Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov was born in 1848 on May 15 in a village with the funny name Lopyal. Vasnetsov's father was a priest, as were his grandfather and great-grandfather. In 1850, Mikhail Vasilyevich took his family to the village of Ryabovo. This was due to his service. Viktor Vasnetsov had 5 brothers, one of whom also became famous artists, his name was Apollinaris.
Vasnetsov’s talent manifested itself from childhood, but the extremely unfortunate financial situation in the family left no options for how to send Victor to the Vyatka Theological School in 1858. Already at the age of 14, Viktor Vasnetsov studied at the Vyatka Theological Seminary. Children of priests were taken there for free.
Having never graduated from the seminary, in 1867 Vasnetsov went to St. Petersburg to enter the Academy of Arts. He had very little money, and Victor put up 2 of his paintings for “auction” - “The Milkmaid” and “The Reaper”. Before leaving, he never received money for them. He received 60 rubles for these two paintings a few months later in St. Petersburg. Arriving in the capital, young artist it was only 10 rubles.
Vasnetsov did an excellent job in the drawing exam and was immediately enrolled in the Academy. For about a year he studied at the Drawing School, where he met his teacher -.
Vasnetsov began studying at the Academy of Arts in 1868. At this time, he became friends with, and at one time they even lived in the same apartment.
Although Vasnetsov liked it at the Academy, he did not graduate, leaving in 1876, where he lived for more than a year. At this time, Repin was also there on a business trip. They also maintained friendly relations.
After returning to Moscow, Vasnetsov was immediately accepted into the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. By this time, the artist’s drawing style was changing significantly, and not only the style, Vasnetsov himself moved to live in Moscow, where he became close to Tretyakov and Mamontov. It was in Moscow that Vasnetsov came into his own. He liked being in this city, he felt at ease and performed various creative works.
For more than 10 years, Vasnetsov designed the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv. M. Nesterov helped him in this. It was after the completion of this work that Vasnetsov can rightfully be called a great Russian icon painter.
1899 became the peak of the artist’s popularity. At his exhibition, Vasnetsov presented to the public.
After the revolution, Vasnetsov no longer lived in Russia, but in the USSR, which seriously depressed him. People destroyed his paintings and treated the artist with disrespect. But until the end of his life, Viktor Mikhailovich was faithful to his work - he painted. He died on July 23, 1926 in Moscow, without finishing the portrait of his friend and student M. Nesterov.
Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich (1848–1926) is a great Russian artist, one of the founders of Russian Art Nouveau in its national-romantic version. Probably, the first of the great Russian artists enters our infant life with his epic paintings, fairy tale paintings and accompanies us throughout life, giving us impetus for reflection not only with the works of the named direction, but also with his genre paintings, portraits and religious paintings that we discover .
1. The Reaper (1867)
Canvas, oil.
Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov was born on May 15, 1848 in the distant Vyatka village of Lopyal into a large patriarchal family of a village priest. Soon the family moved to the village of Ryabov, where the artist spent his childhood. He began to draw early, but according to tradition, sons were supposed to inherit their father’s profession, and the boy was sent to a theological school in 1858, and soon transferred to the Vyatka Theological Seminary. In his last year at the seminary, the young man decided that he would leave Vyatka for St. Petersburg and enter the Academy of Arts. Having performed two genre pictures - “The Milkmaid” and “The Reaper” (1867) - and played them in a lottery, Vasnetsov used the money to go to St. Petersburg and begin studying at the school of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, and in 1868 he became a student at the Academy. Forced to earn money for a living, Vasnetsov gives private lessons and illustrates various publications.
2. Alyonushka (1881)
Canvas, oil. 121 x 173 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
In 1881, in Abramtsevo, the estate of the Russian philanthropist Savva Mamontov near Moscow, Vasnetsov wrote one of his best works - "Alyonushka" - based on the plot of a Russian fairy tale. The touching tenderness and deep poetry of the tale excited the sensitive, responsive heart of the artist. It is not a literal reproduction of a fairy tale plot, but a deep penetration into its emotional structure that distinguishes Vasnetsov’s painting. The girl’s frozen pose, bowed head, brown hair scattered over her shoulders, a look full of sadness - everything speaks of Alyonushka’s melancholy and grief. Nature is in tune with her mood; she seems to be grieving along with the girl. Slender birch trees and young fir trees surrounding Alyonushka seem to protect her from the evil world. The painting “Alyonushka” is one of the first in Russian art, where the poetry of folk tales is inextricably fused with the poetry and sincerity of native Russian nature.
3. From apartment to apartment (1876)
Canvas, oil. 53.5 x 67.2 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
Particular success fell on the painting “From Apartment to Apartment,” on which the artist had been working since 1875. The fate of the poor, lonely old people, thrown out onto the street on a cold frosty day, looking for shelter, worried the artist. Deep sadness emanates from the picture, which tells about homeless old age, about the tragedy that no one knows the right people. "I think,- wrote Stasov, - Each of us has met such people. What poor people, what sad human nature!.. A wonderful picture!”
4. Bookshop (1876)
Canvas, oil. 84 x 66.3 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
The painting “Book Shop” secured his position as a genre artist, knowledgeable about life who knows how to expressively and vividly reproduce it.
5. Flying Carpet (1880)
Canvas, oil. 165 x 297 cm. Nizhny Novgorod Art Museum
Vasnetsov is actively working on the introduction of folklore into Russian painting, reflecting aspects of the Russian national character (“Flying Carpet”, 1880). In his paintings on fairy tales the artist combines folklore fantasy with religious teachings and a scientific view of the world.
6. Calm (1881)
Canvas, oil. State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
V.A. Gilyarovsky. About the painting by V.M. Vasnetsov "Quiet".
“The pines are dozing. The distances are dozing.
Resting, the forest sleeps.
They fell into the quiet waters
Reflections of heaven.
I’m sitting under a pine tree in my thoughts...
And calm and peace -
And in the whispering of gloomy pine needles
The joy of life is before me."
7. The Knight at the Crossroads (1882)
Canvas, oil. 167x299 cm, timing belt.
"Contrasts between genre and history,- wrote V. Vasnetsov, - in my soul there was never, and therefore no turning point or any transitional struggle took place in me... I was always convinced that in genre and historical paintings... in a fairy tale, song, epic, drama, the whole entire image of the people is reflected, internal and external, with past and present, and maybe also the future... The bad people are those who do not remember, do not appreciate and do not love their history." .
8. Warriors of the Apocalypse (1887)
Canvas, oil.
"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" is a term describing four characters from the sixth chapter of the Revelation of John the Theologian, the last of the books of the New Testament. There is still no consensus on what exactly each of the horsemen represents, but they are often called the Conqueror (Plague, Disease), War, Famine and Death. God calls them and gives them the power to wreak holy chaos and destruction in the world. The horsemen appear strictly one after the other, each with the opening of another of the first four of the seven seals of the book of Revelation. The appearance of each of the horsemen is preceded by the Lamb removing the seals from the Book of Life. After removing each of the first four seals, the tetramorphs exclaim to John - “come and see” - and apocalyptic horsemen appear in front of him one by one.
In the picture, a rider on a white horse represents plague, on a red one – war, on a black one – hunger, on a pale one – death.
From the Revelation of John the Theologian:
Rider on a white horse
“And I saw that the Lamb had opened the first of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, “Come and see.” I looked, and behold, a white horse, and his rider had a bow, and He had a crown; and he went out victorious and to conquer (Rev. 6:1-2)"
Rider on a red horse
“And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second animal say, Come and see. And there came out another horse, a red one, and power was given to him that sat on him to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another; and a great sword was given to him. (Rev. .6:3-4)"
Rider on a black horse
“And when He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, Come and see. I looked, and behold, a black horse, and his rider had a measure in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, hinix wheat for a denarius, and three quinixes of barley for a denarius; but you shall not destroy oil or wine (Rev. 6:5-6).”
Rider on a Pale Horse
“And when He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature, saying, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and his rider, whose name was death; and hell followed him; and it was given to him. power over the fourth part of the earth - to kill with sword and famine and pestilence and the beasts of the earth (Rev. 6: 7-8)"
9. Sirin and Alkonost. Song of Joy and Sorrow (1896)
Canvas, oil. 133 x 250 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
“Two true friends - Love and Separation - cannot walk without the other.” Bulat Okudzhava
Two birds of paradise were considered traditional Slavic symbols of joy and sadness: Sirin and Alkonost. The Orthodox bestiaries about the “Sirins” say that they are half-humans, half-birds, bisexual, singing songs so sweet that the one who hears them loses his mind, follows the voice, not noticing the path, falls into the water and dies.
According to another version: he forgets his life, goes into the desert and, getting lost, dies. Sirins or pitchforks are spirits of water springs who can fly. Subsequently, this tribe in Russian popular print turns into one single bird.
In the legends of Western Europe, the Sirin bird is considered the embodiment of an unfortunate soul. Her name can easily be correlated with the Greek “sirens”, legends about which could have been brought to Ancient Rus' trading people who walked along the rivers from Byzantium and Greece. Sirens are predatory beauties with the head and body of a beautiful woman and with clawed bird feet. They are the daughters of the lord of fresh waters, Achelous, and one of the muses (Melpomene or Terpsichore). They inherited a wild and evil disposition from their father, and a divine voice from their mother. With their magical singing, the sirens lured sailors to their island - they crashed ships on the coastal reefs, and themselves died in whirlpools or in the claws of temptresses. Sirens in ancient times were often depicted on tombstones and were called the Muses of the Underworld.
About Alkonste, in Orthodox tradition, it is reported that this is a bird that lays its eggs in the depths of the sea in the middle of winter, and “these eggs are idle - they do not spoil and float to the top” as soon as the time comes. Alkonost does not take his eyes off the surface of the water and waits for the surfacing, which is why it is very difficult to steal Alkonost’s egg. If this is successful, then people hang such an egg under the chandelier in the church, which is a symbol of the integrity and unity of all the people who come to it. The Alkonost bird is an example Divine Mercy and divine providence, therefore in those seven days when Alkonost is looking out for his children, the sea is calm. Shipbuilders value these days and call them Alkonost or Alkyon.
Alkonost's singing is joyful as she promises Paradise. The singing of Sirin, as medieval sources indicate, is poignant; Sirin yearns for paradise lost, asks for a return to heaven. IN modern culture Sirin and Alkonost are indissoluble; they are established symbols of Sorrowful and Joyful singing.
The symbolist poet A. A. Blok responded to the painting with a poem:
Thick curls thrown back by the waves,
Throwing my head back
Sirin throws him full of happiness,
A full look of unearthly bliss...
The other is all powerful sadness
Exhausted, exhausted...
Everyday and all-night melancholy
The whole chest is high and full...
In the distance - crimson lightning,
The turquoise of the sky has faded...
And from a bloody eyelash
A heavy tear is rolling...
10. Bogatyrs (1898)
Canvas, oil. 295 x 446 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
At his first personal exhibition in 1898, Vasnetsov showed “Bogatyrs,” work on which lasted about twenty years. Decided in a monumental and decorative way, the painting recreates the images of three people’s favorite heroes of the epic epic: Ilya Muromets, Dobrynya Nikitich and Alyosha Popovich. Each of them has individual characteristics. Striving for a monumental solution, Vasnetsov slightly raises the horizon line, and the viewer looks, as if from below, at the horsemen, whose clear silhouettes stand out against the background of light clouds. Bright and sonorous colors are subtly and nobly combined - green, brown, red, white, blue, giving a special decorative effect to the canvas. The landscape, with its vast expanse, gentle hills, meadows overgrown with wild grass, is united by smooth and calm rhythms with the figures of heroes. Here Vasnetsov’s ability to create an epic canvas, in tune with folk poetic ideas, was demonstrated. In 1898, "Bogatyrs" took pride of place in Tretyakov Gallery.
“I believe that Vasnetsov’s “Bogatyrs” occupy one of the first places in the history of Russian painting”, - expressed the general opinion of V.V. Stasov. Comparing Repin's "Burlakov" with "Bogatyrs", Stasov wrote: “And here and there - all the strength and mighty might of the Russian people. Only this force there is oppressed and still trampled... and here is a triumphant force, calm and important, not afraid of anyone and doing itself, of its own free will, what it wants she likes what seems necessary to her for everyone, for the people.”
Landscape backgrounds of V.'s works on fairy tales and historical topics, imbued with a deeply national feeling of native nature, sometimes remarkable for the lyrical spontaneity of its perception (“Alyonushka”), sometimes epic in character (“After the massacre of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians”), played an important role in the development of Russian landscape painting. In 1883-85 V. completed a monumental panel " Stone Age"for the Historical Museum in Moscow, in 1885-96 - most of the paintings of the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv. In the paintings of the Vladimir Cathedral, V. tried to bring spiritual content and emotionality into traditional system church monumental painting, which in the 2nd half of the 19th century. came into complete decline. V. painting in the mature period, characterized by a desire for monumental and decorative artistic language, the muted sound of generalized color spots, and sometimes the appeal to symbolism, anticipates the “modern” style that later became widespread in Russia. V. also executed a number of portraits (A. M. Vasnetsov, 1878; Ivan Petrov, 1883; both in the Tretyakov Gallery), illustrations for the “Song of prophetic Oleg"A. S. Pushkin (watercolor, 1899, Literary Museum, Moscow). Based on his drawings, the church and the fabulous “Hut on Chicken Legs” were built in Abramtsevo (near Moscow; 1883), and the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery was built (1902). IN Soviet time V. continued to work on folk fairy tale themes(“Fight of Dobrynya Nikitich with the seven-headed Serpent Gorynych”, 1918; “Kashchei the Immortal”, 1917-26; both paintings are in the V.M. Vasnetsov House-Museum in Moscow).
Lit.: Stasov V.V., Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov and his works, in his book: Articles and Notes, vol. 2, M., 1954; Lebedev A.K., V.M. Vasnetsov. 1848-1926, M., 1955; Morgunov N., Morgunova-Rudnitskaya N., V. M. Vasnetsov, M., 1962.
Material from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia:
Vasnetsov’s works clearly represent different genres, which became stages of a very interesting evolution: from everyday life writing to fairy tales, from easel painting to monumental painting, from the earthiness of the Wanderers to the prototype of the Art Nouveau style. At an early stage, Vasnetsov’s works were dominated by everyday subjects, for example, in the paintings “From Apartment to Apartment” (1876), “Military Telegram” (1878), “Book Shop” (1876), “Booth Shows in Paris” (1877). Later, the main direction became the epic-historical - “The Knight at the Crossroads” (1882), “After the Battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians” (1880), “Alyonushka” (1881), “Ivan Tsarevich on Gray Wolf"(1889), "Bogatyrs" (1881-1898), "Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible" (1897). In the late 1890s, a religious theme occupied an increasingly prominent place in his work (works in the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv and in the Church of the Resurrection (Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood) in St. Petersburg, watercolor drawings and, in general, preparatory originals of wall painting for the cathedral St. Vladimir, painting the Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist on Presnya. Vasnetsov worked in a team of artists who designed the interior of the temple-monument of Alexander Nevsky in Sofia. He collaborated with artists M. V. Nesterov, I. G. Blinov and others. After 1917, Vasnetsov continued to work. on folk fairy-tale themes, creating the canvases “The Battle of Dobrynya Nikitich with the seven-headed Serpent Gorynych” (1918);
A master of historical and mythological painting, he wrote more than 30 works on the themes of Russian fairy tales, songs, epics, historical events. “I have always lived in Russia,” said Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov. He became famous for such works as “Bogatyrs”, “The Knight at the Crossroads”, “Alyonushka” and others. They can be called picturesque poetic tales about the native Russian people, about the glorious national antiquity and its immortal Russian heroes.
Vasnetsov spent his childhood and early youth in a semi-patriarchal family, in the distant Vyatka region, in the small village of Ryabovo. The father, a village priest, himself taught his sons to read and write. For a long time winter evenings children loved to listen to fairy tales about Alyonushka and Kashchei the Immortal. And little Vitya also loved to draw - the blue sea, sailing ships sailing on the billowing waves. Victor’s brother, Appolinary Vasnetsov, was also involved in drawing in the family.
Victor first studied in Vyatka, at a theological seminary. But he was more interested in drawing. And after graduating from the seminary, Viktor Vasnetsov went to study in St. Petersburg, at the Academy of Arts. He earned the money for the trip himself. I didn’t enter the Academy right away; I studied at the Drawing School.
While studying at the Academy, there was always a shortage of money, and Vasnetsov worked part-time as an illustrator in magazines and cheap publications. His illustrations were popular, full of lively observation, sincere, sometimes humorous, and earned a bronze medal at the World's Fair in London.
Vasnetsov began working in everyday genre, having gained fame with such films as “The Beggar Singers”, “The Book Shop” and others. In them, the artist showed without embellishment the life of the poor, social injustice in Russian society.
At the turn of the 70s - 80s, a turning point occurred in Vasnetsov’s art. He becomes a master of Russian historical and mythological painting. In 1878, Vasnetsov moved to Moscow, which greatly influenced the artist’s work - with its patriarchal streets, the ancient Kremlin, and ancient churches, it inspired and inspired him.
In Moscow, the Vasnetsov brothers actively participated in the Mamontov circle of artists and art lovers, who gathered at Mamontov’s estate in Abramtsevo. It included such Russian artists as Repin, Polenov, Levitan, Nevrev, Vrubel and many others. And this also contributed to the flowering of the talent of artist Viktor Vasnetsov.
No one, like Vasnetsov, drew so widely and freely from the world of ancient, Russian folk, nameless creativity and left so many wonderful works to its glory.
He was a believer and painted many paintings on religious themes. He himself wrote about it this way: “As for my religious painting, I will also say that I, as an Orthodox Christian and as a sincere Russian believer, could not help but light a penny candle for the Lord God. Maybe this candle is made of rough wax, but it was delivered from the heart,"
In his paintings, Vasnetsov glorified the Russian people, their heroic prowess, courage, their kindness and nobility. He painted the scenery for theater performances, came up with sketches for costumes. The project he created for the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery, made in the spirit of ancient Russian buildings, became a true masterpiece.
The first picture painted by Vasnetsov in St. Petersburg was “Beggar Singers.” The plot arose from childhood memories of those beggar singers who usually crowded around the Ryabovskaya church on holidays and sat on the ground. As a child, these beggars evoked in him some kind of painful, melancholy feeling. And so the preparation for the film began. Vasnetsov drew, made sketches, wrote etudes. Work on the painting progressed slowly, but Vasnetsov’s perseverance and hard work took their toll and the work was completed. And although many praised the picture, Vasnetsov himself already saw all its shortcomings.
In the first hungry months of his life in St. Petersburg, when he wandered around the city, looking for where he could eat cheaply and sit warm, he more than once went into a run-down tavern and a teahouse. I watched for a long time, listened to the conversations of different visitors, and sometimes made sketches. This is how the idea for the picture came about.
The door to the teahouse is open. To the right of the door, a group of peasants is sitting at a table, apparently this is an artel of carpenters who came to St. Petersburg to earn money. They are resting after work. On the table there are two teapots, as it was then supposed to be, one large - with boiling water, the other small, colorful - for tea. They drink tea slowly and sedately. The guy younger than the others has already sipped his tea, knocked over the cup, and is listening to what the artillery scribe, who has a newspaper in his hand, is reading. To the left of the door, an old man sits at a table; he is deep in thought, and he has such an exhausted face that you can immediately tell that he has lived a difficult life. A boy, a tavern servant, stopped at the door; he looks at a lonely old man, to whom he is probably carrying a teapot and saucer of sugar. And behind the boy’s back is a new visitor, who looks like a tipsy artisan.
The painting was exhibited at the third traveling exhibition, where it made a good impression on the audience.
A gloomy St. Petersburg winter day. Grey sky. The Neva is frozen, and two people are walking through the dirty snow across the Neva - an old man and an old woman. They walk slowly, bent over, their faces are sad, submissive. In my hands are bundles of miserable rags and a coffee pot. With them the old little dog is a faithful companion both in sorrow and in joy. This must not be the first time, like this, in the middle of winter, they move to new apartment cheaper.
The painting is painted in grayish-brown tones, and this color scheme, which conveys the idea of the painting so well, is perhaps the first time Vasnetsov has managed to find such subtle sincerity.
This last piece Vasnetsov in the everyday genre. Here the artist showed the philistine life, deprived vivid impressions, too leisurely, too shallow. The insignificance of human characters and interests clearly stands out in contrast to the poetic life of nature - the beauty of a summer night visible through the door open to the balcony. The painting "Preference" completes the cycle of Vasnetsov's everyday paintings. A decisive turning point occurs in the artist’s work.
A Russian hero, a knight in rich armor, wearing a helmet, with a spear in his hand, stopped at a roadside stone on a powerful white horse. The endless steppe with boulders scattered across it goes into the distance. The evening dawn is burning down; a reddish stripe brightens on the horizon, and the last weak ray of the sun slightly gilds the knight’s helmet. The field where Russian soldiers once fought is overgrown with feather grass and the bones are white. dead people, and above the field there are black crows. The Knight reads the inscription on the stone:
"How can I drive straight - I'll never be there:
There is no way for the passer-by, the passer-by, or the flyover.”
Further the lines are hidden under grass and moss. But the knight knows what they are talking about:
"To go in the right direction - to be married,
To the left - to be rich."
What path will the knight choose? Vasnetsov is confident that the audience will “finish” the picture themselves. The glorious Russian knight does not look for easy ways, he will choose a difficult but direct path. All other paths are closed to him. Now he will shake off unnecessary thoughts, raise the reins, spur his horse, and his horse will carry him to battle for the Russian land, for truth.
A large historical canvas, written to the tune of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” The epigraph to Vasnetsov’s work is lines from “The Lay”...:
"From dawn to evening, the whole day,
From evening to light arrows fly,
Sharp sabers rattle on helmets,
With a crash, spears break damask steel...
...They have been fighting for three days now;
The third day is already approaching noon;
Here Igor’s banners fell!
The brave Russians are no longer
There's bloody wine for the feast,
They got the matchmakers drunk, and they themselves
They died for their father's land."
The painting is not just an image of a battle, but epically majestic and enlightened poetic work, causing deep admiration for the heroic death of the heroes who fell for the Motherland, for Holy Rus'. The painting depicts a field after a battle, the artist talks about how brave Russians know how to die defending their native land.
The battle is over; The moon slowly rises from behind the clouds. Quiet. On the field lie the bodies of killed Russian knights, the Polovtsians lie. Here, with his arms spread wide, the Russian hero sleeps in eternal sleep. Next to him is a beautiful fair-haired young man, struck by an arrow - he seems to be sleeping. In the depths of the field, on the right, solemnly and calmly, lies the murdered hero, the bow still clutched in his hand. The flowers - blue bells, daisies - have not even had time to wither, and vulture eagles are already hovering over the field, sensing prey. In the foreground on the left is an eagle preening its feathers. The horizon is covered with blue clouds, the red moon, as if washed in blood, hangs over the steppe. Dusk falls on the steppe. Deep sadness is spread throughout the Russian land.
Like a heroic outpost, Igor’s regiments stood on the border of their land and died for its honor and inviolability - such is the content of this epically majestic and deeply lyrical picture.
The canvas "The Last Judgment" was created in 1896 - 1904, among other works, for St. George's Cathedral in the city of Gus-Khrustalny, Vladimir Region, by order of the largest manufacturer and philanthropist Yu.S. Nechaev-Maltsev, who built this cathedral. The artist completed several works on a religious theme, but “The Last Judgment” was to occupy a central place in the cathedral.
The artist made a large number of sketches for the painting, so acquaintances and friends who saw these sketches in Vasnetsov’s studio showed great interest in the painting in advance. At first, the artist was offered to exhibit the painting in the Tretyakov Gallery, but this idea was unsuccessful, since the dimensions of the painting significantly exceeded the size of the room. Nevertheless, such an exhibition took place in February 1904 in Historical Museum in Moscow. The new work evoked numerous responses in the press, mostly enthusiastic. Later, the painting, along with others made for the cathedral, was exhibited twice more: in the halls of the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg and again in the Historical Museum in Moscow.
Finally, in 1910, the paintings were delivered to their destination and mounted on the walls of St. George's Cathedral, where they briefly found peace.
And soon after October revolution the service in the cathedral was stopped. In February 1923, the authorities made a decision: “...the empty premises of St. George’s Cathedral should be transferred to a cultural and educational institution...” On the very first Sunday, dances were organized in the temple premises, a brass band played... Debates were held on the topic: “Is there God?" Subsequently, the cathedral was used either for workshops or for a cinema.
Meanwhile, the paintings were taken to the Vladimir Assumption Cathedral. They took them out as they had to, without any caution. Moreover, the painting “The Last Judgment” was rolled onto a large pole, torn at the bottom and hastily sewed up with twine. Before that, it had been folded several times and was frayed on the folds.
In the 80s of the last century, it was decided to restore the St. George Cathedral in Gus-Khrustalny, and also to return Vasnetsov’s paintings to their original place.
The "Last Judgment" was in serious condition. Therefore, it was assigned to be restored by a team of Leningrad restorers under the leadership of the greatest specialist A.Ya. Kazakov, known for restoring the paintings of St. Isaac's Cathedral, Peterhof and Tsarskoe Selo. Colossal dimensions required large room, so we restored the canvas in Catherine's Palace Pushkin.
The work carried out by specialists was unique in scope and complexity. The solid canvas measuring 700X680 centimeters was punctured in more than 70 places, there were numerous tears at the edges and breakthroughs. The canvas was seriously deformed, resulting in scree and peeling paint. Hard work was carried out for about a year. And so a special commission accepted the work with an “excellent” rating. In 1983, the painting took its place in St. George's Cathedral.
The artist embodied in the painting the idea of a person’s free moral choice between good and evil. The work was not just an illustration of a religious plot. In front of it, everyone could feel themselves in the place of an unknown soul awaiting the verdict of the highest court. The people who came to the cathedral had to think and make their choice of “path in life” with “free will.” Vasnetsov eloquently makes it clear that the scales in the hand of an angel come into action not only at the moment of the Last Judgment. The entire middle part of the picture is perceived as huge scales, on the scales of which are crowds of righteous and sinners, light and darkness... “The entire history of mankind is the struggle of the beast man with the spiritual man...”, the artist wrote.
Good and evil in the film are personified in characters from Russian and Christian history. Among the righteous, the figures of the Byzantine emperors Constantine and Helen, Princess Olga and Prince Vladimir, Alexander Nevsky and Sergius of Radonezh are distinguishable. Among the sinners are Emperor Nero, the conqueror Batu, oriental despots and Roman cardinals... At the same time, many allegorical characters were introduced: Faith, Hope, Love, Sophia, Mercy and others - on the one hand, and on the other - Greed, Drunkenness, Robbery, Anger, etc. Texts and inscriptions are actively used.
Religion, history, and folklore are intricately intertwined here. Thus, a miser swallows gold coins - he is somewhat similar to Repin’s Ivan the Terrible... Among the righteous are depicted an old man and an old woman, as if transported to the Judgment from Russian folk tale, and the harlots placed behind the Devil’s back resemble characters from salon paintings...
One of the critics wrote this for many years: “The Last Judgment” is a series of symbols, sometimes powerful, sometimes weak, but generally irresistible. This is a terrible oratorio beyond time and space. But this is one of those few truly artistic creations that are worth seeing once to remember forever." And he was right...
The hero of this picture is Ivanushka the Fool - a beautiful prince. His older brothers always laugh at him. And when trouble comes, he overcomes all obstacles, and his smart, kind heart conquers evil, just as the sun conquers darkness. He manages to wake up the sleeping beauty, make Princess Nesmeyana laugh, and get the firebird, which brings happiness to people.
A flying carpet flies high in the sky and Tsarevich Ivan tightly holds the firebird in a golden cage. Like a huge bird, the magic carpet spread its wings. Night owls fly away in fear from an unknown bird...
When Vasnetsov painted this picture, he remembered that first Russian man, a lordly slave, who, on wings he made himself, back in the time of Ivan the Terrible, tried to fly into the sky from a high tower. And even if he died, even if people ridiculed him then for his daring attempt, but proud dreams of flying into the sky will never disappear, and the magic flying carpet will always inspire people to exploits.
The plot of this picture arose in Vasnetsov’s head by accident, when he saw in the town of Akhtyrka, not far from Abramtsevo, a bare-haired girl who captured the artist’s imagination. There was so much melancholy, loneliness and purely Russian sadness in her eyes that Vasnetsov immediately imagined the picture. I wandered around the area for a long time, looking for a suitable landscape, drawing sketches, writing sketches...
This is one of the most touching, sincere images in Russian painting, exciting the soul with its heartfelt lyricism, in tune with a fairy tale and folk song about the bitter fate of a defenseless orphan.
A thin, fragile girl with the affectionate Russian name Alyonushka yearns for the river. She sadly bowed her head, clasped her thin arms around her knees, and thought, perhaps, about her bitter lot or about brother Ivanushka. Rough bare feet, old, sometimes faded clothes - it would seem unattractive, but for an artist who sympathizes with his heroine, there is a whole world of beauty here, just like in the modest Russian landscape - dark fir trees, a pale sky, ordinary thin-trunked aspens and birches, as if protecting Alyonushka’s peace. There is a deep sorrow hidden in the soul of the suffering teenage girl; it shows through in her helplessly drooping figure, in her pale face with parched lips, and in her big eyes, full of unshed tears.
Alyonushka is shown by Vasnetsov sitting on a gray “flammable” stone, surrounded by her native nature - on the edge of the forest. This modest and simple Russian landscape, with its thoughtful, sensitive silence, broken only by the vague rustling of the yellowed leaves of aspens and birches, trembling with every movement of air, answers state of mind orphans.
The picture is based on the plot of a Russian folk tale, which Vasnetsov heard more than once in childhood. Three brothers were looking for a bride. The elder brother searched but did not find it. I looked for the middle one and couldn’t find it. And the youngest, Ivanushka the Fool, found the treasured stone, moved it away and ended up in the underground kingdom, where three princesses lived - Gold, Precious Stones and the Princess of Copper.
Three princesses are standing by a dark rock. The elders are in rich outfits, strewn with precious stones; the youngest is in a black dress, and on her head, in her black hair, a coal is burning as a sign that the lands of the Donetsk region are inexhaustible (the painting was painted by order of Donetsk railway). Vasnetsov took some liberties here and turned Princess Copper into Princess Coal. According to the fairy tale, the younger sister marries Ivanushka the Fool.
Another “fairytale” painting by Vasnetsov. When she appeared at the exhibition, spectators stood in front of her for a long time. It seemed that they heard the dull rustling of the dense forest, the gentle rustling of the pale pink flowers of the wild apple tree, the rustling of the leaves under the feet of the wolf - here he was, a strong, kind giant wolf, out of breath, saving Ivan Tsarevich and Helen the Beautiful from pursuit. And curious birds sit on a branch and look at them.
“Your “Ivan the Tsarevich on the Wolf” delighted me, I forgot everything around me, I went into this forest, I breathed in this air, smelled these flowers. All this is mine, dear, good! I simply came to life! Such is the irresistible effect of the true and sincere creativity." - This is what Savva Ivanovich Mamontov, an industrialist, famous philanthropist and great lover of art, an exceptionally gifted person, wrote to Vasnetsov after the exhibition of the painting.
A bright, wonderful picture. Here she is, honey easy Snow Maiden- the child of Frost and Spring, - comes out of the dark forest alone, to the people, to the sunny country of the Berendeys.
Young lady! Is she alive? - Alive!
In a sheepskin coat, in boots, in mittens!
Before us is a portrait of Ivan the Terrible, the image of one of the most controversial rulers of the Russian state. Ivan the Terrible is presented in full height, so that the viewer is forced to look at him as if from the bottom up, which gives the image special significance and grandeur. As if in a hard, reliable case, the figure of the king is dressed in heavy, tightly buttoned, woven golden clothing (feryaz), in patterned mittens and chobots, studded with pearls. And in this barbaric pomp, with a carved staff imperiously clutched in his sinewy hand, he seems like some kind of pagan deity.
Peering into the pale and thin face of Ivan the Terrible, which clearly stands out in the dim space of the stairs, you see in it traces of the stormy, unbridled passions of the autocrat. Before us is a passionate, frantic and contradictory nature.
Vasnetsov worked on this painting for almost 25 years, and finally, in 1898, this large epic canvas was completed.
Three heroes stand as a strong heroic outpost in defense of Holy Rus' - Ilya Muromets, Dobrynya Nikitich and Alyosha Popovich. In the middle on a black horse - "ataman" big Ilya Muromets, peasant son". His horse is huge, arched his neck like a wheel, sparkling with a red-hot eye. You won’t be lost with such a horse: “He jumps from mountain to mountain, jumps from hill to hill.” Ilya turned heavily in the saddle, took his leg out of the stirrup, his hand in a patterned He put his mitten to his eyes, and on his hand was “a damask club of forty pounds.” Vigilantly, he looks into the distance, looking closely to see if there is an enemy on his right hand on a white shaggy horse, the hero Dobrynya Nikitich takes out his long, sharp sword from its sheath. - a treasure trove, and his shield is burning, adorned with pearls and gems. To the left of Ilya - on a golden horse - is the youngest hero, Alyosha Popovich. He looks slyly with beautiful, clear eyes, took an arrow from a colored quiver, and attached it to the ringing string of a tight bow. and a samogud harp hangs near the saddle.
The heroes are dressed in rich, beautiful clothes, clad in strong armor, and have helmets on their heads. Autumn day, gray - the sky is low, clouds are moving across the sky; The grass is trampled under the horses' feet, the fir trees are tenderly green. The free Russian steppe stretched wide before the heroes, and behind them were dense forests, hills and mountains, cities and villages - all Mother country Rus.
Do not let enemies ride across our land,
Do not trample Russian land with their horses,
They will not outshine our red sun...
“The language of this ballad painting is simple, majestic and powerful; every Russian will read it with pride, every foreigner with caution if he is an enemy, with a feeling of calm faith in such power if he is a friend,” the Soviet artist V. said very well. N. Yakovlev.
O Bayan, O prophetic songwriter,
Nightingale of times long past...
Here he is, the “prophetic songwriter” Bayan, sitting on a high burial mound, among field herbs and flowers, fingering his harp, composing and singing songs. Around the princely squad and the prince himself with his little prince, and clouds swirl and float across the sky.
A decorative, widely painted picture, it caused a lot of the most controversial rumors! But in this simple and at the same time complex picture, Vasnetsov’s amazing sense of proportion, taste, and sincerity was reflected.
