Vipper, Boris Robertovich

Born Apr. 3 (15), 1888, in Moscow; died there Jan. 24, 1967. Soviet art scholar. Honored Art Worker of the RSFSR (1959). Corresponding member of the Academy of Arts of the USSR (1962); professor (1918).

Vipper was the son of R. lu. Vipper. He studied at Moscow University from 1906 to 1911 and taught there from 1915 and at the University of Latvia from 1924 to 1941. He was a figure in the world of art museums. His major works are on the cardinal problems of art history (questions concerning realism, opposing schools, and the history of styles and genres) and are distinguished by the breadth of generalization, the scope of material, the multifaceted analysis of historical art processes, and the precise identification of the defining characteristics of works of art.