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LIFE magazine was only one of the many periodicals that published Tobey's work, but some of the most powerful of his historical images can be seen between its covers. On January 13, 1958, LIFE debuted these dramatic paintings of Tobey's recreation of scenes from precursors to The Russian Revolution:
 #256 Oil on masonite 24.5 x 45 |
In 1905, Russian sailors aboard The Potemkin sailing on the Black Sea refused orders from their superiors to eat maggot infested food, resulting in a mutiny. They were to be put to death by a squad of their own comrades (seen in the foreground). What really happened is that the sailor on the bottom right started to yell to his fellow sailors that they can't kill their own -- but rather should kill the captains who would call for such an order. The captains can be seen in the top right to be a bit uneasy as this is going on. The sailor's desperate plea ultimately ignited the consciousness of his comrades and all the armed crew. Rather than firing on their peers, they turned and killed the captains and were subsequently fugitives at sea for many years.
Rendering of the details in this painting required many hours of research by Tobey to validate period uniforms, insignia and other objects that appear in the finished work.
 #XXX Oil on masonite 28 x 24 |
 #464 Oil on masonite 27 x 23 |
ABOVE LEFT: Alton Tobey recreated this scene of human massacre from Russian history in his painting Bloody Sunday which depicts events at the Narva Gate in St. Petersburg, Russia on January 22, 1905. Citizens who attempted to present a petition to Czar Nicholas II about working conditions, were slaughtered by Cossacks. This was another of significant event which eventually led to the revolution. The painting is so alive when you see it in person, even down the vapor exhaled from the horse's nostrils appears almost three-dimensional.
The compositional flow is designed so that all lines flow to the central small character in the middle of the painting, a double-agent priest who led the peasants to their slaughter with the understanding that he himself would be spared. He is seen in his priestly robes holding a cross above his head so as to identify himself and avoid being killed by the Cossacks. Another amazing aspect of this painting is that once again the artist puts the viewer in the line of fire. When a viewer stands in front of it, he realizes that he himself is within striking distance of the sword that is about to come down to slice its victim.
The intensity of the moment and the level of vunerabilty is seen in the lifelike veins protruding from the mostly bald scalp of the poor peasant (bottom left) who is fleeing and will be sliced open like a melon by the beastly and powerful blow of the sabre -- there is a sense is that it will all take place in the next heartbeat.
During the course of his research for this painting, Tobey needed to study the uniforms worn by the Imperial Army, sabres, crutches, streets, shop fronts and photos of the Narva Gate. Beyond this, however, he pursued the human prototypes he needed to portray the victims of Czarist oppression.
Luck led him to an actual survivor of the massacre, a man who was twelve years old when he found himself a part of a fleeing mob. The man recalled the frightening shock of advancing horses, how close he came to being trampled by their pounding hooves, and how, finally, he managed to find his way home, unobserved, by a circuitous route. He described his mother's joy on seeing her child alive, how she embraced him weeping, and then, as she began to remove his coat, how they both stared open-mouthed as it split precisely down the middle of the back. He had come that close to a Cossack sabre!
This account of a hair's breadth encounter with death was cherished by Tobey for its drama and emotion, and, inveterate researcher that he is, he used it to confound a fellow artist who protested that it would have been more accurate to show the Cossacks using knouts. ‘Was ever a knout known to slice a coat in two?’ was Tobey's triumphant response. The poem below, inspired by Tobey's painting was written by poet Jane Darcy in the 1970's after seeing a copy of the Life magazine issue featuring Bloddy Sunday on the cover.
"they came -- on sunday. our banners were held high, but not for long. children were trampled into the snow by the feet of thundering horses. men -- and women were sliced to ribbons by the sabers.
"cossack laughter rose above the screams
"an old woman was struck down by the saber blade across her back. as she fell, the horse's hooves crushed her legs.
"then they disappeared -- as quickly as they had come. those still alive whispered in wintry silence for the dead and wounded.
"her blood, her life staining the snow the old woman lifted her head. before her was a small cross that caught the last ray of sunshine. kissing the relic, she sighed softly, and lay her head to rest upon the ground."
"Bloody Sunday"
--Jayne d'Arcy
www.jaynedarcy.us
ABOVE RIGHT: Death for Dostoevsky was ordered by Nicholas I in 1849 because the novelist belonged to a subversive society. In Semenovsky Square, St. Petersburg, Dostoevsky kneels in the left background, facing his fate. The entire event was a sadistic scheme orchestrated by the Czar, who informed the accused that their sentences had been commuted and that they were to be exiled to Siberia. The writer spent four years there.The story goes that Nicholas wanted to make a very clear point...and staged the complete regalia for the execution up until the very countdown. At the end of the countdown instead of firing, the solders put down their arms and marched off...leaving an unharmed but very rattled Dostoevsky.
Tobey carefully chose the composition of the painting. He set it up so that the viewer would feel a bit uneasy as he or she peered into the direct line of fire of the readied firing squad. He also made a very conscious choice to show the softness of the drapes and folds of the garments in the foreground; strongly constrasting the hard-edged and regimented look of the soldiers -- communicating a great sense of vunerability.
The Looting & Torching of the Manor Houses
#089. Oil on canvas 9 x 18In this scene from the Russian Revolution itself, a peasant is seen dancing gleefully to the amusement of onlookers. He is bedecked in finery that had most likely been looted from a manor house of the aristocracy, which can be seen burning in the background.
Tobey’s assignments for LIFE magazine included Neolithic Man, The Mycaenean Age, The Shang Dynasty, and five paintings for The Russian Revolution.The paintings above and other Tobey works were the subject of an extensive article by Eve Medoff on the artist: "Alton Tobey: The Artist as Researcher" that appeared in the May 1976 issue of American Artist magazine, and from which quoted passages above have been taken. The complete text of this article can be seen on this website on our American Artist page.
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