Abstract: This article is first within the Russian and Western art history to examine the concept of visual poetics as a separate subject of research. Based on the analysis of iconographic and theoretical searches of the masters of symbolism, which found reflection within the boundaries of expressive means of visual art, the author comes concludes on the poetic principles of symbolist artists as the fundamental sources of the formation of the style of Art Nouveau – a new sculptural language of the XIX – early XX centuries. Detail characteristic of the philosophical-aesthetic content that underlies optical forms of the visual symbolist image, in its scientific origins leans on the capabilities of the art comparative-formal analysis, as well as iconological method adapted to the period under review. The innovative conceptual approach towards studying the art of symbolism lies in the fact that poetry as the concept is depicted beyond the literary sphere, as a specific type of artistic worldview that influenced the development of the visual language of art in the era of Art Nouveau. At the same time, visual poetics is compared to the complex system of internal images, which shape in with the works of the master throughout the entire path of his self-expression, and are directly related to profoundness of the poetic principle of the soul, lyrical and metaphorical intuition of the artist. This approach allows us broadening the representation on the aesthetic benchmarks of the symbolist artists, as well as designating the new methodological coordinates in the field of studying the art of symbolism in both national and international contexts.

Abstract: The subject of this article is the works of the Russian artists of the late XIX – early XX centuries in the context of problematic of symbolism and Art Nouveau, as well as the scientific foundation that has developed as yet in studying this topic. Research methodology is based on the conceptual synthesis of classical art history approaches towards the analysis of artistic material with the theoretical interdisciplinary methods of humanities, such as iconology and hermeneutics, as well as the contextual-associative method developed by the author. The goal of this article consists in determination of the peculiarities of symbolism in Russia due to the transformation of the attitude towards the spiritual problematic of art of the turn of the XIX – XX centuries, which is relevant for the modern art history. The author is firs in the Russian art history to conduct a comprehensive analytical overview of the development stages of symbolism in the Russian visual art based on the years-long work with the archival materials, scientific publications (that cover over a century), and works of the Art Nouveau authors stored in the museum funds, many of which after 1917  appeared to be on the periphery of attention of art historians due to ideological reasons. The revealed individual characteristics of symbolism as a holistic artistic phenomenon, created on the level of modern humanistic knowledge, determine the novelty of this work and can valuable in further study of symbolism and Art Nouveau. Broadening of representations on the Russian art of the late XIX – early XX centuries, allow returning the heritage of the symbolist artists into the context of art, which is of undeniable importance from the perspective of restoration of natural logic of the development of the history of art in Russia, making this publication valuable in various fields of study of art and culture.