Eugene Berman (1899-1972). Russian-born artist and designer

Born in St Petersburg, Russia, in 1899, Eugene Berman was an artist and theatre designer of note. He, and his brother, Leonid, studied in Russia and Europe, before settling in Paris after the Russian revolution. Berman is particularly remembered as a designer of set and costumes for ballet, particularly Frederick Ashton’s Devil’s Holiday, George Balanchine’s Danses Concertantes, Serge Lifar’s Icare, Antony Tudor’s Romeo and Juliet and American Ballet Theatre’s first production of Giselle. His set and costume designs for the 1950 Sadler’s Wells Ballet production of Balanchine’s Ballet Imperial were widely admired. After living for a time in the USA, Berman returned to Europe in 1955 to live in Italy, where he died in 1972.