The Soviet time. End of 1970-s - beginning of 80-s. Spectator often questioned young artist and art historian Pyotr Lukyanenko, why modern artists mostly didn't paint like old masters.
Still-life Breakfast can be interpreted as an answer to this question. In the painting it is possible to see author's reflections about contemporary art, his personal attitude towards creativity.
The author quotes Heda (Breakfast with a crab, 1648, Hermitage) as an example of artist's relation to depicted objects.
One corner of the reproduction is turned off. If you look attentively, you will see two holes from buttons in the paper and on the wall. The reproduction was removed, restored, then its corner came off again. It can symbolize different relation to academism in painting during the time - classicism (from the ancient time till mid 19-th century, new movements, return to academism in socialist realism, and its denial again.
Ordinary modern life objects depicted in the bottom of the painting. The artist showed that utilitarian goods of mass production can be as picturesque as hand-made things in the still-lifes of Dutch masters.
The rosace joins two parts of the painting and at the same time "holds" the reproduction. It can symbolize architecture, which accumulates various kinds of arts, keeps time and connects epochs.
Still-life Breakfast was painted and first exhibited in 1982. The painting was shown only one day. Soviet censors interpreted the painting in absolutely another manner, as comparison and contradistinction of socialist and capitalist ways of life and recommended to withdraw the painting from the exhibition.
The party executive, who ordered to do this, apologized. Then he said that he understood everything, but ordinary people are not so familiar in arts, and can find in the painting something else.
At that time appearance of an unusual painting and its prohibition was a notable event. There were rumors about a forbidden painting in the city. The still-life was kept in the gallery. Art lovers got wind of it. They came to the exhibition, saw the exposition in a cursory manner, then approached a gallery attendant and asked about the painting. If the attendant trusted to the people, she followed them to the gallery premises and showed the very forbidden painting.
It was possible to exhibit the painting only after warming in the society and beginning of Perestroika. It was in 1985 (Minsk, Palace of Arts).
