Christian Values and the Problem of Self-Presentation by Sergei Parajanov: “A Saint in Prison”

Keywords: Sergei Parajanov, artistic creativity, drawing, collage, prison narrative, symbolic image, semiotics of a quasi-icon, quasi-saint, archetypal oppositions, self-presentation

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of drawings and collages by Sergei Parajanov, made by him during his second prison term (December 17, 1973 – December 30, 1977). It is shown how Parajanov reveals his difficult experiences through the visualization of Christian images and values. Based on the analysis of empirical material, the author semiotically reconstructs Parajanov’s emotional world. The article traces how Parajanov’s instincts and ethical values ​​as a person gave rise to his archetypal visual texts based on the oppositions ‘thief vs. saint’, ‘top vs. bottom’, ‘right vs. left’, etc. The study of visual material is carried out in the context of Sergei Parajanov’s prison letters; accordingly, his works of art are interpreted in the context of verbal discourse. This approach allows us to see Parajanov’s work in the aspect of a combination of fiction and reality. The article substantiates the thesis that the prisoner Parajanov purposefully expressed his emotional states through archetypal (Christian) narratives, oppositions, symbols. During his stay ‘on the zone’ the artist created many ‘compressed’ visual texts ‒ drawings, collages, the main narrative of which is a ‘saint’ in prison in different visual mise-en-scenes.

Author Biography

T. S. Simyan, Yerevan State University

DOI: https://doi.org/10.34680/vistheo-2024-6-2-382-397

Tigran Simyan
Yerevan State University, Yerevan, Armenia
tsimyan@ysu.am
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9534-3505

Abstract
The article is devoted to the analysis of drawings and collages by Sergei Parajanov, made by him during his second prison term (December 17, 1973 – December 30, 1977). It is shown how Parajanov reveals his difficult experiences through the visualization of Christian images and values. Based on the analysis of empirical material, the author semiotically reconstructs Parajanov’s emotional world. The article traces how Parajanov’s instincts and ethical values ​​as a person gave rise to his archetypal visual texts based on the oppositions ‘thief vs. saint’, ‘top vs. bottom’, ‘right vs. left’, etc. The study of visual material is carried out in the context of Sergei Parajanov’s prison letters; accordingly, his works of art are interpreted in the context of verbal discourse. This approach allows us to see Parajanov’s work in the aspect of a combination of fiction and reality. The article substantiates the thesis that the prisoner Parajanov purposefully expressed his emotional states through archetypal (Christian) narratives, oppositions, symbols. During his stay ‘on the zone’ the artist created many ‘compressed’ visual texts ‒ drawings, collages, the main narrative of which is a ‘saint’ in prison in different visual mise-en-scenes.

Keywords: Sergei Parajanov, artistic creativity, drawing, collage, prison narrative, symbolic image, semiotics of a quasi-icon, quasi-saint, archetypal oppositions, self-presentation

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About author

Tigran S. Simyan
Dr. Sci. (Philology),
Professor of Foreign Literature Department.
Yerevan State University
1, Alex Manoogian St., Yerevan, 0025, Armenia
E-mail: tsimyan@ysu.am

For citation:
Simyan T. S. Christian values and the problem of self-presentation by Sergei Parajanov: “a Saint in prison”. Journal of Visual Theology. 2024. Vol. 6. 2. Pp. 382–397. https://doi.org/10.34680/vistheo-2024-6-2-382-397

Published
2024-11-20
Issue
Vol 6 No 2 (2024): Journal of Visual Theology
Section
Articles
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