Ekfrasis in the egodokumental "artist's text": A. Benois and W. Kandinsky

The article examines the features of ekphrasis found in the ego-documents of A. Benois and W. Kandinsky, the leading representatives of the two influential art movements of the early 20th century. Their memoirs, letters, and diary entries by A. Benois reflect the close connection between the events of the author's life and his work, as well as demonstrate the growing permeability of the boundaries of the verbal and visual in the “artist's text”. Ekphrasis, understood as the reproduction of the visual image of a work of art by means of text, does not simply duplicate it, but offers a key to its perception and interpretation. In "Memoirs" by A. Benois, ekphrastic descriptions allow the author to reveal the role of art in the formation of his aesthetic preferences, convey the historical and cultural environment of the era, and discuss the mechanisms behind the history of the world art. In the texts of W. Kandinsky, ekphrasis acts as an auto-commentary which allows the author to explicate the principles of the new artistic system. W. Kandinsky's autoekphrasis follows the logic of his non-objective art and demonstrates a close convergence of the verbal, visual and musical systems.