The Exhibition of the International Centre of the Roerichs "The Master's Universe" on the 150th Anniversary of Nicholas Roerich (India)
“Culture and Peace – the most sacred goal of the Humanity in the days of great confusion, both material and spiritual, the disturbed spirit strives to these radiant strongholds. But we should not unite only abstractly in the name of these regenerating conceptions. According to our abilities, each in his own field, should bring them into actual surrounding life, as the most necessary and undeferrable.” Nicholas Roerich |
On March 22, 2024 at 18.30 at the Russian Center of Science and Culture (The Russian House) in New Delhi the opening of the exhibition of the International Centre of the Roerichs "The Master's Universe" will take place. It is dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding Russian artist, thinker and public figure Nikolas Konstantinovich Roerich (1874–1947). Co-organizers of the exhibition: the Rossotrudnichestvo Representative Office in the Republic of India (The Russian House in New Delhi), National Centre of Public Diplomacy for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Russia, International Roerich Memorial Trust with the support of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of India and the International Union of Non-Governmental Organizations the Eurasian Peoples’ Assembly.
The purpose of the jubilee exposition is to reflect in detail N. Roerich's life filled with High Service and the most profound creativity. The exhibition presents 174 photographs from the Roerichs' archive, several dozens of banners reflecting the main milestones of Nikolas Roerich's creative path, more than 20 reproductions of his paintings on canvas.
Thematic sections of the exposition tell about different periods of Nikolas Roerich's life, his social and creative activity. Studying at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts under the guidance of academician of painting A.I. Kuindzhi, communication with Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt and L.N. Tolstoy, meeting Helena Ivanovna Shaposhnikova – his future wife, Lada, the Leading, as Roerich called her later, the famous journey through the ancient cities of Russia – the Russian period of creativity is interrupted by the revolution, and the artist's family with two sons goes abroad.
A new stage of N. Roerich's life begins – the creation of cultural institutions in America, the Central Asian expedition of 1924–1928 – the largest in the twentieth century, the preparation and signing of the first ever treaty on the protection of cultural objects, known as the Roerich Pact and became the basis of the international legal system for the protection of cultural heritage.
"I have keenly followed your great humanitarian work for the welfare of nations, of which your Peace Pact idea with a special Banner for protection of cultural treasures is a singularly effective symbol. I am very glad indeed that this Pact has been accepted at the League of Nations and I feel sure that it will have far-reaching effects on the cultural harmony of nations."
From Letter of Rabindranath Tagore to Nicholas Roerich
An organic continuation of this work at the next stage of his life's journey was the foundation of the Urusvati Himalayan Research Institute by the Roerichs in the Kullu Valley. The multifaceted activity of N. Roerich attracted the attention of J. Nehru. In 1942 he comes to Nicholas Roerich's estate in the Himalayas with his daughter Indira. The future leaders of the Indian state spend several days in conversations with Nicholas Roerich, and this communication lays the foundation for future creative cooperation between the peoples of Russia and India.
“When I think of Nicholas Roerich I am astounded at the scope and abundance of his activities and creative genius. A great artist, a great scholar and writer, archaeologist and explorer, he touched and lighted up so many aspects of human endeavour. The very quantity is stupendous – thousands of paintings and each one of them a great work of art. When you look at these paintings, so many of them of the Himalayas, you seem to catch the spirit of those great mountains which have towered over the Indian plain and been our sentinels for ages past. They remind us of so much in our history, our thought, our cultural and spiritual heritage so much not merely of the India of the past but of something that is permanent and eternal about India, that we cannot help feeling a great sense of indebtedness to Nicholas Roerich who has enshrined that spirit in these magnificent canvases.”
Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India
“His wonderful paintings strike with their richness and exquisite sense of color and above all remarkably reflect the mysterious grandeur of the Himalayan nature. And he himself, his appearance and personality was to some extent imbued with the soul of the great mountains. He was not talkative but he emanated a discreet power which would fill all the surrounding space… We also appreciate him as a link between the Soviet Union and India.”
Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India
“It is difficult to name any other researcher who would achieve so much as an artist, philosopher, traveler, ethnographer, writer and devotee of culture, peace and international understanding in his lifetime. His valuable cultural heritage proclaiming the eternal wisdom of the yogis and prophets who had reached magnificent heights in the search for verity, is a priceless contribution to the world cultural heritage. It makes Roerich a Rishi of our time.”
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India
“No one can simply believe that all this could happen in the life of one person. The World should thank him for his contribution to art, archaeology, travel, philosophy and science… A Great Man, who was fascinated with the Himalayan culture, was called and revered as Maharishi.”
Kishori Lal Vaidya, Indian scientist
7000 paintings, 27 volumes of works, the international treaty on the protection of cultural values (Roerich Pact), which laid the foundation for the creation and activities of UNESCO – a valuable heritage, united by a holistic view of the world and based on the Philosophy of Cosmic Reality – the Teaching of Living Ethics, which considers man and the Cosmos as a single interconnected spiritual evolving system.
Nicholas Roerich's universal humanistic idea of Peace through Culture became a call and a basis for rapprochement of different peoples. Nikolas Roerich, his wife Helena, their two sons – George Roerich, an outstanding orientalist and Indologist, and Svetoslav Roerich, a famous artist and public figure, a citizen of India, created such a strong basis for understanding the commonality of the peoples of Russia and India that it has become increasingly relevant over time against the background of the development of cultural and economic ties between our two countries, Russia's growing interest in cooperation and peace-building in the entire Asian region.
The work of the exhibition will be accompanied by a thematic cultural program. The round table "The Heritage of N.K. Roerich – a Cultural Bridge between Russia and India" will be dedicated to the works of N. Roerich and will be held after the opening of the exhibition. It will be attended by representatives of science and public figures from India and Russia. Films of the International Centre of the Roerichs will be shown at the exhibition: "Roerich Pact. Peace through Culture", "Time to gather stones" and "Following the Master's Route."
The opening of the exhibition will be attended by:
Mr. Denis Alipov, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of India;
Mr. Oleg Osipov, Head of the Rossotrudnichestvo Representative Office in the Republic of India;
Mr. Andrey Belyaninov, Secretary General of the Eurasian Peoples’ Assembly;
Mr. Sergey Korolev, Director of the SCO National Center for Public Diplomacy in Russia;
Mr. Alexander Stetsenko, Vice President, International Centre of the Roerichs.
The Russian House in New Delhi
24, Firoz Shah Road, Open: 10:00 a.m. to 6:p.m. except Saturday & Sunday
For more information: 011-23319100, 011-23329101
