Nikolai Medtner 1880-1951 is a portrait by the Russian artist Victor Stember.
Nicholai Karlovich Medtner was a respected composer at the turn of the century and to the time of his death in 1951. In the book 'Nicholas Medtner: His Life and Music' by Barrie Martin, he states 'Nicholas Medtner (1880-1951) has always been a neglected figure in the history of Russian music, and yet, his long time friend Sergei Rachmaninov considered Medtner 'the greatest of contemporary composers.' In Medtners Biography 'Nicholas Medtner: his Life and Music by Barrie Martyn, he stated, Medtner ' wrote three fine piano concertos, more than one hundred solo piano compositions, including a cycle of fourteen sonatas fully worthy to be set alongside those of Scriabin and Prokofiev, and many beautiful songs. He was also a great pianist. Leaving Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution, Medtner lived for a time in Germany and France before settling in London, where he passed the final sixteen years of his life.'
Nicholas Medtner was also a cousin of the artist, Stember. There are several instances in Stembers diary where he mentions his cousins, Nicholas and Alexander. The geneology is:
Nicholas' Grandparents were Peter Medtner and Maria Marian who had two children, Emily (Emilia portrait # 148) who married Karl Shtemler (Stember) and are the parents of the artist, Victor Stember and Karl who married Alexandra Goedike and who had 5 children: Emily, Karl (who married Elena Bratensky) Alexander (who married Kira Terskaya) Sophie (who married ? Suburoff) and Nicholas (1880-1951) who married Anna Bratnsky. So Victor Stember, the artist was the cousin of Nicholas Medtner, the composer.
This painting is sometimes referenced as being a self-portrait of the artist, Stember. This is not true and is documented in the family album as a picture of Stembers cousin, Medtner. Stember also did an oil painting of Nicholas' older brother Emil (Emilii). See painting # 21 on this site.
Victor's son Nicholas (#89) studied with Medtner, and in the spring of 1917 he graduated from Medtner's class at the Moscow Conservatory with the gold medal.
Do you have information about this portrait, such as its location, provenance, or a better photograph? Please contact the family.