Description of Vasnetsov's paintings to Russian folk tales. Description of Vasnetsov's paintings

Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, a great Russian artist, one of the founders of Russian Art Nouveau in its national-romantic version.

Born in the village of Lopyal (Vyatka province) on May 3 (15), 1848 in the family of a priest. He studied at the theological seminary in Vyatka (1862–1867), then at the drawing school at the Society for the Encouragement of Arts in St. Petersburg (where Vasnetsov’s mentor was Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy) and at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts (1868–1875).

Vasnetsov is the founder of a special “Russian style” within pan-European symbolism and modernity. The painter Vasnetsov transformed the Russian historical genre, combining medieval motifs with the exciting atmosphere of a poetic legend or fairy tale; however, the fairy tales themselves often become the themes of his large canvases. Among these picturesque epics and fairy tales of Vasnetsov are the paintings The Knight at the Crossroads (1878, Russian Museum, St. Petersburg), After the Battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians (based on the legend The Lay of Igor’s Campaign, 1880), Alyonushka (1881), Three Heroes (1898 ), Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible (1897; all paintings are in the Tretyakov Gallery). Some of these works (Three Princesses of the Underground Kingdom, 1881, ibid.) represent decorative panel paintings that are already typical of Art Nouveau, transporting the viewer to the world of dreams.

The same world came to life in Vasnetsov’s innovative theatrical works, in his sketches for the production of A. N. Ostrovsky’s fairy tale play The Snow Maiden on S. I. Mamontov’s home stage in Abramtsevo (1881–1882) and N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera of the same name in Moscow private Russian opera by S.I. Mamontov (1885).

The master also developed the principles of the “Russian style” in the field of architecture and design: according to Vasnetsov’s sketches, stylizing ancient Russian antiquity, the Church of the Savior Not Made by Hands (1881–1882) and the Hut on Chicken Legs (1883) were erected in Abramtsevo, and in Moscow - a memorial cross on the site of the murder of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich in the Kremlin (1905, destroyed under Soviet rule, recreated on the territory of the Moscow Novospassky Monastery) and the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery (1906).

The most significant monumental and decorative achievement of the artist were the paintings of the Kyiv Vladimir Cathedral (1885–1896); in them, Vasnetsov sought to update the Byzantine canons, introducing a lyrical and personal element into them. After 1905, Vasnetsov joined the monarchical “Union of the Russian People”, designing the publications of this organization in Slavic motifs. Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, as a convinced monarchist and Slavophile, did not accept the October Revolution.

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Sirin and Alkonost. Song of Joy and Sorrow

Oleg's farewell to his horse. Illustration for “Song about the prophetic Oleg” by A.S. Pushkin

Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich (Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, 1848–1926), great Russian artist, one of the founders of Russian Art Nouveau in its national-romantic version.
Born in the village of Lopyal (Vyatka province) on May 3 (15), 1848 in the family of a priest. He studied at the theological seminary in Vyatka (1862–1867), then at the drawing school at the Society for the Encouragement of Arts in St. Petersburg (where Vasnetsov’s mentor was Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy) and at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts (1868–1875).

Vasnetsov is the founder of a special “Russian style” within pan-European symbolism and modernity. The painter Vasnetsov transformed the Russian historical genre, combining medieval motifs with the exciting atmosphere of a poetic legend or fairy tale; however, the fairy tales themselves often become the themes of his large canvases. Among these picturesque epics and fairy tales of Vasnetsov are the paintings “The Knight at the Crossroads” (1878, Russian Museum, St. Petersburg), “After the Battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians” (based on the legend “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”, 1880), “Alyonushka” (1881), “Three Heroes” (1898), “Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible” (1897; all paintings are in the Tretyakov Gallery). Some of these works (“Three Princesses of the Underground Kingdom,” 1881, ibid.) represent decorative panel paintings that are already typical of Art Nouveau, transporting the viewer to the world of dreams. For a long time the artist could not find a model for his painting “Alyonushka”. None of the girls, according to the artist, resembled the fairy-tale sister of Ivanushka, whom he so clearly imagined. But one day the artist realized that his heroine should have the eyes of Verochka Mamontova (the same one with whom Serov wrote his “Girl with Peaches”). And he immediately rewrote the face again, asking the girl to sit motionless in front of him for at least half an hour.

Vasnetsov proved himself a master of decorative painting in the panel “Stone Age” (1883-85), written for the Moscow Historical Museum, depicting the ancient ancestors of the Slavs. But his greatest achievement in the field of monumental art was the painting of the Kyiv Vladimir Cathedral (1885-96); Trying to update the Byzantine canons as much as possible, the artist introduces a lyrical, personal element into religious images and frames them with folklore ornaments.

Vasnetsov’s contribution to the history of architecture and design is also original. In the Russian style, he saw not just an excuse to imitate antiquity, but also the basis for reproducing such properties of ancient Russian architecture as organic, “vegetative” integrity and decorative richness of forms. According to his sketches, a church was built in Abramtsevo in the spirit of the medieval Pskov-Novgorod tradition (1881-82) and the humorous fairy-tale “Hut on Chicken Legs” (1883). He also developed the decorative composition of the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery (1906) with the coat of arms of Moscow (St. George defeating the dragon) in the center.

After 1917, the artist went entirely into the fairy-tale theme, as eloquently evidenced by the titles of the last large canvases: “The Sleeping Princess”, “The Frog Princess”, “Kashchei the Immortal”, “Princess Nesmeyana”, “Sivka-Burka”, “Baba Yaga” , “Three Princesses of the Underground Kingdom”, “Sirin and Alkonost”... He lived on a pension granted to him as an honored artist by the Soviet government, to which he, in turn, was forced to sell the house, which is now a house-museum. In the upper room of this house, to this day there is a heroic oak table with an image of a huge Double-Headed Eagle in full width, which clearly illustrates the scale and spirit of Vasnetsov’s monarchism. The importance of Vasnetsov for the development of the creative element of Russian monarchism is difficult to overestimate. It was in his paintings that the generation of future theorists of the Russian autocracy was brought up (I. A. Ilyin, P. A. Florensky). It was Vasnetsov who gave rise to the national school in Russian painting (M. Nesterov, P. Korin, I. Bilibin). Black and white postcards with images of Vasnetsov’s paintings, published in millions of copies during the First World War, contributed to the high patriotic rise of the Russian spirit. The artist’s influence on Soviet art and culture was no less great; it was Vasnetsov’s budyonnovkas (or as they were originally called - bogatyrkas), designed by the artist for a single festive parade of the tsarist army, which, due to a special combination of circumstances, became the form of the army that in 1918-1922 restored the unity of the country and rebuffed foreign intervention.

Vasnetsov died in Moscow in his studio, working on a portrait of the artist M. V. Nesterov.

The younger brother of the famous Viktor Vasnetsov, much less known, Appolinary Vasnetsov was also an artist - he was by no means his timid shadow, but had a completely original talent. An excellent master landscape painter, A. M. Vasnetsov became famous as an expert and inspired poet of old Moscow. It’s rare that someone, having once seen it, will not remember his paintings, watercolors, drawings, recreating the excitingly fabulous and at the same time so convincingly real image of the ancient Russian capital.

IN In 1900, Appolinary Vasnetsov became an academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, then headed the landscape class at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, and since 1918 he headed the Commission for the Study of Old Moscow and conducted archaeological research during excavation work in the central part of the city.

The grandson of Viktor Vasnetsov, Andrei Vasnetsov, also became an artist, later the founder of the so-called “severe style”. In 1988-1992 Andrei Vasnetsov was the chairman of the Union of Artists of the USSR, a full member of the Russian Academy of Arts, and since 1998 a member of the Presidium. He was the honorary chairman of the Vasnetsov Foundation.

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 the 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.

3. From apartment to apartment (1876)

Canvas, oil. 53.5 x 67.2 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

4. Bookshop (1876)

Canvas, oil. 84 x 66.3 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

5. Flying Carpet (1880)

Canvas, oil. 165 x 297 cm. Nizhny Novgorod Art Museum

6. Calm (1881)

Canvas, oil. State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.

“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.

8. Warriors of the Apocalypse (1887)

Canvas, oil.

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 overcome (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 damage 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. authority 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 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' by trading people who walked along the rivers from Byzantium and Greece itself. 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. In ancient times, Sirens were often depicted on tombstones and were called the Muses of the Underworld.

About Alkonste, in the 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 of God's Mercy and divine providence, therefore in those seven days when Alkonost looks 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 the lost Paradise and 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.

“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 is all the strength and mighty power 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.”

A master of historical and mythological painting, he wrote more than 30 works on the themes of Russian fairy tales, songs, epics, and 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 side, in the small village of Ryabovo. The father, a village priest, himself taught his sons to read and write. On long winter evenings, children loved to listen to 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 the everyday genre, gaining fame with such films as “Beggar Singers”, “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, 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 flourishing 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 sets for theatrical performances and 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 Ryabov 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 was customary then, 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 taken a sip of 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 that, in the middle of winter, they have moved to a new, cheaper apartment.

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 is Vasnetsov’s latest work in the everyday genre. Here the artist showed philistine life, devoid of vivid impressions, too leisurely, too petty. 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, the bones of dead people are white, and there are black crows above the field. 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 an epically majestic and enlightened poetic work that evokes 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 at the 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 the October Revolution, services in the cathedral were 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 Tsarskoye Selo. The colossal dimensions required a large room, so the canvas was restored in the Catherine Palace in 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, the 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 a Russian folk tale, and the harlots placed behind the Devil 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 serf, 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, stirring the soul with its heartfelt lyricism, consonant 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 bowed her head sadly, clasped her knees with her thin arms, 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. A deep sorrow lurks 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 indistinct rustling of the yellowed leaves of aspens and birches, trembling with every movement of air, corresponds to the state of mind of the orphan.

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 studded 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 picture was painted by order of the 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 “fairy-tale” 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 is, 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, the sweet, light 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 up at him, as it were, 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, is “great ataman Ilya Muromets, peasant son.” His horse is huge, arches his neck like a wheel, and sparkles with a red-hot eye. You won’t be lost with such a horse: “He leaps from mountain to mountain, jumps from hill to hill.” Ilya turned heavily in the saddle, took his leg out of the stirrup, put his hand in a patterned mitten to his eyes, and on his hand was “a damask club of forty pounds.” Vigilantly, sternly, he looks into the distance, looking closely to see if there is an enemy somewhere. On his right hand, on a white shaggy horse, is the hero Dobrynya Nikitich, taking out his long, sharp treasure sword from its scabbard, 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 his beautiful, clear eyes, took an arrow from his 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 - the entire native country of 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.

Viktor Vasnetsov is a famous Russian artist, whose work has left a deep mark on the culture of Russia. The great painter's brushes include paintings and church canvases. The artist did church painting to order for Russian churches. Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov was a versatile, very talented person: a short biography can serve as confirmation of this conclusion.

Biography of the painter

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov (1848-1926) was born into a poor family of a priest in the village of Lopyal, Vyatka province, on May 15, 1848. In addition to him, his parents had five children. The boy's father paid maximum attention to raising his children. He tried to develop their horizons, and not just instill religious dogmas. Mikhail Vasilyevich subscribed to scientific journals, but the places where Vasnetsov lived were replete with legends, epics, and beliefs. The boy's thoughts revolved around fairy-tale characters. Heroes of fairy tales and colorful landscapes of wild lands can be seen on the artist’s canvases.

Little Victor showed an ability to draw from childhood. But lack of money did not allow his father to send his son to study art. The boy had to enter a religious school (1958), where education for the son of a priest was free.

After college, the boy entered the seminary, but did not graduate from the educational institution, as he began his studies at the St. Petersburg art school (1867). At the same time, the young man passed the exam at the Academy of Arts, but due to excessive modesty, did not come to check the result (Vasnetsov learned about his enrollment a year later).

After graduating from the academy, the artist participated in many exhibitions and painted temples. He became a member of the Society of Traveling Art Exhibitions of Moscow when he came to live in this city. Currently, you can visit the house-museum of Viktor Vasnetsov in Moscow, designed by the painter himself. Vasnetsov built it in neo-Russian style. The artist moved here in 1894 and lived with his family until his death.

Now the building belongs to the museum complex of the Tretyakov Gallery and is a museum with a permanent exhibition dedicated to the life and work of the famous Russian painter. Here you will see a portrait of Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov and a number of paintings by the great artist. In addition to the permanent exhibition, other exhibitions covering Vasnetsov’s activities are regularly held here.

A talented painter painted until he died (July 23, 1926). He left unfinished the portrait of Nesterov, the artist’s friend and student.

Works of the Russian painter

The work of Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov developed in stages. As a student at the academy, the young man devoted his free time to drawing. At that time, the young artist was interested in illustrating Russian folk sayings, proverbs, and fairy tales. Noticing the student’s talent, representatives of the clergy asked him to paint the Vyatka Cathedral.

The works, written by the young artist from 1876 to 1879, depict everyday scenes. The canvases of 1880-1898 have an epic-historical orientation. Since 1890, the painter became interested in religious themes. He actively took up painting of churches, but did not forget about easel painting. After 1917, the artist painted illustrations for Russian folk tales.

During his life, Vasnetsov repeatedly took part in painting exhibitions. For the first time he exhibited works as a student at the academy. The demonstration of paintings helped the young man attract the attention of recognized artists and make his name known. After graduating from the educational institution (1873), the painter exhibited paintings as a member of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. Such exhibitions were held in large villages and many cities. In addition to works by Viktor Mikhailovich, the exhibitions included paintings by other famous artists.

The active work of the partnership lasted until 1980, then the movement began to fade, and the organization itself ceased to exist after the last exhibition (1922).

Famous paintings

Of some of Vasnetsov's masterpieces, only descriptions remain. But many of the canvases have survived to this day. What has Viktor Vasnetsov pleased with modern art lovers: let’s look at the paintings with titles in order.

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov left a rich legacy to his descendants. Many of his works were destroyed after the 1917 revolution. But even now we can admire the masterpieces of the great Russian painter of the 19th and 20th centuries.