Bem (Endaurova) Merkuryevna Elizabeth (1843-1914)

Elizabeth Boehm Merkuryevna (nee - Endaurova, 24.02.1843, St. Petersburg - 1914, ibid), Russian risovalschitsa, silhouettist, came from an old family. Her ancestors, Tatars, were Indigirka name which meant - "Indian rooster." Diploma, bestowed old Ivan III, name was changed to Endaurova.
Elizabeth Boehm was born in the capital, but spent her childhood on the family estate Endaurova in Yaroslavl province. There, on the nature of the artist's parents moved to live when she was six years old. The brightest childhood memories of Elizabeth Merkuryevna were associated with rural life.

Like many artists of the future, she liked to draw since childhood: "The love of drawing, I had a very early age, otherwise I myself do not remember which draws on all the pieces of paper that get my hands on. In letters to her friends, St. Petersburg I am constantly invested their risunochki dolls and animals, and that it was this that drew the attention of several people who understand that I should give serious attention to painting, "Life in Russia in the second half of the XIX century was not particularly disposed to the fact that the woman was engaged something else other than home, family and children, but the parents of Elizabeth Merkuryevna people were progressive and listened to the views of "understanding." From 14 years old girl engaged vShkole promote artists (1857-1864), from which she graduated with honors. She studied at I.Kramskoy, P.Chistyakova, A.Beydmana.

In 1867, she married Ludwig Frantsevich Boehm, Russianised Hungarian, a talented violinist, teacher, and later professor of the St. Petersburg Conservatory.
marriage was a happy one, couple had several children.

How silhouettist Elizabeth Merkuryevna has been actively working since 1875, when he took over, "the publication of his first book of silhouettes, litografiruya their own and in the stone." It seems to be a lady rather unbecoming produce silhouettes easy and familiar way - by cutting out from a black or colored paper. But the artist has chosen his path, so as soon as possible lithography, drawing on the stone, allowed her not only to immediately publish their books in small editions, but do pursue all subtle details that would not be possible when cutting with scissors. She carefully maps out the feathers of birds and curls on the head of a village girl, dog hair and lace dresses for dolls - the fine details do graphics Elizabeth Boehm unusually thin, spiritual, alive, for it can be understood that the reticence that remained hidden from the viewer inside her silhouettes. In 1877, the artist has made one of the most famous of his books - "Silhouettes of children's lives." On large sheets of green color in it as if scattered white cards with a silhouette image of kids. The color combination is exquisite, both in the room, which houses a collection of porcelain, as a snow-white dishes with often placed on a similar greenish-brown building fone.Samo book simulates a calm and quiet world of the family album that highlights the gray-scale, detailed images of plants and flowers, as if forgotten someone between the pages, the shadows of cards ... Figure captions a bit snobbish, for example, a picture in which two children playing a musical instrument, signed by the "future great musicians," the girls in the spirit of the time, called "The Future of mummies" and so on .

In 1878, Elizabeth Merkuryevna completed the illustrations for fables of Krylov. Human figures in this book, as usual, are conventionally painted in space, made even somehow superficially compared with silhouettes. "Black silhouettes out she is much more effective than the background, Wednesday. It even seems a little student next to her silhouettes that are always masterfully executed "- wrote about the work of Boehm V.I.Glotser.

In 1880, she created another book, which added to her fame - "Pie". On colored paper are placed white circles, which develops the story of little girls who made the cake and to the joy of a dog to drop it. The rhythm of the narrative is set static circles, whose position does not change from page to page, but every time there is a new scene played out. "Pie" was very well received by contemporaries of the artist and his gladly considered not only children but also adults.

Illustrations for the next book - "From the village of memories" (1882) - Elizabeth Merkuryevna decided not to limit the tonal framework. Silhouettes in it freely arranged on white sheets: kids pick vegetables in the garden, somewhere to go among herbs, sitting on a cart with hay ... - all these delicate silhouettes expressive and alive. There is a picture in a book, on which the artist has drawn among the guys themselves, because every summer, she continued to come to his family estate in the Yaroslavl province or to the estate under Tosno Balashev. Every time before going back to Elizabeth Merkuryevna buying armfuls village scarves, toys and tapes for peasant women and their children. The children loved her and called her mistress' Bemiha. "
In the same 1882 she illustrated the Russian folk tale "The Turnip."