"Cursed" paintings. Mystical paintings by Russian artists

There is a superstition that painting a portrait can bring bad luck to the model. In the history of Russian painting there were several famous paintings who have developed a mystical reputation.

"Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan November 16, 1581." Ilya Repin

Ilya Repin had a reputation as a “fatal painter”: many of those whose portraits he painted died suddenly. Among them are Mussorgsky, Pisemsky, Pirogov, Italian actor Mercy d'Argenteau and Fyodor Tyutchev.

Repin's darkest painting is "Ivan the Terrible Kills His Son." An interesting fact: it is still unknown whether Ivan IV killed his son or whether this legend was actually invented by the Vatican envoy Antonio Possevino.

The picture made a depressing impression on visitors to the exhibition. Cases of hysteria were recorded, and in 1913, icon painter Abram Balashov ripped open the painting with a knife. He was later declared insane.

A strange coincidence: the artist Myasoedov, from whom Repin painted the image of the Tsar, soon almost killed his son Ivan in a fit of anger, and the writer Vsevolod Garshin, who became sitter for Tsarevich Ivan, he went crazy and committed suicide.

"Portrait of M. I. Lopukhina." Vladimir Borovikovsky

Maria Lopukhina, descended from the Tolstoy count family, became the artist’s model at the age of 18, shortly after own wedding. Amazing beautiful girl was healthy and full of strength, but died 5 years later. Years later, the poet Polonsky would write “Borovikovsky saved her beauty...”.

There were rumors about the connection of the painting with the death of Lopukhina. Born urban legend that you cannot look at the portrait for a long time - the “model” will suffer the sad fate.

Some claimed that the girl's father, Master Masonic lodge, concluded the spirit of the daughter in the portrait.

80 years later, the painting was acquired by Tretyakov, who was not afraid of the portrait’s reputation. Today the painting is in the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery.

"Unknown." Ivan Kramskoy

The painting “Unknown” (1883) aroused great interest among the St. Petersburg public. But Tretyakov flatly refused to purchase the painting for his collection. Thus, “The Stranger” began its journey through private collections. Soon strange things began to happen: its first owner’s wife left him, the second’s house burned down, the third went bankrupt. All misfortunes were attributed to the fatal picture.

The artist himself did not escape trouble; soon after painting the picture, Kramskoy’s two sons died.

The painting was sold abroad, where it continued to bring nothing but misfortune to its owners, until the painting returned to Russia in 1925. When the portrait ended up in the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery, the misfortunes stopped.

"Troika". Vasily Perov

Perov could not find a model for the central boy for a long time, until he met a woman who was traveling through Moscow on a pilgrimage with her 12-year-old son Vasya. The artist managed to persuade the woman to let Vasily pose for the picture.

A few years later, Perov met with this woman again. It turned out that a year after painting Vasenka died, and his mother specially came to the artist to buy the painting with her last money.

But the canvas had already been purchased and exhibited in Tretyakov Gallery. When the woman saw Troika, she fell to her knees and began to pray. Touched, the artist painted a portrait of her son for the woman.

"Demon defeated." Mikhail Vrubel

Vrubel's son, Savva, died suddenly shortly after the artist completed the portrait of the boy. The death of his son was a blow for Vrubel, so he concentrated on his last picture"Demon defeated."

The desire to finish the painting grew into obsession. Vrubel continued to finish the painting even when it was sent to the exhibition.

Not paying attention to the visitors, the artist came to the gallery, took out his brushes and continued to work. Concerned relatives contacted the doctor, but it was too late - tabes spinal cord brought Vrubel to the grave, despite treatment.

"Mermaids". Ivan Kramskoy

Ivan Kramskoy decided to paint a picture based on the story by N.V. Gogol " May night, or the Drowned Woman." At the first exhibition at the Association of Itinerants, the painting was hung next to the pastoral “The Rooks Have Arrived” by Alexei Savrasov. On the very first night, the painting “Rooks” fell from the wall.

Soon Tretyakov bought both paintings, “The Rooks Have Arrived” took a place in the office, and “Mermaids” was exhibited in the hall. From that moment on, the servants and members of Tretyakov’s household began to complain about the mournful singing coming from the hall at night.

Moreover, people began to note that next to the painting they experienced a breakdown.

The mysticism continued until the old nanny advised to remove the mermaids from the light to the far end of the hall. Tretyakov followed the advice, and the strangeness stopped.

"On the death of Alexander III." Ivan Aivazovsky

When the artist learned about the death of the emperor Alexandra III, he was shocked and painted the picture without any order. According to Aivazovsky, the painting was supposed to symbolize the triumph of life over death. But, having finished the painting, Aivazovsky hid it and did not show it to anyone. The painting was first put on public display only 100 years later.

The painting is broken into fragments, a cross is depicted on the canvas, Peter and Paul Fortress and the figure of a woman in black.

The strange effect is that under certain angle female figure turns into a laughing man. Some see this silhouette as Nicholas II, while others see Pakhom Andreyushkin, one of those terrorists who failed in the assassination attempt on the emperor in 1887.

Fine art has always been considered closely related to the mystical sphere. After all, any image is an energetic imprint of the original, especially if we're talking about about portraits. It is believed that they are able to influence not only those from whom they are written, but also other people. You don’t have to look far for examples: let’s turn to Russian paintings of the 19th century– beginning of the twentieth century.

The mysticism of the portrait of Maria Lopukhina

The delightful beauties who gaze at us from the paintings of great painters will forever remain just like that: young, charming and plump. vital energy. However true destiny beautiful models are not always as enviable as it might seem at first glance. This is very easy to see with an example famous portrait Maria Lopukhina, painted by Vladimir Borovikovsky.

Maria Lopukhina, descended from the Tolstoy count family, immediately after her own wedding (she was 18 years old) posed for Vladimir Borovikovsky. The portrait was commissioned by her husband. At the time of writing, Maria looked simply gorgeous. Her face radiated so much charm, spirituality and dreaminess... There could be no doubt that a long and long life awaited the charming model. happy life. It is an incomprehensible fact, but Maria died of consumption when she was only 23 years old.

Much later, the poet Polonsky would write “Borovikovsky saved her beauty...”. However, immediately after the death of the young beauty, not everyone would have shared this opinion. After all, at that time there was talk in Moscow that it was the ill-fated portrait that was to blame for the death of Maria Lopukhina.

They began to shy away from this picture, as if from a ghost. They believed that if the young lady looked at her, she would soon die. According to some sources mysterious portrait killed about ten girls of marriageable age. They said that Mary's father, a famous mystic, after his daughter died, lured her spirit into this painting.

However, almost a hundred years later, Pavel Tretyakov was not afraid and acquired this visual image for his own gallery. After this, the picture “calmed down.” But what was it - empty gossip, a strange coincidence of circumstances or mysterious phenomenon Is there something more hidden? Unfortunately, we most likely will never know the answer to this question.

Ilya Repin - a thunderstorm for sitters?

It is unlikely that anyone will argue that Ilya Efimovich Repin is one of the greatest Russian painters. But there is one strange and tragic circumstance: many who had the honor of being his sitters soon died. Among them are Mussorgsky, Pisemsky, Pirogov, and the Italian actor Mercy d’Argenteau. As soon as the artist took up the portrait of Fyodor Tyutchev, he also died. Of course, in all cases there were objective reasons for death, but here are coincidences... Even the hefty men who posed for Repin for the canvas “Barge Haulers on the Volga” are said to have prematurely given their souls to God.

However, the most creepy story happened with the painting “Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan November 16, 1581,” which in our time is better known as “Ivan the Terrible Kills His Son.” Even balanced people felt uneasy when looking at the canvas: the murder scene was painted too realistically, there was too much blood on the canvas that seemed real.

The painting exhibited in the Tretyakov Gallery made a strange impression on visitors. Some cried in front of the picture, others fell into a stupor, and others suffered hysterical fits. And the young icon painter Abram Balashov cut the canvas with a knife on January 16, 1913. He was sent to a mental hospital, where he died. The canvas was restored.

It is known that Repin thought for a long time before taking on the film about Ivan the Terrible. And for good reason. The artist Myasoedov, from whom the image of the Tsar was painted, soon in anger almost killed his young son, who was also called Ivan, like the murdered Tsarevich. The image of the latter was based on the writer Vsevolod Garshin, who subsequently went crazy and committed suicide by throwing himself down a flight of stairs...

A murder that never happened

The story that Ivan the Terrible is a son-killer is just a myth.

It is believed that Ivan the Terrible killed his son in a fit of anger with a blow to the temple from his staff. Different researchers give different reasons: from a domestic quarrel to political friction. Meanwhile, none of the sources directly states that the prince and heir to the throne was killed by his own father!

The “Piskarevsky Chronicler” says: “At 12 o’clock in the night of the summer of November 7090 on the 17th day... the death of Tsarevich John Ioannovich.” The Novgorod Fourth Chronicle reports: “In the same year (7090) Tsarevich John Ioannovich reposed at Matins in Sloboda.” The cause of death has not been announced.
In the 60s of the last century, the graves of Ivan the Terrible and his son were opened. There were no damages characteristic of brain injury on the prince’s skull. Therefore, there was no filicide?! But where did the legend about him come from?

Its author is the Jesuit monk Anthony Possevino (Antonio Possevino), sent to Moscow as an ambassador from the Pope with a proposal Orthodox Church come under the authority of the Vatican. The idea did not meet with support from the Russian Tsar. Possevin, meanwhile, allegedly became an eyewitness to a family scandal. The Emperor was angry with his pregnant daughter-in-law, the wife of his son Ivan, for her “indecent appearance” - either she forgot to put on a belt, or she put on only one shirt, when she was supposed to wear four. In the heat of the moment, the father-in-law began to beat the unfortunate woman with a staff. The prince stood up for his wife: before this, his father had already sent his first two wives to the monastery, who could not conceive from him. John the Younger was not unreasonably afraid that he would lose the third one - her father would simply kill her. He rushed at the priest, and in a fit of violence he struck with his staff and pierced his son’s temple. However, except for Possevin, not a single source confirms this version, although later other historians, Staden and Karamzin, readily picked it up.

• Modern researchers suggest that the Jesuit came up with the legend in revenge for the fact that he had to return to papal court"slurping unsalted."

During exhumation, remains of poisons were found in the bone tissues of the prince. This may indicate that John the Younger died from poisoning (which was not uncommon for those times), and not from being hit by a hard object!

Nevertheless, in Repin’s painting we see precisely the version of filicide. It is performed with such extraordinary verisimilitude that you can’t help but believe that this is exactly what happened in reality. Hence, of course, the “killer” energy.

And again Repin distinguished himself

Once Repin was commissioned to create a huge monumental painting, “The Ceremonial Meeting of the State Council.” The painting was completed by the end of 1903. And in 1905, the first Russian revolution broke out, during which the heads of the officials depicted on the canvas fell. Some lost their posts and titles, others even paid with their lives: Minister V.K. Plehve and Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, former governor-general of Moscow, was killed by terrorists.

In 1909, the artist painted a portrait commissioned by the Saratov City Duma. He had barely finished the work when Stolypin was shot dead in Kyiv.

Who knows - maybe if Ilya Repin had not been so talented, the tragedies might not have happened. Back in the 15th century, the scientist, philosopher, alchemist and magician Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim wrote: “Beware of the painter’s brush - his portrait may turn out to be more alive than the original.”

Mystical painting “Stranger” by Ivan Kramskoy

Painting amazingly experienced two periods of mass interest in itself, and in completely different eras. For the first time - after being written in 1883, it was considered the embodiment of aristocracy and was very popular among the sophisticated St. Petersburg public.

Unexpectedly, another surge of interest in the “Unknown” occurred in the second half of the 20th century. Apartments were decorated with reproductions of Kramskoy’s work cut out from magazines, and copies of “The Unknown” were one of the most popular orders from artists of all levels. True, for some reason the painting was already known under the name “Stranger,” perhaps under the influence work of the same name Blok. Even “Stranger” candies were created with Kramskoy’s painting on the box. Thus, the erroneous title of the work finally “came to life.”

Many years of research into “who is depicted in Kramskoy’s painting” have not yielded results. According to one version, the prototype of the “symbol of aristocracy” was a peasant woman named Matryona, who married the nobleman Bestuzhev.

“The Stranger” by Ivan Kramskoy is one of the most mysterious masterpieces of Russian painting.

At first glance, there is nothing mystical in the portrait: the beauty is riding along Nevsky Prospect in an open carriage.

Many considered Kramskoy’s heroine an aristocrat, but a fashionable velvet coat trimmed with fur and blue satin ribbons and a stylish beret hat, coupled with penciled eyebrows, lipstick and blush on her cheeks, mark her out as a lady of the then demi-monde. Not a prostitute, but clearly the kept woman of some noble or rich man.

However, when the artist was asked whether this woman existed in reality, he only grinned and shrugged. In any case, no one has ever seen the original.
Meanwhile, Pavel Tretyakov refused to purchase a portrait for his gallery - perhaps he was afraid of the belief that portraits of beauties “suck the strength” out of living people.

The “Stranger” began traveling to private meetings. And very soon I found notoriety. Its first owner's wife left him, the second's house burned down, and the third went bankrupt. All these misfortunes were attributed to the fatal picture.

Kramskoy himself did not escape the curse. Less than a year after the creation of “Unknown,” his two sons died one after another.

The “damned” picture went abroad. They say that there she caused all kinds of trouble to her owners. In 1925, “The Stranger” returned to Russia and nevertheless took its place in the Tretyakov Gallery. Since then, no further incidents have occurred.

Maybe the whole point is that the portrait should have taken its rightful place from the very beginning?

Since ancient times, people have believed in mystical power paintings Enough to remember primitive tribes and them rock art, depicting scenes of a successful hunt: by depicting prey pierced by spears, ancient artists tried to clearly show the patron spirits what they expected from the coming day.

However, there are many legends and tales that tell of cursed paintings that bring misfortune and even death to their owners.

"The Demon Defeated" by Vrubel

Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel, one of the most famous artists Russia, distinguished himself with two “damned” paintings at once. The first painting, a portrait of his beloved son Savva, was painted shortly before the child’s death. A bitter loss in the artist’s family occurred unexpectedly: Savva fell ill and died suddenly.

During the same period, Mikhail Alexandrovich painted the painting “The Defeated Demon.” Its creation coincided with serious deterioration in physical and mental health artist, including - against the backdrop of death little son. According to the memoirs of his contemporaries, he could not tear himself away from painting the picture, each time adding more and more new touches. Moreover, one day a Demon appeared to him in a dream and demanded that the painting be called an icon, since the beautiful defeated evil should be worshiped like other martyrs.

After the painting was sent to the exhibition, Vrubel followed it and continued to make changes to his work directly in exhibition hall. Realizing that he was becoming obsessed, Vrubel agreed to treatment at psychiatric clinic. However, the artist’s illness did not subside. Having improved your state of mind and returning to his former life, he began to lose his sight and last years spent his life in complete darkness.

"The Crying Boy" by Giovanni Bragolin

In 1985 in Northern England A series of fires occurred. Some victims claimed that of all their property, only a reproduction of the painting “The Crying Boy,” painted by Giovanni Bragolina, survived. Italian artists XX century. In a short time, rumors spread throughout the country that the painting was cursed. It even got to the point where one of the printed publications published information that all owners of reproductions of this painting must immediately get rid of them; moreover, the acquisition and storage of copies of the painting was prohibited by the authorities.

According to legend, Bragolina used his son as a sitter for this painting, and to obtain the desired emotion, he burned matches in front of the baby’s face. This was especially cruel because the artist knew that his little son was terrified of fire.

In the end, the exhausted child shouted to his father: “Burn yourself!”, and these words were soon fulfilled. A couple of weeks later, the boy died of pneumonia, and soon the house in which his father was located burned down.

"Water Lilies" by Claude Monet

The canvas “Water Lilies” by the impressionist Claude Monet is also considered cursed: almost immediately after the painting was completed, a fire occurred in the artist’s workshop. "Water Lilies" survived.

In order to renovate his studio, Claude Monet sold the painting to the owner of one of the cabarets in Montmartre. Alas, the landscape did not decorate this entertainment establishment for long: in less than six months it turned into ashes. Did anything survive? Yes, the fire spared “Water Lilies” this time too.

Then the picture went to one of the Parisian patrons - Oscar Schmitz. And a year later his house burned to the ground: they say that the fire started in the room on the wall of which the painting hung. By the way, she survived again.

Similar stories were repeated over and over again, and in 1955 “Water Lilies” ended up in the New York Museum contemporary art. The picture did not please the eyes of visitors for long. Three years later, the second floor, on which the painting was displayed, was seriously damaged by fire. This time, the ill-fated masterpiece also perished in the fire.

"The Scream" by Edvard Munch

The painting “The Scream” by the famous Norwegian artist Edvard Munch is one of the most recognizable and quoted works of art. Its cost is estimated at tens of millions of dollars, but many people would probably refuse to hang it in their home, even if they got it for free. The fact is that many accidents and coincidences are associated with this painting, which makes one think about the curse that this painting carries.

Many people whose activities were in one way or another connected with the painting experienced it. negative impact: deepest depression, sudden death and breaking off relationships with loved ones is just the beginning of the list.

Located in the Oslo Museum, the painting did not forgive anyone who in one way or another encroached on its safety. So, one of the museum employees once accidentally dropped a masterpiece. Soon he began to have severe headaches, which drove him to suicide.

Another museum worker also accidentally dropped a painting while hanging it from one wall to another. A few days later, he was in a terrible car accident, suffering a concussion and serious broken limbs.

As is known, museum exhibits can't be touched. The violator of this rule, who touched the canvas with his fingers, burned alive in his house a couple of days after that.

Video - Cursed paintings TOP 5

These paintings are known even to those who are far from the world of art, because they are true masterpieces. And each of them hides some secret that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

And it seems that every stroke has already been studied inside and out, nevertheless, scientists are constantly discovering something new in these old paintings. Their authors left their descendants with unusual riddles that they managed to solve!

The editors of InPlanet have prepared a list of 12 legendary paintings that have kept secrets for many years and even centuries!

Portrait of the Arnolfini couple / Jan van Eyck (1434)

This portrait was the first in European history to depict a couple. He is a wonderful example of the era early Renaissance. Historians are still arguing about who is depicted on the canvas and what is happening there. Many are sure that this is a wedding, as indicated by some signs in the picture.

But the most interesting fragment is practically hidden from view - in the reflection of the mirror on the wall you can see the outlines of four people. It is vaguely clear that there is a man and a woman, and the signature is “Jan van Eyck was here.” Art critics believe that the artist depicted himself and his wife.

The Last Supper / Leonardo da Vinci (1495-1498)

This fresco is one of the most famous works Leonardo da Vinci also hides many secrets. The most interesting riddle hidden on the surface - in the images of Jesus and Judas.

The artist painted the remaining images with ease, but these two faces were the most difficult for him. For the face of Jesus, he was looking for the embodiment of goodness, and he was lucky - in the church choir he met a young singer. But the last unwritten stain remained Judas, and da Vinci sat for hours in eateries to select the ideal embodiment of evil. And finally, he was lucky - in a ditch he found a drunkard who could barely stand on his feet. He painted the image of Judas from it, but in the end he was surprised.

This man approached him and said that they had already met. Several years ago he was a singer in a choir and had already posed for Leonardo for this picture. So, one man began to personify good and evil.

Portrait of Lady Lisa del Giocondo / Leonardo da Vinci (1503-1505)

Perhaps the most mysterious picture of all those ever painted is the Mona Lisa. For several centuries now, it has haunted art critics and historians, giving rise to increasingly wild and intriguing ideas for its creation.

Who is this woman with a mysterious smile and no eyebrows? It is traditionally believed that this is the wife of the merchant Francesco Giocondo. But there are several other theories that have a right to exist. For example, that the Mona Lisa is a self-portrait of Leonardo himself. There is also a possibility that this painting was painted by da Vinci for himself, and the real painting was discovered in Aizerloot 100 years ago. This Mona Lisa more closely matches the description of the painting by Leonardo's contemporaries.

And more recently, scientists have suggested that the mysterious smile of the girl on the canvas is due to the fact that she had no teeth. By the way, the x-ray showed that she had eyebrows, but the restorations had significantly damaged them.

Creation of Adam / Michelangelo (1511)

Another genius of the Renaissance, Michelangelo, created his fresco for Sistine Chapel, where she remains to this day. The subject for this part of the painting was a scene from Genesis called the creation of Adam. And there are many encrypted symbols on the fresco.

For example, if you look closely at the Creator who creates Adam, you can see... the human brain. Experts believe that in this way the artist drew an analogy of the Creator with the source of intelligence, or simply the brain. This theory is confirmed by the fact that Michelangelo was fond of anatomy and constantly conducted experiments on corpses.

Sistine Madonna / Raphael (1513-1514)

This huge painting, by Raphael, is an example supreme art Renaissance. The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II and was located in the Piacenza monastery. Some art historians believe that this masterpiece was painted for the funeral of the pope.

Raphael encrypted many signs on the canvas, which historians managed to uncover. One of the obvious secrets Sistine Madonna- in the background the artist depicted the faces of the cloud in the form of the faces of angels. Some historians believe that these are unborn souls.

Shore Scene / Hendrick van Antonissen (1641)

The painting by the famous Dutch marine painter Hendrik van Antonissen has long attracted the attention of art critics. This 17th century painting depicts a seemingly ordinary seascape. But the experts were confused a large number of people gathered on the shore for no apparent reason.

The truth was established with the help of an x-ray study, which established that in reality the painting depicted a whale. But the artist decided that people would be bored looking at the dead whale carcass, so he remade the painting. And with a whale, the canvas looks much more impressive!

The last day of Pompeii / Karl Bryullov (1830-1833)

Russian artist Karl Bryullov was impressed by the history of Pompeii while visiting Vesuvius in 1828. He was a very reserved person by nature, but then Karl was simply overwhelmed by emotions, he stayed in the destroyed city for four days and after a couple of years he began to paint his famous painting.

There is a special secret on the canvas - if you look closely, in the left corner you can see a self-portrait of the artist himself. He also captured his beloved, Countess Yulia Samoilova, with whom he was associated long relationship at least three times, possibly more. She can be seen as a mother holding her daughters to her chest, as a girl with a jug on her head, and as a girl lying on the ground.

Self-Portrait with a Pipe / Vincent van Gogh (1889)

Everyone knows the story of the cut off ear of the extravagant artist Vincent van Gogh. He even painted his self-portrait with a bandaged ear, which caused heated debate among art critics. It is still not known for certain whether he cut off his ear completely or injured it.

For a long time, experts were confused by the fact that in the painting Van Gogh is depicted with a bandage on his right ear, but he injured his left one. But the secret was revealed - the Dutch artist painted self-portraits while looking in the mirror, so there was confusion in the picture due to the mirror image.

Blue Room / Pablo Picasso (1901)

Now the names of these artists are known to everyone, but at the beginning of their careers they had to paint several paintings on one canvas - they could not afford to buy fabric. That is why many masterpieces have a so-called double bottom, for example, Pablo Picasso’s painting “The Blue Room”.

Using X-rays, it was possible to find out that a portrait of a man was drawn under the image. Art historians determine who this person was. According to one version, Picasso painted a self-portrait.

The Old Fisherman / Tivadar Kostka Chontvari (1902)

The Hungarian artist Tivadar Kostka Csontvary created many paintings during his life, but was little known. He suffered from bouts of schizophrenia, but still dreamed of Raphael's fame. Tivadar became famous after his death when the painting “The Old Fisherman” was deciphered, which has now become very popular. It was created in 1902 and is considered one of the most mysterious works artist.

At first glance, the canvas depicts an old man, as was believed for many years. Until one day it occurred to someone to look at mirror image two halves of the old man's face. Then it was revealed main secret this canvas - on it the master depicted God and the Devil, which exist in every person.

Portrait of Adele Bloch-Gower / Gustav Klimt (1907)

This canvas is one of the most famous works Gustav Klimt. In 2006 Golden Adele bought for a fabulous sum - $135 million. Beautiful woman, depicted on it, was actually written for the sake of... revenge.

In 1904, the whole of Vienna, including her husband Ferdinand, was talking about the novel between Adele Bloch-Gower and Gustav Klimt. He came up with an unusual revenge and commissioned the artist to paint a portrait of his beloved wife. Ferdinand was very picky, and Klimt made more than 100 sketches. During this time, the artist became bored with his mistress, whose portrayal was so difficult, and their romance ended.

Black Square / Kazimir Malevich (1915)

One of the most famous and controversial Russian paintings is “Black Square” by Kazemir Malevich. Few understand hidden meaning this provocative canvas. But perhaps it’s worth starting with the fact that the square is not square at all and not even black!

X-ray helped determine that under the “Black Square” there is another work by Malevich, on top of which he painted his masterpiece. For him, he prepared a special composition of matte and glossy paints, among which, by the way, there was no black shade. And, despite the fact that the sides of the so-called square are 79.5 cm long, the figure does not have a single right angle.

One way or another, the Mona Lisa remains one of the most mysterious paintings modernity. Perhaps we will never know what this or that artist wanted to tell us, or maybe even all the signs are just a coincidence...

Associated with many works of art Mystic stories and riddles. Moreover, some experts believe that dark and secret forces are involved in the creation of a number of paintings. There are grounds for such a statement. Too often happened to these fatal masterpieces amazing facts and inexplicable events - fires, deaths, madness of the authors... One of the most famous “cursed” paintings is “The Crying Boy” - a reproduction of the painting Spanish artist Giovanni Bragolina. The story of its creation is as follows: the artist wanted to paint a portrait of a crying child and took his little son as a sitter. But, since the baby could not cry on demand, the father deliberately brought him to tears by lighting matches in front of his face.