Natalia Goncharova
Costume for a seahorse in Sadko 1916

National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
© Natalia Goncharova, 1916/ ADAGP. Reproduced by permission of VISCOPY Ltd, Sydney 1999.

Goncharova's 1916 costumes were radically different from the delicate Art Nouveau designs of Boris Anisfeld, made for the 1911 production of the ballet. She presented delightful, almost comical, marine creatures such as the golden sea-horse. The patterns made by the lively colour and jagged lines reflect her interest in folk art, in particular Russian wood engravings.