Empress Ring. Mikhail Volkonsky - The Empress's Ring (collection)

10 most terrible paintings by the artist

Vasily Vereshchagin studied the war so well that he could write an entire encyclopedia about it. And he wrote - with paints on canvas. There are almost no attacks, maneuvers or pompous parades in his paintings. But there is a lot of war that is not customary to talk about. The artist himself once said: “I decided to watch the war in various types and convey it truthfully. Facts, transferred to canvas without embellishment, should speak eloquently for themselves.” Today, Vereshchagin’s creative message is so relevant that the historical and social parallels make one feel uneasy. On the eve of the artist's anniversary, we selected the 10 most scary pictures and told how to “read” them correctly.

"Presenting Trophies"
1872 Oil on canvas. 240×171 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery.

Graceful eastern columns, a sun-filled courtyard, elegant clothes of those gathered - what’s terrible in this picture? The very essence of what is happening. In the recent battle, the emir's soldiers demonstrated courage and valor. They have just arrived at the court with a valuable trophy. Alas, this is not gold and not captured banners: at the feet of the eastern ruler, the severed heads of the “infidels” - Russian soldiers who lost the battle - are piled in a heap. Darkened faces covered in dried blood, a disgusting stench of decomposition, from which those gathered cover themselves with the sleeves of their dressing gowns - this is what sweet victory looks like. This is the moment of glory of the victorious army. One of the heads rolled up to the emir’s foot, and he thoughtfully examined the face of the dead enemy. The painting “Presenting Trophies” was included in the “Barbarians” cycle, which Vereshchagin wrote after returning from Turkestan, when the Bukhara emir declared jihad - a holy war - on Russia. But can war be sacred when there are severed heads under your feet?

"They are triumphant"
1872 Oil on canvas. 195.5×257 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery.
Cycle “Barbarians”, Turkestan series

A crowd gathered in the square in front of the majestic Sherdor madrasah in Samarkand. A mullah dressed in white in the center reads a sermon. People celebrate, but what? The answer becomes obvious if you take a closer look. The heads of soldiers stick out on the poles - an honorary trophy of the emir's army, put on public display. They might not be noticed at all against the backdrop of multi-colored ornaments filled with bright sun. And yet here they are, watching the crowd feast on literal bones. On the frame there is an inscription: “So commands God! There is no God but God."

"Suppression of the Indian Rebellion by the British"
1884. Location unknown.
Series "Three Plagues"

This lost painting has a traditional interpretation: English soldiers execute rebels during India's struggle for independence from the British Empire. The rebels are tied to the barrel of the guns. A volley is about to be heard and the unfortunate people will be blown to pieces. The execution, which was called " devil wind"was cruel not only in physical sense. For deep religious population For India, what was worse than death was “to appear before the highest judge in an incomplete, tormented form, without a head, without arms, with a lack of limbs.” It is difficult to imagine a more humiliating reprisal, given the caste nature of Indian society: the body parts collected after the execution were buried all together, en masse. After Vereshchagin painted this painting, the British accused him of espionage. However, he conveyed his idea accurately: a colonial war, like any other, makes masters out of some and slaves out of others.

“Everything is calm on Shipka”, triptych
1878–1879 Canvas, oil. Private collections, Kostroma State United Art Museum.
Balkan series

Three paintings, united by one plot, tell about last hours the life of an ordinary soldier during the Russian-Turkish War (1877–1878). Despite the snowstorm and severe cold, he holds his post on the captured Shipka Pass until his last breath: in the third picture, all that remains of him is a snowdrift and the tip of a bayonet sticking out from under the snow. It seems that the command simply forgot about him and left him to be torn apart by the elements. This triptych talks about the dishonesty and irresponsibility of army leaders who diligently hid the real state of affairs. The war here is not in beautiful battle scenes and eyes burning with heroism, but in the unforgivable carelessness of commanders who do not care about their people. The Russian soldiers guarding the pass were not only subjected to daily shelling by the Turks. Often they simply froze in the snow because they did not have the proper equipment. During the period from September to December 1877, 700 people were out of action wounded or killed, and more than 9,000 were sick. But did the generals really care? “Everything is calm on Shipka,” commanders regularly reported to the capital.

“Shipka - Sheinovo. Skobelev near Shipka"
1878–1879 Canvas, oil. 147×299 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery.
Balkan series

The Battle of Shipka Pass took place on January 9, 1878 and brought the Russian army a long-awaited victory. The grueling defense was finally over, and it was time for the heroes to rejoice. General Skobelev circles the ranks of survivors with congratulations, and the soldiers joyfully throw their hats into the air. Jumps briskly White horse, the victorious banner flutters. But what is the price of this victory? The fun and joy of the winners is not so important, since foreground There were dozens of bloodied and mutilated bodies - Russian and Turkish soldiers. Unlike their brothers, they will forever remain in the snow near Shipka. This canvas by Vereshchagin was included in the Balkan series, dedicated to events Russian-Turkish war. He described his work on the cycle as follows: “You start writing, burst into tears, give up... You can’t see anything behind the tears...”

“Before the attack. Near Plevna"
1881 Oil on canvas. 179×401 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery.
Balkan series

The command gave the order to storm Plevna. The army is ready to begin the offensive. Emperor Alexander II peers into the distance, his adjutants examine the enemy through binoculars. Paradoxically, commanders almost never participate in battle. They only give orders, sending ordinary people to their deaths. In this picture by Vereshchagin, the army leaders cannot even really see what is happening. They are visually separated from the army and peek “around the corner.” On the day of the attack, the emperor watched the battle from the “snack mountain” - a hill where he and his headquarters celebrated name days and raised glasses of champagne “for the health of those who are now fighting there.” After the battle, the artist returned to this place: “Piles of grenade fragments and bones of soldiers, forgotten during burial, are lying everywhere. Only on one mountain there are no human bones or pieces of cast iron, but there are still corks and fragments of champagne bottles lying there - no joke.”

“After the attack. Dressing station near Plevna"
1878–1881 Canvas, oil. 183×402 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery.
Balkan series

The third assault on Plevna turned out to be a complete failure - the Russian army lost about 13,000 people and was forced to temporarily retreat. Sergei Vereshchagin also died in the battle - brother artist. Vasily wandered for a long time among the decaying bodies of the dead, trying to find him, and this sight made an indelible impression on him. The artist recalled the days after the battle: “The number of wounded was so great that it exceeded all expectations. Everything that was prepared turned out to be insufficient.<...>Each of the doctors worked for two, the nurses provided unremunerated services during these days, and despite this, masses of wounded remained for days without bandages and without food. When it rained, the wounded literally got wet through and through, since there was nowhere for everyone to hide.” Hours of suffering, pain, agony and often heavy death are the price that must be paid in any war, no matter what it is fought for.

"Winners"
1878–1879 Canvas, oil. 180×301 cm. Kyiv National Museum Russian art.
Balkan series

Another picture about the Russian-Turkish War depicts the finale of the battle of Telish, when, through the fault of the commanders, the Russian regiment was almost completely destroyed. Again on the canvas are the bodies of the dead and the few survivors. But the horror of this picture is not in the victims carried away by death. The inhumanity of those who remained to live is terrible. The victorious Turks rummage through the pockets of the dead - what if they find something valuable? They immediately pull off their uniforms and boots from their still warm bodies and laugh merrily, taking one of the survivors prisoner. War shocks and blurs the eye, and at some point cruel acts no longer seem unnatural. Vereshchagin shows disrespect for the dead - albeit enemies, but the same people who have children and families left at home.

“Defeated. Memorial Service"
1879 Oil on canvas. 179.7×300.4 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery

After the end of the assault on Plevna and the Russian-Turkish War, Vereshchagin wrote: “I cannot express the severity of the impression I endured while touring the battlefields in Bulgaria. In particular, the hills surrounding Plevna are overwhelming with memories - they are continuous masses of crosses, monuments, more crosses and endless crosses.” In the painting “Dirge” the war is depicted as all-consuming death. The pale yellow field is strewn with bodies to the very horizon, and there is no end to them. Two gloomy figures of a priest and a commander performing a funeral service are the only living things there. The sky in mourning sheds bitter tears for the great human stupidity, which forces us to start senseless and cruel wars over and over again, from generation to generation.

"Apotheosis of War"
1871 Oil on canvas. 127×197 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery

Perhaps this is the most famous painting the artist, which crowns his work. The picture shows a hot desert, scorched Orchard, the ruins of the city are all that remains of the once flourishing region. A flock of vultures circles above this cemetery in search of prey. Vereshchagin knew very well human anatomy and carefully wrote out every skull in the huge pyramid. These remains belong not only to soldiers: there are also old people, women and children. This means that war affects everyone. And destroys everyone. This work is a moral sermon to all living people and the apotheosis of Vereshchagin's philosophy. On the frame there is an address inscription: “Dedicated to all great conquerors - past, present and future.”

Vereshchagin hated war, although all his life he selflessly wrote only about it. He died while sketching another battle during a naval clash between Russia and Japan. He wrote about his work: “There are many other subjects that I would depict much more willingly. All my life I have passionately loved and wanted to paint the sun.”

You can see the artist’s paintings live from April 20 to July 24 at the State Russian Museum at the retrospective exhibition “Vasily Vasilyevich Vereshchagin. To the 175th anniversary of the birth", the general sponsor of which is VTB Bank.

The outstanding Russian artist Vasily Vereshchagin was born on October 26, 1842. His paintings are stunning with their realism; the creator is called one of the best in the field of battle scenes. But his personality is no less striking than his paintings. A man of amazing depth knew how to realize himself in different areas life, to always prove oneself a brave and worthy citizen. He managed to do much more than any other artist of that time. An active public figure and writer, researcher and historian - all these are rightfully the titles of Vasily Vasilyevich.

He was born into the family of a landowner and already at the age of 9 entered cadet corps, after which he entered the service. But very soon Vereshchagin resigned and entered the Academy of Arts, he studied painting with the best masters, and then even went to practice in Paris, where he studied with Jerome himself. He was especially successful in paintings painted from life. He spent quite a long time in the Caucasus, where he managed to bring this skill to perfection. The beauty of nature, incredibly textured faces - Vasily Vershchagin carefully examined all this and transferred it to canvas.
Vereshchagin is one of the few Russian artists who held exhibitions in London, worked in Munich and traveled around India. Perhaps no one could afford this at that time. He was very rich life, constantly traveled and looked for new stories in everything. After a trip to India, he traveled through Palestine and Syria, becoming interested in biblical stories. We propose to remember the most famous paintings painter.

The apotheosis of war. Dedicated to all great conquerors, past, present and future.- most strong picture Vereshchagin, who is often called the “artist of the truth of war.” Nothing passes without a trace and they pay for the selfishness and greed of those in power ordinary soldiers. Skulls and crows - nothing else.

Taj Mahal Mausoleum near Agra, 1874 - the painting was painted during a trip to Turkmenistan. Its peculiarity is the image of an energetically strong place. The Taj Mahal rises above the desert beauty of the city, reflected in the water, its peaks calling for admiration.


Attack by surprise- war is always merciless and there are no winners in it, and there are always only losers - simple people. Soldiers attack unarmed and almost helpless soldiers by surprise. The battle painter Vereshchagin once again showed his talent in depicting non-standard and “ugly” scenes of military operations.

In conquered Moscow (“Arsonists” or “Execution in the Kremlin”)— the picture was painted in 1897-1898. Vasily Vasilyevich was born much later famous war 1812, but he studied it quite carefully. All military actions and the victory of one side or another have a cause and effect. Vereshchagin, of course, managed to portray the French soldiers as historians and contemporaries of those events saw them.

Mullah Rahim and Mullah Kerim quarrel on the way to the bazaar- in 1873 the artist painted a canvas that is somewhat different from all his previous works. HE knew how not only to study history and paint landscapes and battle scenes. In his work, a special place should be given to everyday themes. Albeit infrequently, but rather subtly and ironically noted moments ordinary life make you admire the artist's talent.

Japanese— while traveling around the East, in 1903 Vereshchagin painted a series of paintings about Japan. Extraordinary subjects, graphics and clearly defined silhouettes of oriental beauties and architecture make these works one of the most striking in his career.

Black Sea. Cape Fiolent near Sevastopol— the landscape painted from life amazes with its realism. Black Sea, rocky terrain and incredible nature. There is nothing superfluous or contrived here, just a magnificent view in its pristine beauty.

Barge hauler with a hat in his hand. 1866 - social themes took their place in the artist’s work. He often wondered about wealth and poverty, about class inequality. And he painted pictures that made us think about the fate of the lower strata. Barge haulers, beggars in Samarkand, the sale of a child slave - nothing escaped the artist’s attentive gaze. Everything in the barge hauler’s posture and clothing speaks of his difficult lot and the impossibility of changing anything. Hopelessness in every gesture.
Laura Fame

Vasily Vereshchagin during his graduation from the Naval Cadet Corps

In 1860, the best graduate of the Naval Corps, who was predicted brilliant career, submitted his resignation. Against the wishes of the parents and public opinion Seventeen-year-old Vasily Vereshchagin preferred the hard work of a painter to the prestigious naval service. But after parting with the army, he remained faithful to the military theme in his work.

Taj Mahal Mausoleum in Agra

Vasily Vasilyevich Vereshchagin devoted his entire life to depicting war. He was the first of the battle painters to see in it not a heroic action, not the triumph of commanders, but blood, grief and greatest tragedy. With all his work, Vereshchagin convinced that in war “for every hour of glory there are thirty, forty and, perhaps, much more more hours suffering and torment of all kinds."

Horseman in Jaipur.1880

The master’s paintings made viewers cry and be horrified, cursing the bloody massacres and their initiators. Each of his exhibitions was an event. IN late XIX century he became the most famous Russian painter in Europe and America.

Kyrgyz tents on the Chu River. 1869-1870

Rich Kyrgyz hunter with a falcon. 1871

The inside of a rich Kyrgyz yurt. 1869-1870

Kalmyk chapel.1870

Mausoleum of the Taj Mahal.1870

Parsi priest (fire worshiper). Bombay. 1870

Buddhist temple in Darjeeling. Sikkim. 1874

Camel in the courtyard of the caravanserai.1870

Hemis Monastery in Ladakh.1875

Three main deities in a Buddhist temple.1875

Two Jews.1884

Mausoleum of Shah-i-Zinda in Samarkand.1870

Holy Family.1884

In the Alatau mountains.1870

Pearl Mosque in Agra

Baniya (merchant). Bombay. 1870

Rajnagar. Marble embankment decorated with bas-reliefs on a lake in Udaipur.1874

Evening on the lake. One of the pavilions on the Marble Embankment in Rajnagar (Principality of Udaipur). 1874

Tamerlane Gate.1871

Kalmyk Lama.1870

Old Delhi.1875

Cart in Delhi.1875

Mughal throne room in Delhi.1875

Bazaar

Arab on a camel.1870

Dervishes in festive clothes.1870

Quarrel on the way to the market. 1873

His success was not accidental. Vereshchagin received a good art education: attended classes at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists, studied for three years at the Academy of Arts, honed his skills in Paris in the Studio fine arts J. Jerome.

In India. Snow of the Himalayas

From Paris the artist twice in 1863-1865. traveled to the Caucasus. The result of his trips was a series of Caucasian drawings, which he exhibited at the Academy of Arts in 1867.

Bukhara soldier.1873

Glacier on the road from Kashmir to Ladakh. Sketch.1875

Since 1867, the artist has been traveling around Central Asia. He is attracted to monuments ancient culture, customs and morals of indigenous peoples, their unique way of life. With the outbreak of the war against the Bukhara emir, Vereshchagin was with the Russian army, participating as an artist in the Central Asian campaign.

The main street in Samarkand from the heights of the citadel in the early morning. 1869-1870

He strives to capture on paper all the features of this difficult and unusual war for the Russian army. But the situation develops in such a way that he also has to take up arms.

Lama of the so-called “Red Sect” in full robes.1875

Promoted to ensign, Vereshchagin distinguished himself in many battles; for his heroism he was awarded the Order of St. George, 4th degree - the most honorable military award. By the way, he is the only famous Russian artist awarded this order.

Mausoleum Gur-Emir. Samarkand

Migration of the Kirghiz.1870

Politicians in an opium shop. Tashkent. 1870

Opium eaters.1867

At the door of the mosque.1873

Himalayan pony.1875

At the end of hostilities, Vereshchagin, overwhelmed with impressions, left for Munich and for three years painted a series of paintings called “Turkestan”. The paintings shown at the exhibition shocked the audience and brought the artist wide fame. On the canvases “The Mortally Wounded”, “Attacked by Surprise”, “The Forgotten Soldier”, “The Winners”, ordinary people saw the war without embellishment for the first time.

Shir-Dor Madrasah on Registan Square in Samarkand.1870

Doors of Timur (Tamerlane) 1872

Sale of a slave child. 1872

A special, indelible impression was made on everyone by the painting “The Apotheosis of War,” which completed the series. In the foreground, against the backdrop of a desert landscape with ruined houses and burnt trees, is a pyramid of human skulls and a flock of crows.

Afghan.1868

The artist took the plot as a basis historical fact- such terrible signs were left by the cruel conqueror Tamerlane on his way. The Turkestan series of paintings was acquired by P.M. Tretyakov for his gallery, which was evidence of the artist’s undoubted success and recognition.

View of the Moscow Kremlin from the Big Stone Bridge

Vereshchagin's skill began to be called striking. For many, the master’s work was like a challenge, like an attack on their right to sacrifice other people’s lives without hesitation. Field Marshal Moltke banned German military personnel from visiting his exhibitions, and Cardinal Ganglbauer was held in Vienna procession, to “cleanse” those who saw the “blasphemous” paintings.

Lower Bazaar in Nizhny Novgorod. Kremlin. Church of John the Baptist.

In Russia, the attitude towards Vereshchagin’s paintings was also not unambiguous. The common people and progressive intelligentsia received them with delight. “When you look at this colossus, everything around you seems so small, insignificant,” Repin said about Vereshchagin. The ruling elite received the artist’s works with hostility. Alexander II called him a “nihilist,” and persecution began in the “right-wing” press. Brought to nervous breakdown the artist destroyed three canvases: “They Entered”, “Surrounded - Pursued”, “Forgotten Soldier”. And only the decisive intervention of Peredvizhniki artists and prominent art figures could support the master.

Two fakirs.1876

Carriage of rich people to Delhi

Fakirs.1876

Defiantly refusing the title of professor offered by the Academy of Arts, Vereshchagin left for India and Tibet in 1874. The result of this trip was the large “Indian Series of Paintings”.

Buddhist Lama.1875

During his life, the artist created several more large painting series. But greatest interest represent two - Balkan and dedicated Patriotic War 1812.

Barskoon Passage

In the Alatau mountains

Horseman warrior in Jaipur.1881

The artist wants to see everything with his own eyes, to feel what inhuman suffering the soldiers go through to achieve victory. During the Russian-Turkish war, he crossed the Danube with troops, went out with sailors to blow up a Turkish monitor, and in the detachment of General Skobelev committed winter transition through the Balkans, freezing in icy trenches on Shipka, participating in the assault on Plevna.

Cape near Sevastopol.1897

Italian village on the seashore.

Trinity Day. Kolomenskoye village.

The result of what he experienced and saw was a series of 25 paintings and 50 sketches, into which the artist put a part own life, pain of the soul. “I take what I write too close to my heart,” he admitted, “I literally cry out the grief of every wounded and killed person.”

Church of the 17th century in Yaroslavl

Icon of St. Nicholas from the upper reaches of the Pinega River. 1894

Interior view of the Church of St. John the Evangelist on Ishna near Rostov-Yaroslavsky.1888

Napoleon I in Russia.In the Assumption Cathedral.1890

For a long time the artist harbored the idea of ​​writing big cycle paintings dedicated to the Patriotic War of 1812, for which he studied archival materials and visited battle sites. “I had one goal,” he wrote, “to show in the paintings of the twelfth year the great national spirit of the Russian people, their dedication and heroism...”

After the thunderstorm

For many of us, it was with Vereshchagin’s paintings and Lermontov’s poem “Borodino” that the knowledge of this tragic and great event in the life of Russia began.

Street in Rostov

The picture from this series “The End of the Battle of Borodino” is often published in articles devoted to the War of 1812 without thinking that it depicts jubilant French cuirassiers on a Russian position littered with corpses.

On high road. Retreat, flight.1890

The artist travels a lot throughout his life. In 1884, he visited Syria and Palestine and painted a number of paintings based on subjects from the New Testament. In 1890 he made trips to the north of Russia, the Caucasus and Crimea. He visits America twice, where his exhibitions are successfully held. In 1901-1902 commits a long cruise, visits Philippine Islands and Cuba, in 1903 - Japan.

Shinto temple in Nikko.1904

Japanese.1903

All his life, Vereshchagin believed that a battle painter does not have the right “to write about war, looking at the battle from a beautiful distance, and that you need to feel and do everything yourself, participate in attacks, assaults, victories, defeats, experience hunger, cold, illness, wounds and not be afraid to sacrifice your blood.”

Brahmin temple in Adelnur.1876

In the Alatau mountains.

And even in death he shared the fate of his heroes. Vasily Vasilyevich died on March 31, 1904 near Port Arthur in the explosion of the battleship Petropavlovsk, which encountered a Japanese mine.

Celebrating.1872

Presenting the trophy.1872

Caravan of yaks loaded with salt

Turkmen.1868

Attacking by surprise.1871

At the fortress wall. Let them come in.1871

Parliamentarians - Surrender! - Get the hell out!

After failure.1868

Looking out.1873

Two hawks. Bashi-bazouki.1878

After luck.1868

Let me come.1895

Shoot.1890

Height Shipka

Road of prisoners of war.1879

Snow trenches (Russian positions at Shipka Pass) 1881

Skobelev near Shipka

Before the attack. Near Plevna.1881

Mortally wounded.1873

Napoleon on the Borodino Heights.1897

Memorial service

The Forgotten Soldier.1880

Cannibal.1880

In conquered Moscow.1898

The apotheosis of war. Dedicated to all great conquerors, past, present and future.

Name: Vasily Vereschagin

Age: 61 years old

Activity: artist

Family status: was married

Vasily Vereshchagin: biography

Vasily Vereshchagin is the most famous of the battle painters, a creator about whom a contemporary and critic said:

“Not just an artist, but something more. Despite the interest of his painting collections, the author himself is a hundred times more interesting and instructive.”

Childhood and youth

The biography of Vasily Vasilyevich has been associated with military affairs since childhood. The boy was born in noble family Cherepovets October 14, 1842. The father held a prominent government position and took the education of his descendants very seriously. Vasily became the third of four sons. All of them were sent to military educational institutions.

The two younger ones, Sergei and Alexander, connected their lives with the art of war, and the two older ones, Vasily and Nikolai, chose a different path, which earned their father’s wrath. Nikolai later became public figure and the organizer of a new industry in the economy - butter and cheese making.

Vasily connected his life with the theater of military operations, but by no means in the way his father expected. The boy entered the Naval Cadet Corps of St. Petersburg. In addition to outstanding military figures, the institution could boast of graduates who achieved heights in other fields: navigator and discoverer, marine painter Alexei Bogolyubov, adventurer Fyodor Tolstoy. Future master of the genre battle painting Vereshchagin added to this list.

According to contemporaries, the young man had a willful character. He grew up arrogant, rude, hot-tempered, prone to demonstrative behavior, but at the same time tenacious, gifted, strong-willed.

The teachers admired the boy's talent for sketching what he saw from memory. In the future, this gift will play a significant role in the development of Vereshchagin as a creator. In parallel with his studies at a military institution, he was allowed to attend classes at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists.

Having gone from cadet to midshipman, he clearly decided not to continue military career. After serving a short term with the rank of midshipman, he resigned and already in 1860 entered the Imperial Academy of Arts, where he studied intermittently until 1866.

Absences occurred in the Caucasus, where he painted from life, and in France, where Vasily took lessons from the painter Jean-Leon Gerome and attended classes at the Paris Academy of Fine Arts. Upon returning to St. Petersburg, he graduated from the Academy of Arts and almost immediately set off on his first creative journey.

Creation

In 1867, the Governor-General of Turkestan, Konstantin von Kaufmann, invited young Vasily to accompany him as an artist. Like the war reporters of the future, Vereshchagin enlisted and meticulously documented the events surrounding him with pen and brush. Upon arrival in Samarkand he came under siege. Having set an example to the entire garrison, he rushed with weapons at the enemy, and the soldiers rushed after him to attack.

The valiant deed was awarded the Order of St. George, IV degree. This award was the only one in his life that the artist accepted. He denied distinctive signs and division into classes and ranks, especially in art. For the same reason, in the 70s he refused the honorary title of professor at the Academy of Arts.

In 1869, the battle painter returned to St. Petersburg, where, with the assistance of von Kaufman, he demonstrated his work as part of the Turkestan Exhibition. The paintings presented to the public were painted by the author in Tashkent, Bukhara, Samarkand and other cities. Soon Vereshchagin again goes to the Turkestan region, but this time his path runs through Siberia.

He visited Kyrgyzstan, Semirechye. An indelible impression was made by Western China, where there was a struggle against the rebellious Dungans. Ruined villages, ruins of houses and human remains became the subjects of his sketches.

According to one version, the work “The Apotheosis of War” was written under the influence of the story of the tyrant Valikhantor, who executed hundreds of people in the Kashgar district. Their heads were placed in pyramids by decree of the despot. According to another opinion, the premise was the legend of Tamerlane, who helped the wives of Baghdad and Damascus to punish their husbands who were mired in sin. The warrior instructed the soldiers to cut off the heads of the libertines, and then put them in 7 pyramids.

Describing the genre of the painting, Vasily Vasilyevich gloomily joked that if you remove the crows, you will get a still life. One way or another, the monumental canvas of 1871 with the inscription on the frame “Dedicated to all great conquerors - past, present and future” became one of the key works in “ Turkestan series", which Vereshchagin created in 1871-1873 in Munich. The cycle also included the “Barbarians” subseries.

In total, 81 sketches, 133 drawings and 13 paintings were created. In addition to military images, the canvases depict everyday life, nature, architecture, colorful representatives of the local population, as, for example, in the “Portrait of a Bachi”.

The series also included the painting “Fatally Wounded,” now kept in the State Tretyakov Gallery. The picture became a kind of anti-war manifesto for Vereshchagin. Paradoxically, the war simultaneously repulsed and attracted the artist. It, its consequences, and its participants were the subject of creativity, but the horrors of death strengthened the pacifist worldview. Battle paintings he wrote in the name of peace.

Vernissage took place in Crystal Palace London in 1873, and the year later work was seen by the public of Moscow and St. Petersburg. Vereshchagin believed personal exhibitions the only acceptable form of communication with the viewer, one-on-one. During the artist’s lifetime, over 60 of them took place in cities in Europe, Russia and the United States. According to contemporaries, works of art affected the audience “like severe nightmares of fever.”

The creator's phenomenal memory allowed him to write in the studio. He valued the art of photography for its realistic rendering of details. In his work, he tried to describe the event with photographic accuracy, which formed a unique style with static composition, clear lines, redundant bright colors. However, the artist did not recognize realism for the sake of realism. The absence of an idea in the canvas equated it to an object of decor, furniture, nothing more:

“Each of my paintings should say something, at least that’s why I paint them,” said Vereshchagin.

From Germany the artist moves to India and visits Tibet. In 1877, with the beginning Russian-Turkish war again finds himself in the thick of things and even gets shot in the leg. The destroyer Shutka, on board which the artist was sailing, came under fire from the Turks. The wound turned out to be serious, gangrene began, but a timely operation returned the man to duty.

Afterwards, the tireless traveler goes to Palestine and Syria. The reports on the trip included the “Trilogy of Executions”, “Palestine Series” and the artist’s reflections:

“I was especially struck by the fact that even in our time people kill each other everywhere under all kinds of pretexts and in all kinds of ways. Killing in droves is still called war, but killing individuals is called death penalty. Everywhere the same worship of brute force and the same inconsistency... and this is done even in Christian countries in the name of one whose teaching was based on peace and love.

One of latest episodes Vereshchagin became “Napoleon in Russia”, written in 1887-1900. Among the paintings that demonstrated patriotism and national spirit, “The End of the Battle of Borodino” stood out.

This was followed by the “Hospital Series”, in the paintings of which the author depicted his second wife Lydia in the image of a nurse.

Japan was a country where the painter wanted to visit long years. In 1903, he visited the Land of the Rising Sun and managed to bring about 20 sketches before the political situation completely heated up.

Having barely started two large paintings on Japanese theme, the painter again went to Far East- In 1904, the Russo-Japanese War began. Here in Port Arthur, the artist died on board a battleship that was hit by a mine.

Vereshchagin was not only a battle painter, but a talented publicist. He is the author of a dozen books and many articles, notes and essays published in the press both in Russia and abroad.

Personal life

In the artist’s personal life, full of travel and military expeditions, there was a place love relationships. The painter was married twice. It is curious that both spouses were, in one way or another, associates of his work. The first wife, Elisabeth Fischer, whom he met in Munich, helped write books.

The wedding took place in 1871, and in 1889, during a trip to the USA, Vasily Vasilyevich became interested in the pianist Lydia Andreevskaya, who was involved in the musical accompaniment of his exhibitions. In 1894, the couple tied the knot.

In unions, the artist had five children. Dedicated to the events in Vereshchagin’s life from childhood memories to death in the gloomy waves of Port Arthur documentary“Chronicle of War” of the TV channel “Culture”.

Death

In 1904, the artist went to the Far East, where the battles unfolded Russo-Japanese War.

On March 31, he entered the outer roadstead of Port Arthur on board the battleship Petropavlovsk under the command of the famous admiral Stepan Makarov. The ship hit a mine. The artist and the ship's crew died.

Paintings

• 1871 – “Rich Kyrgyz hunter with falcon”
• 1871 – “Attacked by surprise”
• 1871-1872 – “Apotheosis of War”
• 1873 – “Fatally Wounded”
• 1874-1876 – “Taj Mahal Mausoleum in Agra”
• 1881 – “In the Turkish mortuary”
• 1884 – “Suppression of the Indian Rebellion by the British”
• 1884-1885 – “Execution of conspirators in Russia”
• 1887 – “Roman Crucifixion”
• 1899-1901 – “The end of the Battle of Borodino”
• 1903 – “In the Park”