Abstract: The article considers the formation and development of meanings of the Phoenix as an imaginary beast-sign, a bearer of the bestiary code of Chinese culture. The methodology of highlighting the stages of evolution of the image of the beast-sign and analysis of its meanings is based on the ideas of Russian semioticians V.N. Toporov and A.E. Makhov concerning the historical typology of beast-signs from totem to zoomorphic images, then bestiary images and images-embodies. As a result of the study it was found that the imaginary totemic image-sign Phoenix was formed on the basis of domestic birds: chicken, pheasant, peacock and other animals, the zoomorphic image of the Phoenix symbolised the Sun God, Fire God (female image), Wind God (male image) of the polytheistic pantheon of ancient Chinese Gods, The phoenix became an emblem of imperial power and its female bearers (empresses, princesses, concubines), and finally, in the course of cultural history the image lost its religious and political significance, the phoenix became an emblem of love, femininity, happiness and harmony. Understanding the changing meanings of the phoenix as one of the beast-signs, the carriers of the Chinese cultural code, will enable a better understanding of the aims and values of Chinese culture at different stages of development, as well as the mechanisms of cultural continuity and cultural development in China, making possible endless renewals on the traditional cultural ground.

Keywords: beast, phoenix, emblem, totem, symbolic meaning, cultural code, symbol, chinese culture, chinese bestiary, sign

Abstract: The magazine "Apollo" completes a number of symbolist magazines of the Silver Age and in a sense sums up the intensive artistic life of the late XIX – early XX century. Its pages captured the rapid and multidirectional artistic discourse of the turn-of-the-century era, which was analyzed in the article with the help of discourse analysis. Aesthetic manifestos published on the pages of the art magazine "Apollo" were chosen as the subject of this research, the object of the work was the evolution of aesthetic and philosophical ideas in "Apollo". The content analysis of the journal's materials allowed us to study the development of the ideas of symbolism and acmeism within the framework of the editorial program of Apollo, which was the purpose of this work. The magazine "Apollo" is traditionally perceived as a magazine that promoted the ideas of Acmeism, however, the analysis of published materials shows that an acute symbolist controversy unfolded on the pages of "Apollo" in the early 1910s. In addition, the study demonstrates that the ideas of Acmeism were very heterogeneous and did not receive the support of many members of the editorial board, who believed that Acmeism had not formed into a full-blooded literary phenomenon. The results of the research can contribute to theoretical knowledge about the "Apollo" magazine and the history of Russian journalism, as well as the history of the development of the ideas of symbolism and acmeism.

Keywords: symbolist journalism, symbolist magazines, Workshop of poets, symbolist discourse, symbolist manifestos, art manifestos, The Silver Age, Apollo magazine, acmeism, symbolism

Abstract: The object of the research is the political caricatures of the famous Chinese artist Badiucao (巴丢草). The authors used content analysis of a wide range of visual sources, primarily the artist's personal website, the first publications of caricatures on the Twitter, as well as comparative analysis to reveal the artistic features of the works. The main attention was paid to the biography of the artist as it defines his style and the way he depicts political events or politicians. The caricatures were analyzed in accordance to their main characteristics, formal stylistic qualities, iconographic features and thus their symbolic meaning were identified. It is important that there are a large number of publications abroad devoted to the artist and his works, while in China his art is subjected to strict censorship. There are almost no mentions of him on the chinese Internet. In Russia, the name of the cartoonist is practically unknown, which is the novelty of this study for both cultural studies and russian Sinology. The obvious conclusion of the research is that Badiucao is challenging the censorship and dictatorship of the PRC with his art. His caricatures are his main and strongest weapon in this confrontation. Using a wide range of artistic techniques and color palette, he talks about current events, not allowing to forget the sins of the past, demanding not only an apology for political mistakes, but a change in the attitude of the government towards the people of the two coasts – China and Taiwan.

Keywords: political symbolism, modern art, politics in art, political caricature, Taiwan, China, Xi Jinping, protest, chinese caricature, Badiucao

Abstract: The article describes the experience of reconstructing the logic and process of building an artistic image. Reconstruction includes two stages: analysis of the creation of a specific artistic image and theoretical generalization in order to reach constructions that can be extended to other cases of the construction of artistic images. At the same time, the author in the reconstruction relies on his research of art and his works. In the latter, he examines, on the one hand, the problems that the artist solves, on the other hand, the answer to these problems, which is the construction of events of artistic reality. It is in this context that artistic images are created. Their function is twofold: it is an expressive means, one of the tools for building artistic reality, and at the same time the "bricks" from which the world of artistic reality is created. The characteristics of the image of Sarah from Meir Shalev's novel "Esav", the schemes and expressive means used in its construction are analyzed. The mystery of the impact of an artistic image on the reader is discussed. In the last part of the article, the author compares the artistic image with ideal objects in philosophy and science. He argues that an ideal object does not need to be perceived as an event, it is used in reasoning and cognition, where the main thing is not the vision and experience of a phenomenon, but the constancy, consistency of its properties; and the problems that a philosopher or scientist solves are different.

Keywords: narrative, composition, answer, problems, events, Schemes, artistic reality, expressive means, metaphor, image

Abstract: The article discusses such aspects of the topic as the concept of stylization and transformation, the relationship of stylization with the concept of style in fine art, as well as its impact on the perception of an artistic image. The question of visual and emotional perception is touched upon, which are directly influenced by a stylized artistic image. The subject of the article is the analysis of stylization methods and techniques that work on the perception of an artistic image. The aim of the research is to comprehend the ways and techniques of stylization of the depicted object, through artistic means of expression, which in the perceived content are able to create a more emotional and expressive artistic image. Depending on the degree of transformation of the surrounding reality, the author identified such stylization methods as the iconic method, the geometric method, symbol-based stylization and the abstract method of stylization. Based on a specific artistic material, the analysis made it possible to identify the peculiarities of the perception of an artistic image with each method of stylization. Stylization techniques that work on the perception of the viewer, due to the achievement of greater expressiveness of the artistic image, are determined. The author emphasizes the need to use stylization and transformation to endow an artistic image with increased expression and originality, which in the structure of an artistic work are the main means of reflecting an artistic idea and an integral part in the performance of the set compositional tasks.

Keywords: stylization techniques, stylization methods, perception, shape, simplification, generalization, transformation, stylization, visual art, artistic image