This magical woman, like a bright comet, swept across the sky of the 20th century. Talented and famous men fell in love with her. She was condemned, bullied, anathematized, envied, imitated and admired. Lilya Brik played a fatal role in the fate of the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky.
Muse of the Russian avant-garde
Those who knew Lilya Brik closely claimed that she possessed psychic abilities, the gift of hypnosis and magnetic charm.
It is not by chance that writers dedicated poems and novels to her, and artists painted her portraits. Contemporaries tried to solve the riddle of her attractiveness. They were amazed how, after another failure, she was reborn, like a wonderful Phoenix bird, and went on through life. The same free, uninhibited and attractive. The Chilean poet Pablo Neruda called her the Muse of the Russian avant-garde.
With her amazing example, Lilya proved that it is not at all necessary to be a written beauty, to have an ideal figure, slender legs and a swan neck to drive men crazy. She herself admitted that the formula for female attractiveness is very simple: “We must constantly inspire a man that he is wonderful, talented and even brilliant, but those around him do not yet understand. It is necessary to stop pressing on a man and allow him to do what other women do not allow him. For example, smoking, drinking or driving wherever you like. Well, everything else will be done by female sensuality, the ability to relieve stress from a man, the ability to replace all other women, as well as exciting aromas of perfume, good clothes, stylish shoes and beautiful silk underwear."
At the same time, it was clear that Lilya was cunning. If she really spoke the truth, sellers of perfumes, shoes and lingerie would become the leaders of the world sales, making all the women of the world happy. But in reality this does not happen …
At the same time, Lilya did not hesitate to take the initiative in relationships with men (which was contrary to the rules of good manners adopted at that time). She could easily meet a representative of the stronger sex she liked on the street or in a restaurant. One of her fans recalled: “Lily has mesmerizing eyes; there is something hypnotic and sweet about her brightly painted, sensual lips. This most charming woman knows a lot about human love and sensual love”.
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Lilya was born on November 11, 1891 in Moscow in the family of a lawyer at the Moscow Court of Justice. Mother graduated from the conservatory, but was engaged in housekeeping and children - Lilya and her younger sister Elsa. Lilya demonstrated her independent character and willfulness as a child. At the age of ten, she took and cut her braids, which caused the anger of her parents. During her school years, she showed an amazing ability to learn foreign languages, which in adulthood allowed her to make brilliant translations of Western classics.
Lilya met Osip Brik at the gymnasium, mutual sympathy arose immediately, and soon real passion arose. As a decent man, Osip offered his beloved his hand and heart, which was accepted with delight and gratitude. On March 26, 1912, Lily and Osip's wedding took place.
Fatal shot
A year later, she first heard about Vladimir Mayakovsky from her younger sister Elsa, who was dating the poet. And a year later, Elsa brought Vladimir to the Brikov's apartment and introduced them. By that time, the family union of Osip and Lily broke up, but they remained on friendly terms and lived in the same apartment. That evening, Mayakovsky was in shock and read his works with inspiration.
Subsequently, he called his acquaintance with Lilya "the most joyful event." Their stormy romance was reflected in the poet's work. He dedicated a number of works to his beloved.
It should be noted that from a young age Lilya was known as a connoisseur of literature, painting and music. She was friends with prominent writers of the 20th century - Velimir Khlebnikov, David Burliuk, Boris Pasternak, Viktor Shklovsky, Nikolai Aseev, Maxim Gorky, as well as with many artists, musicians, cinematographers. Her portraits were painted by Fernand Leger, David Burliuk, Alexander Tyshler, David Shterenberg, Boris Grigoriev. She posed for the artist Erwin Blumenfeld, who called the painting "Venus Art Nouveau". From the very first days of her marriage, Lilya "kept a salon", many celebrities of the new era dropped in to see her. Journalists, politicians, and the military did not shy away from the salon. At one time, Lily's admirer was the all-powerful security officer Yakov Agranov. The bohemian environment fed and inspired her. Some historians have expressed the opinionthat Lilya was a secret informant of the OGPU, and her famous salon, which gathered the capital's bohemia, was an excellent way for the special services to supervise the mood of the intelligentsia.
The piquancy of the situation was that Osip, Lilya and Vladimir lived in the same apartment.
The common people perceived their relationship as a challenge to society. Gossip spread around the city, but Vladimir and Lilya did not care much. They were absorbed in themselves and lived for each other. Subsequently, Lilya described their relationship as follows: “Mayakovsky's love was immeasurable. When we met, he rushed to care for me furiously, hitting me like a tsunami. My gloomy fans were walking around. I remember he said: "Lord, how I like it when they suffer, they are jealous!" Lilya called the poet Puppy, and for some time he was really devoted to her like a dog. In turn, Mayakovsky called Lilya Kisey and said more than once that her character was akin to that of a cat. "She loves to walk by herself!" - sometimes said the poet in a friendly company.
At the same time, Lilya skillfully manipulated Vladimir, made him jealous, suffer and suffer. She herself in every possible way prevented any attempts by Mayakovsky to free himself from "her sweet captivity" and find happiness with another woman. She took an extremely painful romance between the poet and the American Ellie Jones, who in 1926 gave birth to a daughter from Mayakovsky. Lilya did everything so that Mayakovsky never saw the baby. Largely thanks to the efforts of Mrs. Brik, Mayakovsky eventually became restricted to travel abroad.
Lethal dose
To make Mayakovsky forget Ellie Jones, Lilya urged her sister - Elsa - to introduce the poet, who was at that time in Paris, to the Russian emigrant Tatyana Yakovleva. The witty, effective, light beauty sunk into the poet's soul. He began frantically courting the diva, dedicated lyric poems to her, and a week later made an offer. But then Lilya again intervened, who categorically declared to Vladimir: “I consider your actions to be an open betrayal. I demand that you break off relations with Yakovleva! And Mayakovsky obeyed, stepping on the throat of his own song, which gave his friends a reason to call Lilya a dog in the manger.
One way or another, but only a bullet interrupted the difficult relationship between Mayakovsky and Lily Brik. When the fatal shot sounded, she was in Berlin. Shortly before his death, Mayakovsky addressed her with the following words: “I love, I love, no matter what, and thanks to everything I loved, I love and will love, whether you are rude to me or affectionate, mine or someone else's. I love it anyway. Amen.
It is known that on the day of the tragic incident, the poet was visited by Veronika Polonskaya, whom Mayakovsky was also introduced to by the cunning intriguer Lilya. The poet became interested in a beautiful and sensual actress, took the girl to restaurants and gave her bouquets of roses. The intrigue was that Veronica was married to the famous actor Mikhail Yanshin. On April 14, 1930, Mayakovsky invited Veronica to his room on the Lubyanka. A difficult conversation took place between them.
- Leave your husband, leave the theater! I will soon get a separate apartment and we will live together! - the poet persuaded.
- I will not abandon the theater and my husband too! - Veronica shouted back.
- Then leave and do not appear again! - ordered Mayakovsky.
She ran into the corridor in tears, and a second later there was a fatal shot. According to those who knew the poet well, the situation was aggravated by the fact that literary critics greeted his plays "Bathhouse" and "Bedbug" with harsh negative reviews, flavored with caustic irony. “Mayakovsky signed up! Shot down the sight! " - the ill-wishers whispered. Accustomed to fame, the vulnerable poet reacted extremely painfully to the persecution.
After his death, Lilya Yurievna Brik was married twice more, albeit unofficially. The first marriage ended tragically. Corps commander Vitaly Markovich Primakov was sentenced to death and shot in 1937 on false charges. For the last 40 years, Lilya has lived with the famous writer Vasily Katanyan. Even in old age, she continued to break the hearts of fans. At 86, Lilya broke her thigh and was doomed to immobility. Such a life was unbearable for her. On August 4, 1978, at a dacha in Peredelkino, she took a lethal dose of sleeping pills. Thus ended the life of one of the most mysterious women of the 20th century.
Vladimir PETROV