Leonid and Anna Frants collection was founded in the late 1990’s and initially focused on Leningrad nonconformist art of the post-war period represented by such artists as Valentina Povarova, Vladimir Volkov, Pavel Kondratiev; artists of Arefiev’s Circle (Rikhard Vasmi, Vladimir Shagin, Aleksandr, et al.); Sterligov’s Circle (Vladimir Sterligov, Aleksandr Baturin, Sergei Spitsyn, et al.), among many others. Over time, the Frants’ collection grew to include numerous works of the first half of the 20th century (Aleksandr Rusakov, Tatiana Kuperwasser, Aleksandr Samokhvalov, Victoria Belakovskaya, Vladimir Grinberg, Aleksandr Vedernikov, Nikolai Evgrafov, Tatiana Glebova, Vasily Kaluzhnin, et.al.), as well as works by contemporary Russian artists. In addition to paintings and graphics, the collection also features installations (Alexander Shishkin-Hokusai, Petr Belyi, Arefiev, Vitaly Pushnitsky, Petr Shvetsov), new media art (Alexandra Dementieva, Elena Gubanova and Ivan Govorkov, Ludmila Belova, Mikhail Krest), sculpture and mosaic (Vladimir Volkov, Galina Pisareva, Viktor Molev, Lev Smorgon, Grigory Molchanov), ceramics and glassworks (Anatoly Kaplan, Boris Smirnov).
The growing collection currently contains around 2,000 pieces and covers an extended period of time, from the 1920’s to the present. It includes a wide range of artistic styles and techniques (from painting, drawings, and sculpture to new media art created at the crossroads of art and technology). This makes it an invaluable resource for studying Leningrad/St. Petersburg art of the last 100 years.
Tatiana Glebova Portrait of a Kazakh Woman. Plywood, fabric, tempera, 54.6 х 33.5 cm, late 1930s
Tatiana Glebova Almaty. Two Kazakh Women. Paper, crayon, watercolor, 29 х 39 cm, 1942–45
Tatiana Glebova Portrait of a Young Man. Paper, watercolor, 44 х 30.7 cm, 1960s
Tatiana Glebova Portrait of a Man. Paper, watercolor, 44 x 31 cm, 1960s
Valentin Gromov Portrait of Rikhard Vasmi. Oil, canvas, 44 x 34 cm, 2000
Valentin Gromov Portrait of Leonid Frants. Oil, canvas, 28 x 41 cm, 2009
Valentin Gromov Portrait of Daniil Frants. Oil, canvas, 39 x 27cm, 2009
Valentin Gromov Self Portrait. Oil, canvas, 52 x 37 cm, 2004
Valentin Gromov Self-Portrait. Oil on fiberboard, tempera, 38 х 27 cm, 2018
Rodion Gudzenko Portrait of Mikhail Krasilnikov. Oil, canvas, 54 х 44 cm, 1957
Tatiana Kuperwasser Portrait of the Mother. Oil, canvas, 100 х 73 cm, early 1930s
Tatiana Kuperwasser Portrait of Young Woman with a Hat. Oil, canvas, 72 х 60 см, early 1930s
Igor Ivanov Armenia. Ejmiatsin. Cardboard, oil, 71х 54 cm, 1964
Leon Nissenbaum Smoker. Cardboard, oil, 60 х 45 cm, 1988
Victor Proshkin By the Banner. Oil, canvas, 58.5 х 52 cm, 1931
Solomon Rossin Street-cleaning Woman from Veliky Ustyug. Oil, canvas, 45 х 39 cm, 1976
Alexander Samokhvalov Nude. Oil, canvas, 43 х 30 cm, 1960
Mikhail Shapanikov Parents Visiting Day, oil, canvas, 103 x 93 cm, 2006
Rikhard Vasmi Portrait of Tamara Klochikhina. Oil, wood panel, 41 х 31,5 cm, 1995–1996
Rikhard Vasmi Portrait of a Young Man with a Pink Band. Oil, canvas, fiberboard, 41 х 31.5 cm, 1994
Vladimir Yashke Zinaida with a Bouquet. Oil, canvas, 61 х 46 cm, 1996–2000