Burlyuk (1882-1967) advocated the principles of futurism in poetry and cubism in pictorial arts. He was the leader of the Russian Futuristic group and in its manifesto, "A Slap in the Face of Public Taste" (1912), he called for a break with classical heritage.
Burlyuk emigrated to Japan in 1920 and moved to the United States in 1922. Most of the paintings, drawings, manuscripts and letters that he left behind in Russia ended up in the hands of the Tambov-based collector Nikolai Nikiforov. When Nikiforov died, the collection was transferred to a local museum of art and literature.
"In the 1930s, he [Burlyuk] extensively traveled across Western Europe, became a famous artist and had his works exhibited at some of the world's best art galleries," museum curator Vladimir Sereda said. "He planned to return to the USSR shortly before World War II, but was denied entry. The Soviet government even refused to accept his best canvas, 'Invincible Russia,' as a gift from him. But despite all that, he never lost touch with Tambov."
