featured at the exhibition will feature cabaret performers dancing in the vineyards of Montmartre. Since the late 19th century, the hill has hosted a lavish harvest celebration, bringing together local residents in the presence of city hall officials, a school choir, and the main symbol of this part of Paris—the cancan dancers from the Moulin Rouge.