Alexei Venetsianov

Alexei Venetsianov is one of the founders of the Russian genre painting. In 1819 the artist had gone to the small estate of Safonkovo in Tver Gubernia. He was fascinated by the common people, their life and work. Since then his main interest was in genre painting. Rural life provided him witha welath of material and openend up a new world of lyrical Russian countryside. Venetsianov's peasants are idealised - they are all people filled with beauty and nobility of mind, with moral purity and inner itegrity. We ca see these features in Children in the Firld, A Peasant Girl with a Calf, The Reapers.

Vasily Tropinin. The Lace Maker

Vasily Tropinin was born in the family of serf and was freed only when he was 47. As the major part of his life Tropinin spent with peasants and servants - they have become the characters of his works. One of the best among them is The Lace Maker. A beautiful picture, that idiolistically features a young servant busy with her work. We are somehow involved in the action - it is probably because the girl seemed to cast a glance at us for a second and in a moment she will return to work. Some critics say the portrait is too sentimental and resigned. But that was not only Tropinin's outlook but a signpost of time - just remember Bednaya Liza (1792; “Poor Liza”) by Karamzin.

Genre Painting in Russia

"Genre painting, also called genre scene or petit genre depicts aspects of everyday life by protraying ordinary people engaged in common activities."(by wikipedia). It can be seen in practically all national traditions. In Russia genre painting appeared in 18th century and was not very popular. In early 19th century it developed in the works by Tropinin, Venetsianov, etc. But it is still considered to be 'low genre' by the Academy of Arts and the members and students were discouraged to follow this tradition. In the middle of the century genre painting developed in a dramatic, satiristic, but sentitive form in the paintings by Fedotov, Perov, etc. In the late 19th century genre painting flourished in the works of Peredvizhniki Artists. The pieces of work became more phylosophycal, thoughful and human-centred. After 1917 the genre painting was havily influenced by the political and ideological needs of the ruling goverment.

Konstantin Somov

The portrait was painted in 1900 by Konstantin Somov. Lady in Blue portrays Ye. Martynova,
an artist, who died at an early age. The young woman stands, deep in thought, with a book in
her hand, against a decorative landscape. Her gentle, deliberately featured face, fragile
shoulders and graceful hands are painted with careful, smooth-brush strokes. Ye. Martynova’s
appearance has the charm of youth and intellect, her captivating womanliness is intermingled
with oversensitivity and inner tiredness. Somov inherited the ability to show the highly
individual, unique characteristics of a man though gesture, pose and expression.

Alexander Benois

Alexander Benois made enormous contribution to the history of the 20th
century Russian art. Among Benois’ best works are his illustrations for works of literature,
especially those for Puskin’s poem The Bronze Horseman, on which he spent over 20 years.
Unique in their artistic merits, passion and power, these works alone would be enough to
earn Benois the reputation of the greatest artists of the early 20th century.

Mikhail Vrubel

The portrait is painted by Mikhail Vrubel, a man of extremely versatile talent. He was
renowned as a master of monumental murals, easel paintings and theatrical scenery, as a
graphic artists, sculptor and even an architect. Vrubel’s love of music led him to
Mamontov’s private opera house, where he was able to realise his talent. He also painted the
portrait of Savva Mamontov in which the contrasts of compositional rhythms, details and
colour make for poignant image in which the titanic borders on the helpless. The works of
this artist was a heartfelt protest against evil. Even his tragic images contain a bright,
noble element, The struggle of light and darkness – that is the content of most Vrubel’s
works.

Konstantin Korovin

A talented artist whose works were largely influenced by the achievements of the
Impressionism is Konstantin Korovin. One of the artist’s favourite themes was Paris. In the
town landscape A Paris Café we notice the seemingly fortuitous composition, and the artist’s
free manner of painting and striving towards richness of colours.

Valentin Serov

Valentin Serov’s painting and drawing skills are quite outstanding. The great emotional effectiveness of his works can be explained by his ability to find precisely the right means
of representation and embody a many-faceted picture of life in a perfect from. Take Serov’s
portrait of Maxim Gorky: it is not just a talented reproduction of some individual features
but an image of the world in which the person lives.

Pyotr Belov

Alexei Savrasov

In the Russian art the 1860s were marked by the affirmation of the national characteristics of the Russian landscape. More and more often artists turned to primarily rural area of Russia, seeking to give an authentic impression of the beauty of their native land. Among the landscapes of the time Savrasov’s Rooks Have Come stand out due to as Kramskoi said “having soul”. The picture appeared at the First Peredvizhniki Exhibition and was given a rapturous reception. The subdued, delicate colouring, compromising gentle shades of grey, brown, white and blue conveys the iridescent softness of colours in spring. In the north the awakening of nature after long winter is slow. The snow lies long in the fields, the trees stand frozen in the wind, and suddenly it all fills with a light tremor of life, with the
joyful sound of birds. What simplicity! But behind this simplicity one can feel the good and gentle soul. No one had ever expressed the beauty and lyricism of the Russian landscape so profoundly and poetically. Alexei Savrasov’s painting was widely quoted and interpreted in the Russian Art. For instance, Pyotr Belov made a tragic allusion to the famous painting.

Orest Kiprenski

Romantism of the 19th century gave birth to an outstanding artist Orest Kiprensky. Among the best works is his portrait of Alexander Pushkin. It is surely Kiprensky’s best achievement in the field of portraiture. The work was painted at the request of Delvig, a poet and friend of Pushkin, between May and July 1827, while the latter was on short stay in St.Peterdburg. Pushkin liked the portrait and acquired it after Delvig’s death. The attraction of the portrait lies in the nobility, dignity and emotional elevation of the character.

Vladimir Borovikovsky

Vladimir Borovikovsky is a talented and original artist of the late 18th , early 19th centuries. The portrait is undoubtedly most mature lyrical work by Borovikovsky. The young woman’s attitude is re;axed and simple, yet refined and elegant. The harmony of the image results from the whole artistic structure of the work: the flowing lines, the movement of her hand, the rhythm of the trunks and branches of the trees, the subtlest nuances of light and shade, and the gentle-blue mother-of-perl colours, reminiscent of the magical sounds of a chavicord. No wonder that this portrait left a mark on the poetry of the 19th century in the form of the poem by Yakov Polonsky:
Long since she passed away: no more those eyes,
No more that smile which tacitly expressed
The suffering of her love and her sad thoughts
But her beauty Borovikovsky has preserved.

Dmitry Levitsky

Dmitry Levitsky was one of the most important and versatile artists of the 18th century. His brilliant, refined portraits most fully reflected the philosophical and aesthetic conceptions of the second half of the century, and the belief in the power of reason and integrity and nobility of human nature. Levistky’s search for more life and naturalness found expression in the portrayal of Smolny girls, where the artist introduced the models in action so as best to display their character traits. In the double portrait of Ye. N.Khovanskaya and Ye. N. Khrushchova the girls are acting out a pastoral scene: Khrushchova is playing a shepherd-boy and Khovanskaya is a shepherdess. Levitsky based the portrait on the juxtaposition of girls’ individual qualities: Khovanskaya is shy, timid and a little constrained in her movements; Khrushchova is more forward, with a pert smile and a playful gesture. You see a conventional landscape background with the human subject predominating. The piece of work is characterized by decorative colouring and subtle use of refined forms.