Multi-Figure Composition (II)

This print belongs to the extensive series made by Viktoras Petravičius (1906–1989) in the 1970s, with variations on the same composition of a naked man and a naked woman. In other versions, the lovers are presented full-length. There is also a version with standing figures that seem to be covered with a patterned blanket. The composition is related to the series ‘The Pregnant Woman’, produced in 1970. In the 1974 print, the artist joined both the expecting mother and the kissing couple. The characters in the series resemble neither the artist nor his wife, but the spirit in all the prints is deeply autobiographical.

Text author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė

The talented graphic artist Viktoras Petravičius arrived in the United States with his wife and two children in 1949. Initially working at the Cicero Steel Company, later Petravičius joined various stained glass and ecclesiastical art studios. By the end of the decade he had become the head of the Čiurlionis Art Gallery in Chicago. The intense longing for his homeland gradually diminished over time, painful memories were replaced by fresh experiences, and the artist rediscovered his joie de vivre. This newly found enjoyment of life was particularly evident after 1970 when he settled in Union Pier on the shore of Lake Michigan. Petravičius transformed his new home into an artistic sanctuary. He painted the exterior walls with largescale depictions of pantheistic and biblical themes from his earlier graphic works, and decorated the rich interior with paintings, prints and sculptures, creating a vibrant, bohemian oasis. Among the exterior drawings were nude figures, which recalled his Multi-Figure Composition, a work that radiates relaxation and the pleasures of an intimate relationship.

Text author Laura Petrauskaitė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album MORE THAN JUST BEAUTY (2012). Compiler and author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, ARTISTS ON THE MOVE (2025). Compiler and text author Laura Petrauskaitė
Expositions: “More Than Just Beauty: The Image of Woman in the LAWIN collection”, 12 October – 11 November 2012, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius

This print belongs to the extensive series made by Viktoras Petravičius (1906–1989) in the 1970s, with variations on the same composition of a naked man and a naked woman. In other versions, the lovers are presented full-length. There is also a version with standing figures that seem to be covered with a patterned blanket. The composition is related to the series ‘The Pregnant Woman’, produced in 1970. In the 1974 print, the artist joined both the expecting mother and the kissing couple. The characters in the series resemble neither the artist nor his wife, but the spirit in all the prints is deeply autobiographical.

Text author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė

The talented graphic artist Viktoras Petravičius arrived in the United States with his wife and two children in 1949. Initially working at the Cicero Steel Company, later Petravičius joined various stained glass and ecclesiastical art studios. By the end of the decade he had become the head of the Čiurlionis Art Gallery in Chicago. The intense longing for his homeland gradually diminished over time, painful memories were replaced by fresh experiences, and the artist rediscovered his joie de vivre. This newly found enjoyment of life was particularly evident after 1970 when he settled in Union Pier on the shore of Lake Michigan. Petravičius transformed his new home into an artistic sanctuary. He painted the exterior walls with largescale depictions of pantheistic and biblical themes from his earlier graphic works, and decorated the rich interior with paintings, prints and sculptures, creating a vibrant, bohemian oasis. Among the exterior drawings were nude figures, which recalled his Multi-Figure Composition, a work that radiates relaxation and the pleasures of an intimate relationship.

Text author Laura Petrauskaitė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album MORE THAN JUST BEAUTY (2012). Compiler and author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, ARTISTS ON THE MOVE (2025). Compiler and text author Laura Petrauskaitė
Expositions: “More Than Just Beauty: The Image of Woman in the LAWIN collection”, 12 October – 11 November 2012, National Gallery of Art, Vilnius