"Amaravella" (Russian:"Амаравелла"; a combination ofSanskrit words; approximate translation: "sprouts of immortality", "light bearers") – the association of Russian cosmist artists (художники-космисты) of the 1923–1930s. Its members included A. P. Sardan (Baranov) (1901-1974), B. A. Smirnov-Rusetsky (1905-1993), P. P. Fateev (1891-1971), S. I. Shigolev (1895-1943), V. T. Chernovolenko (1900-1972), V. N. Pshesetskaya (Runa) (1879-1945/1946) (A. F. Mikuli (1882-1938) and V. I. Yatskevich were temporary participants of the group). The ideas ofN. K. Roerich had a significant influence on the philosophical and ideological foundations of artists. The art of the participants of "Amaravella" reflected the cultural trends of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries – ideas ofsymbolism andavant-garde, philosophy of cosmism and intuitivism, a number of religious and mystical movements (theosophy,anthroposophy),Eastern philosophy, ideas ofphilosophers of life.
In 1922, the artists group was founded by Fateyev, a painter who was then 32 years old.[1] The name Amaravella, however, was introduced in 1928 when Sardan coined it based from a Sanskrit word that means "bearing light" or "creative energy".[1]
Ideologically the group belonged to theRussian cosmism movement. It embraced a range of ideas and artistic approaches that explored cosmic harmony.[1] The artists, who lived in a commune, were heavily influenced by the ancient East's works, as well as those ofHelena Blavatsky,Nicholas Roerich,Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, andVictor Borisov-Musatov.
Like M. Sokolov and V. Komarovskiy, members of the Amaravella were persecuted because their work did not conform to the "socialist realism" style prescribed for Soviet art.[2] Particularly, their works were categorized as "formalism" through the 1932 decreeOn Restructuring Literary and Artistic Organizations, which repressed creative freedom.[3]
Several paintings of the Amaravella artists were collected by Iury Linnik, who claimed to be a cosmist poet and philosopher,[4] andIgor Savitsky.[3]