Skeleton Pete reports on a visit to The Nicholas Roerich Museum in New York City. More photos on Flickr. Lovecraft knew Roerich’s work and something of his ideas, and presumably met other Theosophists in New York, although he was never a believer. Indeed, he seems to have lumped most of the theosophists in with charlatan quackery like spiritualism. In a letter to Willis Conover, Lovecraft wrote of… “The crap of the theosophists, which falls into the class of conscious fakery”. His use of whacky ideas from Theosophy is explored in Robert M. Price’s 1982 article “HPL and HPB: Lovecraft’s Use of Theosophy” (available online). He did have good words to say about Roerich however…
“Possibly I have mentioned to you at various times my admiration for the work of Nicholas Roerich — the mystical Russian artist who has devoted his life to the study & portrayal of the unknown uplands of Central Asia, with their vague suggestions of cosmic wonder & terror … surely Roerich is one of those rare fantastic souls who have glimpsed the grotesque, terrible secrets outside space & beyond time, & who have retained some ability to hint at the marvels they have seen.” — 21st/22nd May 1930 to Lillian D. Clark.
“…old Nicholas Roerich, the Russian painter whose weird Thibetan landscapes I have so long admired” — Selected Letters: 1932-1934.
“…good old Nick Roerich, whose joint at Riverside Drive and 103rd Street is one of my shrines in the pest zone [New York City]” — letter to James F. Morton, March 1937.
Roerich lived to 1947, so the date on the latter letter suggests Lovecraft may have known him well in the mid 1930s, when he often visited New York just after Christmas. “Good old” was usually a Lovecraft-ism used for things like cinemas or old men or old cats, meaning they were “reliable” in their warm welcome and hospitality.
Above: Nicholas Roerich, “Armageddon, 1936”.
Thanks for putting the connection together in historical terms. I’ve added an addendum linking to your books page so those interested might further their HPL scholarship.
Best,
Pete
I’ve long found Roerich’s work fascinating.
Lovecraft knew Roerich as in “liked his paintings”. He didn’t meet him in person, as far as I know.
Yes, it seems you’re right. And yet, would he have used “good old Roerich”, a description he usually seems to have reserved for those he had met, if he hadn’t met him?
Interestingly, one can see how Lovecraft might have been initially drawn to one of Roerich’s (apparently) basic ideas that: “while civilisation is material (cities, industry, etc.), culture is spiritual in origin.”
Yes, he would. He referred to Lord Dunsany as “Eddie” once, without having spoken to him (he did meet him, though), and he referred to Hitler as “Handsome Adolf”.
Another reference to Roerich is in Selected Letters 1931-1934 when Lovecraft wrote Barlow: “Merritt has a wide acquaintance among mystical enthusiasts, and is a close friend of old Nicholas Roerich, the Russian painter whose weird Thibetan landscapes I have so long admired. I was extrememly glad to meet Merritt in person . . .”
This doesn’t sound (to me) like Lovecraft knew Roerich at this time, January, 1934.