Maximilian Kirienko-Voloshin

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Maximilian Alexandrovich Kirienko-Voloshin (Russian: Максимилиа́н Алекса́ндрович Кирие́нко-Воло́шин) (May 28, 1877 - November 8, 1932) was a Russian poet and famous Freemason. He was one of the significant representatives of the Symbolist movement in Russian culture and literature. He became famous as a poet and a critic of literature and the arts, being published in many contemporary magazines of the early 20th century, including "Vesy" ('Libra'), "Zolotoye runo" ('The Golden Fleece') and "Apollon". He was also known for his brilliant translations of a number of French poetic and prose works into Russian.Voloshin was born in Kiev in 1877. He spent his early childhood in Sevastopol and Taganrog. Reportedly, "his schooling included a few years at the Polivanov establishment and a school in the Crimea, where in 1893 his mother had bought a cheap plot of land at Koktebel." After secondary school, Voloshin entered Moscow University during "a time of the resurgence of the radical student movement in Russia." Voloshin reportedly actively participated in it, "which resulted in his expulsion from the University in 1899." Travels Not discouraged, Voloshin "resumed his travels the length and breadth of Russia, often on foot." In 1900, he worked with an expedition surveying the route of the Orenburg-Tashkent railway. He described this period in his life as: “ The last year of the hateful 19th century was coming to an end; 1900 was the year of Vladimir Solovyov's Three Talks and his letter on the end of world history, the year of the Boxer Rebellion in China, a year when in different parts of Russia, several Russian boys, who later became poets and carriers of its spirit, clearly and tangibly felt the changes of the times. In the steppes and deserts of Turkestan, where I led camel caravans, I went through the same experiences in the same days as Blok in the Shakhmatovo swamps, and Bely at the walls of the Novodevichy Convent. ” Upon his return to Moscow, Voloshin did not seek reinstatement at the university, but continued his travels to such places as Western Europe, Greece, Turkey, and Egypt. Reportedly, "his stay in Paris and travels all over France had a particularly deep effect on" him and he came back to Russia "a veritable Parisian." While during this time in Russia there were "numerous literary groups and trends, known as the Silver Age," Voloshin remained aloof despite "being a close friend of many outstanding cultural figures of the day." In verses devoted to Valery Bryusov he wrote: "In your world, I am a passerby, close to all and yet a stranger to all." When "a madman" ripped Repin's famous canvas Ivan the Terrible Killing His Son with a knife, shocking Intellectual Russia, Voloshin was the only person in the country to defend the man, "indicating that it was an esthetic statement appropriate to the painting, which displayed gore and bad taste." Voloshin had a brief affair with Miss Sabashnikova, but they soon broke up, and this had a profound effect on his work. Gradually, Voloshin was drawn back to Koktebel in the Crimea, where he had spent much of his childhood. His first collection of poetry appeared in 1910, soon followed by others. His collected essays were published in 1914.

Maximilian Kirienko-Voloshin

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