# Boris Izrailevic Anisfel'd artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/boris-izrailevic-anisfel-d/
Profile generated: 2026-05-08T11:50:21.289Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1879-10-02
- Death date: 1973-12-14
- Nationality: Russian, Moldovan, American
- Movements: Symbolism, Modernism, Mir Iskusstva (World of Art)
- Common media: Oil painting, Gouache, Watercolor, Stage and costume design (works on paper), Drawing (pencil, ink)

## About Boris Izrailevic Anisfel'd

Boris Izrailevich Anisfeld (1879–1973) was a Russian-American painter, scenographer, and stage designer whose career bridged the Symbolist and Modernist currents of early twentieth-century art. Born in Bălți, Bessarabia—then part of the Russian Empire, now Moldova—Anisfeld trained at the Odessa Drawing School and later at the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg, where he became associated with the Mir Iskusstva circle. He gained wide recognition for his imaginative stage and costume designs for Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes and other landmark theatrical productions. His painting style moved between Symbolist fantasy, rich color harmonies, and lyrical abstraction. After emigrating to the United States in 1928, Anisfeld served as a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago until 1956. His work is held in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and other major institutions.

## Common works and media

Collectors and appraisers most frequently encounter Anisfeld's work as oil paintings on canvas, gouaches, watercolor compositions, and stage and costume designs executed in mixed media on paper. His subjects range from fantastical Symbolist landscapes and allegorical figure studies to theatrical production designs and floral still lifes. Works on paper related to Ballets Russes productions are among the most recognizable items at auction. Drawings in pencil and ink and occasional prints also appear in the market.

## Market and appraisal context

Anisfeld's work appears at auction primarily as oil paintings, gouaches, watercolors, and stage and costume designs on paper. Works from his Russian period, particularly those connected to the Ballets Russes, tend to attract the strongest collector interest. Provenance linking a work to specific productions, notable collectors, or documented exhibitions is a significant valuation factor. Attribution can be challenging for unsigned theatrical designs, making provenance documentation especially important. The auction market for his work is moderate in depth, and realized prices vary considerably by medium, date, and subject matter.

## Appraisily data basis

This artist page draws on identity research from library authority files, museum records, and scholarly biographical sources. Appraisily combines this research with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available.

## Sources

- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n86825377
- RKD (Netherlands Institute for Art History): https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/1922
- VIAF (Virtual International Authority File): https://viaf.org/viaf/76583764/
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1961456
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500010845
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/23313
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Anisfeld