James P. and Marilyn M. Scanlan Collection of Russian Art
SPEC.HRL.0008
Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections
0.67 Cubic feet
1821-2017
James P. Scanlan was the director of the Center for Slavic and East European Studies at Ohio State University from 1988-1991. He and his wife, Marilyn M. Scanlan, collected Russian art during their travels and studies in the Soviet Union and Russian Federation. The James P. and Marilyn M. Scanlan Collection of Russian Art contains works by Russian artists and works that depict historical Russian figures, geography, landscapes, peasant life, and religious and cultural iconography. The collection represents a variety of artistic styles and mediums, primarily from 19th and 20th century artists. Some of the works are original pieces, but the majority are reproductions and prints. The pieces were created between 1821-2017, and most of them were acquired by the Scanlans between 1965-1982, while living and traveling abroad.
(1) flat box; (1) oversize flat box; (1) 2.5" letter document box
The majority of works have no linguistic content. The presence of incidental Russian, French, and English is noted at the item level.
Scanlan, James P. (James Patrick), 1927-2016
Scanlan, Marilyn M.
Arrangement of Materials
The James P. and Marilyn M. Scanlan Collection of Russian Art is arranged alphabetically by the artist's last name. Works by the same artist are further arranged alphabetically by either the given title or an English translation of the given title, as indicated by quotation marks, or a description of the work or name of the individual depicted when a title is not present. Works by the same artist with the same description are arranged chronologically by the date of creation. Works by unidentified artists are arranged alphabetically by the title or description of the work at the end of the list.
Acquisitions Information
Accession No. HRL.2019.0038: Marilyn M. Scanlan, 2019 September
Preferred Citation
[identification of item], James P. and Marilyn M. Scanlan Collection of Russian Art, SPEC.HRL.0008, Hilandar Research Library, Ohio State University
Access to Materials
Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the Thompson Library Special Collections reading room only.
Use of Materials
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.
Processing Information
Processed by: Ashleigh Minor, 2021 March; Finding aid written by: Ashleigh Minor, 2021 March
Biographical and Historical Note
James P. Scanlan (1927-2016) was the director of the Center for Slavic and East European Studies at Ohio State University from 1988-1991. He developed an interest in Soviet and Russian history while teaching at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland in the 1950s-1960s. Scanlan studied Russian at Georgetown University and the University of California at Berkeley. From 1964 to 1965, he studied at Moscow State University in the Soviet Union, accompanied by his wife, Marilyn M. Scanlan. After returning to the United States, James Scanlan taught at the University of Kansas until 1971, when he accepted a position at Ohio State University in the Slavic and East European Center. He retired from Ohio State University in 1991.
During the 19th century, Russian art was largely influenced by European Romanticism and French Impressionism, with a focus on religious icons, landscapes, still life, and the depiction of peasant life. After the fall of the Russian Empire in 1917, art became more politicized as it was required to follow the Socialist Realism doctrine, and "easel art" was banned by the Institute of Artistic Culture in favor of industrial design. After the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953, and the subsequent dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, authorities lost the ability to place restrictions on artistic styles and subjects, and artists were free to create and experiment without fear of repercussions from the state.
Scope and Contents
The James P. and Marilyn M. Scanlan Collection of Russian Art contains works by Russian artists and works that depict historical Russian figures, geography, landscapes, peasant life, and religious and cultural iconography. The collection represents a variety of artistic styles and mediums, such as watercolors, drawings, etchings, woodblock prints, engravings, collage, and wooden icons. The majority of artists represented were active in the 19th and 20th centuries. Some of the works are original pieces, including a wood icon depicting Saint George created by the donor, Marilyn M. Scanlan. The majority of works in the collection are reproductions and prints, including several pieces that were torn out of books. Most of the works were created between 1821-1990s, and the piece by Scanlan was created sometime between the 1950s and 2017, when the collection was donated. The majority of works were acquired by the Scanlans between 1965-1982, while living and traveling in the Soviet Union.
Scanlan, James P. (James Patrick), 1927-2016
Scanlan, Marilyn M.
Art, Russian--19th century
Art, Russian--20th century
Art, Russian--21st century
Art, Russian--Collectors and collecting--20th century
Art, Russian--Collectors and collecting--21st century
Art, Soviet--20th century
Art, Soviet--Collectors and collecting--20th century
Artists--Russia (Federation)--20th century
Artists--Russia--19th century
Artists--Soviet Union--20th century
Drawings (visual works)
Engravings (prints)
Etchings (prints)
Historical maps
Icons (devotational images)
Portraits, Russian--19th century
Portraits, Russian--20th century
Prints (visual works)
Watercolors (paintings)
Woodcuts (prints)
Davies (R.R.) and W.B. Clarke illustrated Moscow map engraving
2
1
1836 June
English
Favorsky (Vladimir Andreevich) Dostoevsky woodcut print
1
1
1930s-1970s
Klodt (Mikhail Konstantinovich) two men in profile pencil drawing
1
2
1840s-1870s
Lissim (Simon) clowns at the Columbus Museum of Art collage drawing
1
3
1976-1981
English
Maliutin (Sergei Vasil'evich) hunter and peasant woman watercolor painting
2
2
circa 1890s
Mate (Vasiliy Vailyevich) Paul Osipovich Kovalvski portrait woodblock print
2
3
circa 1870s-1903
Matveeva (N.S.) "The Last Visit" ink drawing
2
4
circa 1870s-1936
Russian
Mikeshin (Mikhail Osipovich) "Knight Riding" engraving print
2
5
circa 1850s-1969
Russian
Neizvestny (Ernst) human body parts etching print
1
4
1966
Neizvestny (Ernst) human body parts etching print
1
5
1967
Pavlov (Ivan Nikolaevich) Karl Marx portrait artist's proof woodcut
1
6
before 1969
Pavlov (Ivan Nikolaevich) Michael Bakunin portrait artist's proof woodcut
1
7
before 1969
Pavlov (Ivan Nikolaevich) Mikhail Chernyshevskii portrait artist's proof woodcut
1
8
before 1969
Pavlov (Ivan Nikolaevich) Vissarion Belinsky portrait artist's proof woodcut
1
9
before 1969
Pavlov (Ivan Nikolaevich) Vladimir Ilych Lenin portrait xylograph print
1
10
1910s-1930s
Radakov (A.) "An illiterate person is the same as a blind man: Everywhere failure and unhappiness await him" poster
2
6
circa 1930s
Russian
Rudakov (K.I.) "The Corner" charcoal sketch from illustrations of the Fables of Krylov
1
11
circa 1947
Scanlan (Marilyn) Saint George wooden icon
3
1
circa 1950s-2017
Siden'kovskii (B.) Neptune and followers woodblock print
1
12
before 1965
Yanov (L.) Carlo Rossi's "Green Bird" story illustration
1
13
before 1970
Russian
Zemskova (Kseniia) "Never buy a cat in a sack," "St. George," and "A peasant beating a woman" Lubok style ink and watercolor drawings
1
14
circa 1990s
Russian
Zinovieva (Tamara) three nude women watercolor painting
2
7
1960s-1978
Unidentified artist 1683 city of Moscow map illustration print
1
15
20th century
French
Unidentified artist Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy portrait sketch print
2
8
undated
Unidentified artist "Michael Romanof" engraving print
1
16
undated
French
Unidentified artist "Moscow Kremlin" engraving print
1
17
1821
Unidentified artist "Rigol'bosh Gorokhovoi Street" charcoal and pencil color print
2
9
undated
Russian
Unidentified artist Saint Anthony and Theodosius of Kiev Caves wooden icon with metal covering
3
2
20th century