ALLA ALEXANDROVNA RUSAKOVA'S SCIENTIFIC HERITAGE: THE FORMATION OF A SPIRITUAL-AESTHETIC APPROACH IN RUSSIAN ART HISTORY OF THE 20TH CENTURY

This article analyzes the life and scholarly activity of Alla Aleksandrovna Rusakova, a prominent representative of twentieth-century Russian art history. Particular attention is given to her work at the State Russian Museum and to her research on Symbolism and leading figures of early twentieth-century Russian art Viktor Borisov-Musatov, Pavel Kuznetsov, Zinaida Serebryakova, and Mikhail Nesterov. The study examines Rusakova’s methodological approach, which interprets art not merely as a historical phenomenon but as a spiritual and aesthetic process. The article substantiates her role in developing the symbolic-aesthetic approach within Russian art history.