Types of Russian painting. Painting: originality, technique, types and genres, significance in the history of styles

Painting is one of the most common forms of art, with the help of which artists convey their vision of the world to viewers.

Thus, painting is a separate and very popular look visual arts, in which visual images are conveyed by the master through the application of paints to the surface of the painting.

All paintings that exist today can be divided into several separate genres, which have their own characteristics in subject matter and image technique. Let's consider the main ones in order to have a correct idea of ​​the structure of paintings.

So, among modern genres of painting we can name the following:

• Portrait
• Scenery
• Marina
• History painting
• Battle painting
• Still life
• Genre painting
• Architectural painting
• Religious painting
• Animal painting
• Decorative painting

Schematic division of genres pictorial art will look like this:

Portrait

Many of us are familiar with the genre of painting known as portraiture. This is one of the most ancient types of fine painting, and can also be found in sculpture and graphics. Previously, there were no photographs, so everyone is rich or famous person considered it necessary to perpetuate his face and figure for posterity - and in this, portrait painters came to his aid.

Moreover, the portrait can depict both real people and literary or mythical heroes. In addition, both a portrait of a person who lived in past times and of our contemporary who exists today can be created.

The portrait genre has no clear boundaries, so in one work a portrait can be combined with elements of other genres of painting - landscape, still life, and so on.

Types of portraits

Among the most common types portrait painting the following can be distinguished:

• Historical portrait
• Retrospective portrait
• Portrait - painting
• Typical portrait
• Self-portrait
• Donor portrait
• Ceremonial portrait
• Half-dress portrait
• Chamber portrait
• Intimate portrait
• Small format portrait
• Portrait - miniature

Each type of portraiture has its own characteristic features and differences in execution technique. Let's look at them in more detail.

• Historical portrait- contains an image of any historical figure, political figure or creative person. Such a portrait can be created from the memories of contemporaries or born in the imagination of the painter.

• Retrospective portrait- a posthumous image of a person who lived in the past, which was created according to descriptions of eyewitnesses or from an intravital image. However, there may also be cases where the portrait was completely composed by the master.

• Painting - portrait- a person is depicted in a plot relationship with the surrounding world, nature, against the backdrop of architectural buildings or the activities of other people. In portrait paintings, the blurring of boundaries and the combination of various genres - landscape, historical and battle painting, and so on - are most clearly visible.

• Typical portrait- artist - painter depicts a collective image composed of characteristic features the appearance of many people united by common ideas, activities, social status or way of life.

• Portrait in costume- the person depicted is presented to the viewer in the form of a literary or theatrical character, historical figure or mythological hero. Similar portraits are of particular interest for the study of costumes from other eras.

• Self-portrait- a special type of portrait painting in which the artist depicts himself. That is, he wants to convey and convey to the audience his inner essence.

• Donor portrait- one of the outdated forms of portraiture. Such a painting with a religious theme depicted a person who made large donations to the church. He appeared before the audience surrounded by saints, next to the Madonna or on one of the doors of the altar, kneeling. Wealthy people in those days saw a special meaning in creating a donor portrait, because such paintings were always perceived positively and were revered on a par with.

By nature and method of depiction human figures, all portraits are divided into the following types:

• Ceremonial portrait- shows a man in a standing position at full height. At the same time, all the details of the appearance and figure are written out very clearly.

• Half-dress portrait- a person is depicted from the waist up, to the knees, or in a sitting position when the lower part of the legs is not visible. In such a work of portraiture, the image plays a huge role. environment or accessories.

• Chamber portrait- the human figure is performed on a neutral background, and a shortened version of the image of the human figure is used - to the waist, to the chest, or even to shoulder level. In this case, the master draws out the person’s facial features especially clearly and carefully.

• Intimate portrait- used extremely rarely and is one of the varieties chamber portrait thanks to execution on a neutral background. The creation of an intimate portrait is based on the artist’s deep feelings for the person depicted or a trusting relationship between them.

• Small format portrait- a small painting. usually done with ink, pencil, pastel or watercolors.

• Portrait - miniature- one of the most recognizable and complex types of portraiture in terms of technique. The miniature is characterized by a small image format (from 1.5 to 20 cm), as well as extraordinary subtlety of writing and careful, almost jeweler-like drawing of all lines. Miniature portraits were inserted into medallions and used to decorate watches, bracelets, brooches, rings and snuff boxes.

Scenery

The landscape represents separate genre painting, the main object of which is nature in its original form or slightly changed in the process of human activity.

Genre landscape painting known since ancient times. However, in the Middle Ages it somewhat lost its relevance. But already in the Renaissance, landscape was revived and acquired the significance of one of the most important genres in pictorial art.

Marina

Marina (from Latin word"marinus" - "marine") - special genre painting, in which all depicted events, types of human activity and pictures of nature are dedicated to the sea. Often the canvases depict seascapes in different time years and under different lighting conditions.

Artists painting sea ​​spaces in their various manifestations, are called “marinists”. One of the most famous marine painters is Ivan Aivazovsky, who created over 6 thousand paintings on marine themes.

History painting

The genre of historical painting originated in the Renaissance, when artists sought to reflect in their canvases scenes from the life of society in various periods of history.

However, on historical paintings Not only pictures from life could be depicted real people, but also mythological stories, as well as illustrated reimaginings of biblical and gospel stories.

Historical painting serves to display events of the past that are most important for a particular people or all of humanity as a whole.

Battle painting

One of the varieties of the historical genre is battle painting, the subject of images of which is devoted mainly to military events, famous battles on land and sea, as well as military campaigns. The battle genre covers the history of military clashes throughout the history of human civilization.

Wherein battle paintings They are distinguished by the large number and variety of figures depicted, as well as fairly accurate pictures of the terrain and features of a particular region.

The battle painter faces several difficult tasks:

1. Show the heroism of war and show the behavior of the most courageous warriors.
2. Capture a particularly important or turning point in a battle.
3. Reveal full in your work historical meaning military events.
4. Accurately and clearly express the behavior and experiences of each of the participants in the battle - both famous commanders and ordinary soldiers.

It should be noted that the genre of battle painting is considered one of the most difficult, so such paintings are created by masters for a long time - sometimes ten years. The artist is required not only to have excellent knowledge of the detailed history of the battle being depicted, but also to be able to create multi-figure canvases with a large number of auxiliary details. These include pictures of nature, elements of architecture, and images of weapons or military mechanisms. Therefore, the battle genre occupies a special place and stands separately from historical painting.

Still life

Still life is the creation on canvas of compositions from inanimate objects in various combinations. The most popular are images of dishes, flowerpots with bouquets of flowers and fruits on a platter.

Initially, the theme of images in the still life genre arose at the turn of the 15th century. XVI centuries, but the final formation of the genre into a separate direction of painting occurred in the 17th century. The first creators of still lifes were Dutch and Flemish artists. Later, still life took an important place in the work of Russian artists.

The subject matter of images in still lifes can be very rich and varied, and is not limited exclusively to everyday objects. These can be books, magazines and newspapers, bottles, figurines, a globe and many other objects.

The main idea of ​​compositions in the Vanitas genre is the idea of ​​the finitude of earthly existence and humility before the inevitability of the transition to another world. Still lifes with a skull in the center of the composition gained the greatest popularity in the 16th century. XVII centuries in Flanders and the Netherlands. A little later, French and Spanish artists began to contact him.

Genre painting

In the fine arts, genre painting is considered part of everyday genre. Since ancient times, artists have depicted scenes of everyday life of ordinary people - peasants, artisans, traders, as well as servants of noble courtiers in the process of work or in Everyday life their families.

The first examples of genre paintings in modern understanding appeared in the Middle Ages, and subsequently became widespread and popular. The themes of genre paintings are characterized by enviable diversity, which arouses the interest of viewers.

Architectural painting

Architectural painting is a special pictorial genre, the subject of which is devoted to the depiction of buildings, structures and various architectural monuments, as well as the most interesting solutions in the historical aspect. This means an image interior design palaces, theaters and concert halls and so on.

Thanks to such paintings, the viewer has the opportunity to personally see architectural monuments in their original form through the eyes of the artist himself. Works of architectural painting also help in studying the architectural landscape of cities of bygone times.

Animal painting

The animalistic genre is a separate genre of painting that specializes mainly in depicting the animal world of our planet. In paintings of this genre we can see animals, birds, fish, as well as representatives of many other species in their natural habitat.

However, this does not mean that the theme of the animal genre is only wild animals. On the contrary, artists very often paint paintings dedicated to pets - cats, dogs, horses, and so on.

Decorative painting

The genre of decorative painting can be divided into several types, which have their own differences:

• Monumental painting
• Theatrical scenery painting
• Decorative painting

The diversity of the decorative genre is explained by the fact that artists at all times tried to decorate every object in the surrounding world.

• Monumental painting- a genre of monumental art, the works of which are of a fairly large-scale nature and are used as decorative design buildings and structures of a secular and religious nature for various purposes (including churches, office buildings and cultural buildings, architectural monuments and residential buildings).

• Theater scenery- this is a very popular type of decorative genre, which includes the creation of scenery and costume sketches for characters in theatrical productions and movie characters, as well as sketches of individual mise-en-scenes. Artists - decorators in the theater and on film set sometimes they create real masterpieces, which are later included among the best theater and cinema sets.

• Decorative painting- represents plot compositions or ornamental decor created on various parts of buildings and structures, as well as on examples of decorative and applied arts, which have their origins in folk arts and crafts. The main types of painted items were dishes, household items, furniture, and so on.

Painting is distinguished by a variety of genres and types. Each genre is limited to its own range of subjects: the image of a person (portrait), the surrounding world (landscape), etc.
Varieties (types) of painting differ in their purpose.

In this regard, there are several types of painting, which we will talk about today.

Easel painting

The most popular and known species painting – easel painting. It is called this way because it is performed on a machine - an easel. The base is wood, cardboard, paper, but most often canvas stretched on a stretcher. The easel painting is an independent work made in a certain genre. It has a richness of color.

Oil paints

Most often, easel painting is done with oil paints. You can use oil paints on canvas, wood, cardboard, paper, and metal.

Oil paints
Oil paints are suspensions of inorganic pigments and fillers in drying vegetable oils or drying oils or based on alkyd resins, sometimes with the addition of auxiliary substances. Used in painting or for painting wooden, metal and other surfaces.

V. Perov “Portrait of Dostoevsky” (1872). Canvas, oil
But a picturesque picture can also be created using tempera, gouache, pastels, and watercolors.

Watercolor

Watercolor paints

Watercolor (French Aquarelle - watery; Italian acquarello) is a painting technique that uses special watercolor paints. When dissolved in water, they form a transparent suspension of fine pigment, which creates the effect of lightness, airiness and subtle color transitions.

J. Turner “Firvaldstät Lake” (1802). Watercolor. Tate Britain (London)

Gouache

Gouache (French Gouache, Italian guazzo water paint, splash) is a type of adhesive water-soluble paint, denser and more matte than watercolor.

Gouache paints
Gouache paints are made from pigments and glue with the addition of white. The admixture of white gives the gouache a matte velvety quality, but when drying the colors become somewhat whitened (lightened), which the artist must take into account during the drawing process. Using gouache paints you can cover dark tones with light ones.

Vincent Van Gogh "Corridor at Asulum" (black chalk and gouache on pink paper)

Pastel [e]

Pastel (from Latin pasta - dough) is an artistic material used in graphics and painting. Most often it comes in the form of crayons or rimless pencils, shaped like bars with a round or square cross-section. Pastel happens three types: “dry”, oily and waxy.

I. Levitan “River Valley” (pastel)

Tempera

Tempera (Italian tempera, from the Latin temperare - to mix paints) - water-based paints prepared on the basis of dry powder pigments. The binder for tempera paints is yolk diluted with water. chicken egg or a whole egg.
Tempera paints are one of the oldest. Before the invention and spread of oil paints until the 15th-17th centuries. tempera paints were the main material for easel painting. They have been used for more than 3 thousand years. The famous paintings of the sarcophagi of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs were made with tempera paints. Tempera painting was mainly done by Byzantine masters. In Russia, the technique of tempera painting was dominant until the end of the 17th century.

R. Streltsov “Chamomiles and violets” (tempera)

Encaustic

Encaustic (from ancient Greek ἐγκαυστική - the art of burning) is a painting technique in which binder the color is wax. Painting is done with melted paints. Many early Christian icons were painted using this technique. Originated in Ancient Greece.

"Angel". Encaustic technique

We draw your attention to the fact that you can find another classification, according to which watercolor, gouache and other techniques using paper and water-based paints are classified as graphics. They combine the features of painting (richness of tone, construction of form and space with color) and graphics (the active role of paper in constructing the image, the absence of the specific relief of the brushstroke characteristic of a painting surface).

Monumental painting

Monumental painting – painting on architectural structures or other reasons. This is the oldest type of painting, known since the Paleolithic. Thanks to its stationarity and durability, numerous examples of it remain from almost all cultures that created developed architecture. Basic techniques monumental painting– fresco, secco, mosaic, stained glass.

Fresco

Fresco (from Italian fresco - fresh) - painting on wet plaster with water paints, one of the wall painting techniques. When dried, the lime contained in the plaster forms a thin transparent calcium film, making the fresco durable.
The fresco has a pleasant matte surface and is durable in indoor conditions.

Gelati Monastery (Georgia). Church Holy Mother of God. Fresco on the upper and southern side of the Arc de Triomphe

A secco

A secco (from Italian a secco – dry) – Wall art, performed, unlike frescoes, on hard, dried plaster, re-moistened. Paints are used, ground on vegetable glue, egg or mixed with lime. Secco allows you to paint a larger surface area per working day than with fresco painting, but is not such a durable technique.
The technique a secco developed in medieval painting along with fresco and was especially widespread in Europe in the 17th-18th centuries.

Leonardo da Vinci "The Last Supper (1498). Technique a secco

Mosaic

Mosaic (French mosaïque, Italian mosaico from Latin (opus) musivum – (work) dedicated to the muses) is decorative, applied and monumental art of various genres. Images in a mosaic are formed by arranging, setting and fixing multi-colored stones, smalt, ceramic tiles and other materials on the surface.

Mosaic panel "Cat"

Stained glass

Stained glass (French vitre - window glass, from Latin vitrum - glass) is a work of colored glass. Stained glass has been used in churches for a long time. During the Renaissance, stained glass existed as painting on glass.

Stained glass window of the Mezhsoyuzny Palace of Culture (Murmansk)
The types of painting also include diorama and panorama.

Diorama

The building of the diorama “Storm of Sapun Mountain on May 7, 1944” in Sevastopol
Diorama is a ribbon-shaped, semicircularly curved pictorial picture with a foreground subject. The illusion of the viewer’s presence in natural space is created, which is achieved by a synthesis of artistic and technical means.
Dioramas are designed for artificial lighting and are located mainly in special pavilions. Most dioramas are dedicated to historical battles.
The most famous dioramas: “Storm of Sapun Mountain” (Sevastopol), “Defense of Sevastopol” (Sevastopol), “Battles for Rzhev” (Rzhev), “Breaking the Siege of Leningrad” (St. Petersburg), “Storm of Berlin” (Moscow), etc.

Panorama

In painting, a panorama is a picture with a circular view, in which a flat pictorial background is combined with a three-dimensional subject foreground. Panorama creates an illusion real space, surrounding the viewer in full circle horizon. Panoramas are used mainly to depict events covering a large area and big number participants.

Panorama Museum "Battle of Borodino" (museum building)
In Russia, the most famous panoramas are the Panorama Museum “Battle of Borodino”, “Battle of Volochaev”, “The Defeat of Nazi Troops at Stalingrad” in the Panorama Museum “Battle of Stalingrad”, “Defense of Sevastopol”, panorama of the Trans-Siberian Railway.

Franz Roubo. Panorama canvas “Battle of Borodino”

Theatrical and decorative painting

Scenery, costumes, makeup, props help to further reveal the content of the performance (film). The scenery gives an idea of ​​the place and time of the action, and activates the viewer’s perception of what is happening on stage. Theater artist strives in sketches of costumes and makeup to acutely express the individual character of the characters, their social status, the style of the era and much more.
In Russia, the flourishing of theatrical and decorative art occurred in turn of XIX-XX centuries At this time, outstanding artists M.A. began working in the theater. Vrubel, V.M. Vasnetsov, A.Ya. Golovin, L.S. Bakst, N.K. Roerich.

M. Vrubel “City of Lollipop”. Set design for the opera by N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" for the Russian Private Opera in Moscow. (1900)

Miniature

A miniature is a pictorial work of small forms. Particularly popular was portrait miniature - a portrait of a small format (from 1.5 to 20 cm), distinguished by the special subtlety of writing, a unique execution technique and the use of means inherent only to this pictorial form.
The types and formats of miniatures are very diverse: they were painted on parchment, paper, cardboard, ivory, metal and porcelain, using watercolor, gouache, special artistic enamels or oil paints. The author can inscribe the image, in accordance with his decision or at the request of the customer, into a circle, oval, rhombus, octagon, etc. A classic portrait miniature is considered to be a miniature made on a thin ivory plate.

Emperor Nicholas I. Fragment of a miniature by G. Morselli
There are several miniature techniques.

Lacquer miniature (Fedoskino)

Miniature with a portrait of Princess Zinaida Nikolaevna (Jusupov jewelry)

The great figure, scientist and artist of the Renaissance Leonardo da Vinci said: “Painting is poetry that is seen, and poetry is painting that is heard.” And one cannot but agree with him. You truly perceive real art from all sides. We see, contemplate, hear, and store in our souls the works of art we like. And world masterpieces remain in our memory for many years.

Genres and types of painting

When drawing a picture, the master performs it in a certain state, a special character. The work will not turn out to be complete, worthy of love and attention, if only shape and color are depicted on it. The artist is obliged to endow objects with soul, people with charisma, spark, perhaps mystery, nature with unique feelings, and events with real experiences. And genres and types of painting help the creator in this. They allow you to correctly convey the mood of an era, event, fact, and better capture main idea, image, landscape.

Among the main ones are the following:

• Historical- depiction of facts, moments of history different countries and eras.
• Battle- conveys scenes of battles.
• Domestic- scenes from everyday life.
• Scenery- these are pictures of living nature. There are sea, mountain, fantastic, lyrical, rural, urban, and cosmic landscapes.
• Still life- illustrates inanimate objects: kitchen utensils, weapons, vegetables, fruits, plants, etc.
• Portrait- This is an image of a person, a group of people. Often, artists like to paint self-portraits or canvases depicting their lovers.
• Animalistic- pictures about animals.

Separately, we can distinguish the plot-thematic genre and include here works whose subject are myths, legends, epics, as well as pictures of everyday life.

Types of painting also imply separate ones. They help the artist achieve perfection in creating a canvas, tell him in which direction to move and work. The following options exist:

- Panorama- image of the area in a large-scale format, general view.

- Diorama- a semicircular image of battles and spectacular events.

- Miniature- manuscripts, portraits.

- Monumental and decorative painting- painting on walls, panels, lampshades, etc.

- Iconography- paintings on religious themes.

- Decorative painting- creation of artistic scenery in cinema and theater.

- Easel painting- in other words, paintings.

- Decorative painting of everyday objects of life.

As a rule, each master of fine art chooses for himself one genre and type of painting that is closest to him in spirit, and primarily works only in it. For example, Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (Hovhannes Gayvazyan) worked in the style of a seascape. Such artists are also called marine painters (from “marina”, which means “sea” in Latin).

Technicians

Painting is a certain manner of execution of a plot, its perception through the world of colors and strokes. And of course, such reproduction cannot be accomplished without the use of certain techniques, templates and rules. The very concept of “technique” in fine art can be defined as a set of techniques, norms and practical knowledge with the help of which the author conveys the idea and plot of the picture most accurately and close to reality.

The choice of painting technique also depends on what type of materials and type of canvas will be used to create the work. Sometimes an artist can take an individual approach to his work, using a mixture of different styles and trends. This author's approach allows us to create truly unique works of art - world masterpieces.

In technical terms, there are several options for painting. Let's look at them in more detail.

Painting of ancient times

The history of painting begins with rock paintings primitive man. At this time, the paintings were not distinguished by the vividness of their plots or the riot of colors, but they had a peculiar emotion. And the stories of those years clearly inform us about the existence of life in the distant past. The lines are extremely simple, the themes are predictable, the directions are unambiguous.

IN ancient times the content of the drawings becomes more diverse, more often they depict animals, different things, entire biographies are made on the entire wall, especially if the pictures are created for the pharaohs, which was very believed at that time. After about another two thousand years, wall paintings begin to acquire colors.

Ancient painting, in particular Old Russian, is well conveyed and preserved in old icons. They are sacred and best example, conveying the beauty of art from God. Their color is unique, and their purpose is perfect. Such painting conveys the unreality of existence, images and instills in a person the idea of ​​the divine principle, of the existence of ideal art, which one must emulate.

The development of painting did not pass without a trace. Behind for a long time humanity has managed to accumulate real relics and spiritual heritage many centuries.

Watercolor

Watercolor painting is distinguished by the brightness of its colors, purity of color and transparency of application on paper. Yes, it is on a paper surface that it is best to work in this fine art technique. The pattern dries quickly and as a result acquires a lighter and more matte texture.

Watercolor does not allow you to achieve interesting shimmers when using dark, monochromatic shades, but it perfectly models color if layers are applied one on top of another. In this case, it turns out to find completely new, unusual options that are difficult to obtain with other artistic techniques.

Difficulties in working with watercolors

The difficulty of working in a technique such as watercolor painting is that it does not forgive mistakes and does not allow improvisation with radical changes. If you didn’t like the applied tone or you got a completely different color than you wanted, then it’s unlikely to be corrected. Any attempts (washing with water, scraping, mixing with other colors) can lead to either a more interesting shade or complete contamination of the painting.

Changing the location of a figure, an object, or any improvement in the composition in this technique is essentially impossible to do. But thanks to the fast drying of paints, painting is ideal for sketching. And in terms of depicting plants, portraits, city landscapes, it can compete with works done in oil.

Oil

Each of the technical varieties of painting has its own specifics. This applies to both the manner of execution and the artistic rendering of the image. Oil painting is one of the most favorite techniques of many artists. It is difficult to work in it, since it requires a certain level of knowledge and experience: from preparing the necessary items, materials to final stage- covering the resulting painting with a protective layer of varnish.

The entire process of oil painting is quite labor-intensive. Regardless of which base you choose: canvas, cardboard or hardboard (fibreboard), it must first be covered with primer. It will allow the paint to adhere and adhere well, without any oil escaping from it. It will also give the background the desired texture and color. There are a lot of types and recipes for different soils. And each artist prefers his own, a certain one that he is used to and which he considers the best option.

As mentioned above, the work takes place in several stages, and the final stage is coating the painting with varnish substances. This is done in order to protect the canvas from moisture, cracks (mesh) and other mechanical damage. Oil painting does not tolerate work on paper, but thanks to a whole technology of applying paints, it allows you to keep works of art safe and sound for centuries.

Chinese fine arts

I would like to pay special attention to the era of Chinese painting, since it has a special page in history. The Eastern direction of painting has developed over more than six thousand years. Its formation was closely connected with other crafts, social changes and conditions occurring in people's lives. For example, after the introduction of Buddhism in China great importance purchased religious frescoes. During the period (960-1127), paintings of a historical nature became popular, also telling about everyday life. Landscape painting established itself as an independent direction already in the 4th century AD. e. Images of nature were created in blue-green colors and Chinese ink. And in the ninth century, artists increasingly began to paint pictures in which they depicted flowers, birds, fruits, insects, fish, embodying in them their ideals and the character of the era.

Features of Chinese painting

Traditional Chinese painting is distinguished by its particular style, as well as the materials used for painting, which, in turn, influences the methods and forms of oriental art. Firstly, Chinese painters use a special brush to create paintings. It looks like watercolor and has a particularly sharp tip. Such a tool allows you to create sophisticated works, and, as you know, the style of calligraphy is still widely used in China. Secondly, ink is used everywhere as paint - Chinese ink (sometimes together with other colors, but it is also used as an independent paint). This has been happening for two thousand years. It is also worth noting that before the advent of paper, painting was done on silk in China. Today, modern masters of art perform their works both on a paper basis and on a silk surface.

This is not all the technical capabilities of painting. In addition to the above-mentioned, there are many others (gouache, pastel, tempera, fresco, acrylic, wax, painting on glass, porcelain, etc.), including original versions of art.

Epochs of painting

Like any form of art, painting has its own history of formation. And above all, it is characterized by different stages of development, multifaceted styles, and interesting directions. The eras of painting play an important role here. Each of them affects not just a piece of the life of a people and not only the time of some historical events, but a whole life! Among the most famous periods in the art of painting are: the Renaissance and Enlightenment, the work of impressionist artists, Art Nouveau, surrealism and many, many others. In other words, painting is visual illustration a certain era, a picture of life, a worldview through the eyes of an artist.

The concept of “painting” literally means “to paint life”, to depict reality vividly, masterfully, and convincingly. To convey on your canvas not only every detail, every little thing, moment, but also the mood, emotions, flavor of a particular time, the style and genre of the entire work of art.

In the XVII-XVIII centuries. The process of development of European painting became more complicated. National schools were formed in France (J. de La Tour, F. Champagne, N. Poussin, A. Watteau, J. B. S. Chardin, J. O. Fragonard, J. L. David), Italy (M. Caravaggio, D. Fetti, J. B. Tiepolo, J. M. Crespi, F. Guardi), Spain (El Greco, D. Velazquez, F. Zurbaran, B. E. Murillo, F. Goya), Flanders (P. P Rubens, J. Jordaens, A. van Dyck, F. Snyders), Holland (F. Hals, Rembrandt, J. Wermeer
, J. van Ruisdael, G. Terborch, K. Fabricius), Great Britain (J. Reynolds, T. Gainsborough, W. Hogarth), Russia (F. S. Rokotov, D. G. Levitsky, V. L. Borovikovsky) . Painting proclaimed new social and civil ideals, turned to a more detailed and accurate depiction of real life in its movement and diversity, especially the everyday environment of a person (landscape, interior, household items); psychological problems deepened, the feeling of a conflictual relationship between the individual and the surrounding world was embodied. In the 17th century The system of genres expanded and clearly took shape. In the XVII-XVIII centuries. Along with the flourishing of monumental and decorative painting (especially in the Baroque style), which existed in close unity with sculpture and architecture and created an emotional environment that actively affected people, easel painting played a major role. Various painting systems were formed, both having common stylistic features (dynamic Baroque painting with its characteristic open, spiral-shaped composition; Classicism painting with a clear, strict and clear design; Rococo painting with a play of exquisite nuances of color, light and faded tones), and not fit into any specific style framework. Striving to reproduce the colorfulness of the world, the light-air environment, many artists improved the system tonal painting. This caused the individualization of multilayer techniques oil painting. The growth of easel art, the increased need for works designed for intimate contemplation, led to the development of chamber, subtle and light painting techniques - pastels, watercolors, ink, various types portrait miniature.

In the 19th century New national schools of realistic painting were emerging in Europe and America. The connections between painting in Europe and other parts of the world expanded, where the experience of European realistic painting received an original interpretation, often based on local ancient traditions (in India, China, Japan, and other countries); European painting was influenced by the art of the Far Eastern countries (mainly Japan and China), which was reflected in the renewal of techniques for the decorative and rhythmic organization of the pictorial plane. In the 19th century painting solved complex and pressing worldview problems, played an active role in public life; Sharp criticism of social reality became important in painting. Throughout the 19th century. in painting, the canons of academicism, far from life, and the abstract idealization of images were also cultivated; tendencies of naturalism arose. In the fight against the abstraction of late classicism and salon academism, the painting of romanticism emerged with its active interest in dramatic events history and modernity, the energy of the pictorial language, the contrast of light and shadow, the richness of color (T. Gericault, E. Delacroix in France; F. O. Runge and K. D. Friedrich in Germany; in many ways O. A. Kiprensky, Sylvester Shchedrin , K. P. Bryullov, A. A. Ivanov in Russia). Realistic painting, based on direct observation of characteristic phenomena of reality, comes to a more complete, concretely reliable, visually convincing depiction of life (J. Constable in Great Britain; C. Corot, masters of the Barbizon school, O. Daumier in France; A.G. Venetsianov, P. A. Fedotov in Russia). During the rise of the revolutionary and national liberation movement in Europe, painting of democratic realism (G. Courbet, J. F. Millet in France; M. Munkacsi in Hungary, N. Grigorescu and I. Andreescu in Romania, A. Menzel, V. Leibl in Germany, etc.) showed the life and work of the people, their struggle for their rights, addressed the most important events of national history, created vivid images of ordinary people and advanced public figures; In many countries, schools of national realistic landscapes emerged. The paintings of the Itinerants and artists close to them, closely related to the aesthetics of Russian revolutionary democrats - V. G. Perov, I. N. Kramskoy, I. E. Repin, V. I. Surikov, V. V. Vereshchagin, were distinguished by their social-critical acuity. I. I. Levitan.

He came to the artistic embodiment of the surrounding world in its naturalness and constant variability in the early 1870s. Impressionist painting (E. Manet, C. Monet, O. Renoir, C. Pissarro, A. Sisley, E. Degas in France), which updated the technique and methods of organizing the pictorial surface, revealing the beauty of pure color and textured effects. In the 19th century in Europe, easel oil painting dominated, its technique in many cases acquired an individual, free character, gradually losing its inherent strict systematicity (which was also facilitated by the spread of new factory-produced paints); the palette expanded (new pigments and binders were created); instead of dark colored soils at the beginning of the 19th century. White soils were reintroduced. Monumental and decorative painting, used in the 19th century. almost exclusively glue or oil paints fell into disrepair. At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. Attempts are being made to revive monumental painting and merge various types of painting with works of decorative and applied art and architecture into a single ensemble (mainly in “modern” art); The technical means of monumental and decorative painting are being updated, and the technique of silicate painting is being developed.

At the end of the XIX - XX centuries. the development of painting becomes especially complex and contradictory; Various realistic and modernist movements coexist and struggle. Inspired by ideals October revolution 1917, armed with method socialist realism, painting is developing intensively in the USSR and other socialist countries. New schools of painting are emerging in the countries of Asia, Africa, Australia, and Latin America.

Realistic painting late XIX- XX centuries is distinguished by the desire to understand and show the world in all its contradictions, to reveal the essence of the deep processes occurring in social reality, which sometimes do not have a sufficiently visual appearance; the reflection and interpretation of many phenomena of reality often acquired a subjective, symbolic character. Painting of the 20th century Along with the visually visible volumetric-spatial method of depiction, he widely uses new (as well as those dating back to antiquity), conventional principles of interpretation of the visible world. Already in the painting of post-impressionism (P. Cezanne, W. van Gogh, P. Gauguin, A. Toulouse-Lautrec) and partly in the painting of “modern”, features emerged that determined the characteristics of some movements of the 20th century. (active expression of the artist’s personal attitude to the world, emotionality and associativeness of color, which has little connection with natural colorful relationships, exaggerated forms, decorativeness). The world was interpreted in a new way in the art of Russian painters of the late 19th - early 20th centuries - in the paintings of V. A. Serov, M. A. Vrubel, K. A. Korovin.

In the 20th century reality is contradictory, and often deeply subjectively realized and translated into the paintings of the largest artists of capitalist countries: P. Picasso, A. Matisse, F. Léger, A. Marquet, A. Derain in France; D. Rivera, J.C. Orozco, D. Siqueiros in Mexico; R. Guttuso in Italy; J. Bellows, R. Kent in the USA. In paintings, wall paintings, picturesque panels a truthful understanding of the tragic contradictions of reality was expressed, often turning into an exposure of the deformities of the capitalist system. Associated with the aesthetic understanding of the new, “technical” era is the reflection of the pathos of the industrialization of life, the penetration into painting of geometric, “machine” forms, to which organic forms are often reduced, the search for those that correspond to the worldview modern man new forms that can be used in decorative arts, architecture and industry. Widespread in painting, mainly in capitalist countries, since the beginning of the 20th century. received various modernist movements, reflecting the general crisis of the culture of bourgeois society; however, modernist painting also indirectly reflects the “sick” problems of our time. In the painting of many modernist movements (Fauvism, Cubism, Futurism, Dadaism, and later surrealism), individual more or less easily recognizable elements of the visible world are fragmented or geometrized, appear in unexpected, sometimes illogical combinations, giving rise to many associations, and merge with purely abstract forms. The further evolution of many of these movements led to a complete abandonment of figurativeness, to the emergence abstract painting(see Abstract art), which marked the collapse of painting as a means of reflecting and understanding reality. Since the mid-60s. in Western Europe and America, painting sometimes becomes one of the elements of pop art.

In the 20th century The role of monumental and decorative painting, both figurative (for example, revolutionary democratic monumental painting in Mexico) and non-figurative, usually flat, in harmony with the geometrized forms of modern architecture, is increasing.

In the 20th century There is a growing interest in research in the field of painting techniques (including wax and tempera; new paints are being invented for monumental painting - silicone, on silicone resins, etc.), but oil painting still predominates.

Multinational Soviet painting is closely connected with communist ideology, with the principles of party membership and nationality of art; it represents qualitatively new stage development of painting, which is determined by the triumph of the method of socialist realism. In the USSR, painting is developing in all union and autonomous republics, and new national schools of painting are emerging. Soviet painting is inherent acute feeling reality, materiality of the world, spiritual richness of images. The desire to embrace socialist reality in all its complexity and completeness has led to the use of many genre forms that are filled with new content. Already from the 20s. special meaning acquires a historical-revolutionary theme (canvases by M. B. Grekov, A. A. Deineka, K. S. Petrov-Vodkin, B. V. Ioganson, I. I. Brodsky, A. M. Gerasimov). Then patriotic paintings appear, telling about the heroic past of Russia, showing the historical drama of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45, the spiritual fortitude of the Soviet man.

Portraits play a major role in the development of Soviet painting: collective images of people from the people, participants in the revolutionary reorganization of life (A. E. Arkhipov, G. G. Rizhsky, etc.); psychological portraits, showing inner world, the spiritual makeup of the Soviet person (M. V. Nesterov, S. V. Malyutin, P. D. Korin, etc.).

The typical way of life of Soviet people is reflected in genre painting, giving a poetically vivid image of new people and a new way of life. Soviet painting is characterized by large canvases imbued with the pathos of socialist construction (S. V. Gerasimov, A. A. Plastov, Yu. I. Pimenov, T. N. Yablonskaya, etc.). The aesthetic affirmation of the unique forms of life of the union and autonomous republics underlies the national schools that have developed in Soviet painting (M. S. Saryan, L. Gudiashvili, S. A. Chuikov, U. Tansykbaev, T. Salakhov, E. Iltner, M. A Savitsky, A. Gudaitis, A. A. Shovkunenko, G. Aitiev, etc.), representing the components of a single artistic culture Soviet socialist society.

In landscape painting, as in other genres, national artistic traditions combined with the search for something new, with a modern sense of nature. The lyrical line of Russian landscape painting (V.N. Baksheev, N.P. Krymov, N.M. Romadin, etc.) is complemented by the development of industrial landscape with its rapid rhythms, with motifs of transformed nature (B.N. Yakovlev, G.G . Nyssa). Still life painting reached a high level (I. I. Mashkov, P. P. Konchalovsky, M. S. Saryan).

The evolution of the social functions of painting is accompanied by the general development of pictorial culture. Within the boundaries of a single realistic method, Soviet painting achieves diversity artistic forms, techniques, individual styles. The wide scope of construction, the creation of large public buildings and memorial ensembles contributed to the development of monumental and decorative painting (works by V. A. Favorsky, E. E. Lansere, P. D. Korin), the revival of the technique of tempera painting, frescoes and mosaics. In the 60s - early 80s. the mutual influence of monumental and easel painting has increased, the desire to make maximum use and enrich means of expression painting (see also the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and articles on the Soviet Union republics).

Lit.: VII, vol. 1-6, M., 1956-66; IRI, vol. 1-13, M., 1953-69; K. Yuon, About painting, [M.-L.], 1937; D. I. Kiplik, Painting technique, M.-L., 1950; A. Kamensky, To the Spectator about Painting, M., 1959; B. Slansky, Painting technique, trans. from Czech., M., 1962; G. A. Nedoshivin, Conversations about painting, M., 1964; B. R. Vipper, Articles about art, M., 1970; Ward J., History and methods of ancient and modern painting, v. 1-4, L., 1913-21; Fosca F., La peinture, qu"est-ce que c"est, Porrentruy-Brux.-P., 1947; Venturi L., Painting and painters, Cleveland, 1963; Cogniat R., Histoire de la peinture, t. 1-2, P., 1964; Barron J. N., The language of painting, Cleveland, ; Nicolaus K., DuMont's Handbuch der Gemaldekunde, Köln, 1979.

Genres of painting appeared, gained popularity, faded away, new ones emerged, and subtypes began to be distinguished within existing ones. This process will not stop as long as a person exists and tries to capture the world around him, be it nature, buildings or other people.

Previously (until the 19th century), there was a division of painting genres into the so-called “high” genres (French grand genre) and “low” genres (French petit genre). This division arose in the 17th century. and was based on what subject and plot were depicted. In this regard, the high genres included: battle, allegorical, religious and mythological, and the low genres included portrait, landscape, still life, animalism.

The division into genres is quite arbitrary, because elements of two or more genres may be present in a painting at the same time.

Animalistics, or animalistic genre

Animalism, or animalistic genre (from the Latin animal - animal) is a genre in which the main motif is the image of an animal. We can say that this is one of the most ancient genres, because... drawings and figures of birds and animals were already present in life primitive people. For example, in the well-known painting by I.I. Shishkin "Morning in pine forest“Nature is depicted by the artist himself, and the bears are depicted by a completely different artist, who specializes in depicting animals.

How can a subspecies be distinguished? Hippic genre(from the Greek hippos - horse) - a genre in which the center of the picture is the image of a horse.

Portrait

Portrait (from the French word portrait) is a picture in which the central image is of a person or group of people. The portrait conveys not only external resemblance, but also reflects the inner world and conveys the artist’s feelings towards the person whose portrait he is painting.

The portrait genre is divided into individual(image of one person), group(image of several people), by the nature of the image - to the front door, when a person is depicted in full growth against a prominent architectural or landscape background and chamber, when a person is depicted chest- or waist-deep against a neutral background. A group of portraits, united according to some characteristic, forms an ensemble, or a portrait gallery. An example would be portraits of members of the royal family.

Stands out separately self-portrait, in which the artist depicts himself.

Portrait is one of the oldest genres - the first portraits (sculptural) were already present in ancient Egypt. Such a portrait acted as part of a cult about the afterlife and was a “double” of a person.

Scenery

Landscape (from the French paysage - country, area) is a genre in which the central image is the image of nature - rivers, forests, fields, sea, mountains. In a landscape, the main point is, of course, the plot, but it is no less important to convey movement and life. surrounding nature. On the one hand, nature is beautiful and arouses admiration, but on the other hand, it is quite difficult to reflect this in a picture.

A subspecies of landscape is seascape or marina(from French marine, Italian marina, from Latin marinus - sea) - an image of a naval battle, the sea or other events unfolding at sea. Bright representative marine painters – K.A. Aivazovsky. It is noteworthy that the artist wrote many of the details of this painting from memory.

However, artists often strive to paint the sea from life, for example, W. Turner for his painting “Blizzard. The steamer at the entrance to the harbor gives a distress signal after getting into shallow water,” spent 4 hours tied to the captain’s bridge of a ship sailing in a storm.

The water element is also depicted in a river landscape.

Separately allocate cityscape, in which the main subject of the image is city streets and buildings. A type of urban landscape is Veduta– an image of a city landscape in the form of a panorama, where the scale and proportions are certainly maintained.

There are other types of landscape - rural, industrial and architectural. In architectural painting, the main theme is the image of the architectural landscape, i.e. buildings, structures; includes images of interiors (interior decoration of premises). Sometimes Interior(from the French intérieur - internal) is distinguished as a separate genre. Another genre is distinguished in architectural painting — Capriccio(from Italian capriccio, whim, whim) - architectural fantasy landscape.

Still life

Still life (from the French nature morte - dead nature) is a genre dedicated to the depiction of inanimate objects that are placed in a common environment and form a group. Still life appeared in the 15-16th centuries, but as a separate genre it emerged in the 17th century.

Despite the fact that the word “still life” is translated as dead nature, in the paintings there are bouquets of flowers, fruits, fish, game, dishes - everything looks “like living”, i.e. like the real thing. From the moment of its appearance to this day, still life has been an important genre in painting.

As a separate subspecies we can distinguish Vanitas(from Latin Vanitas - vanity, vanity) is a genre of painting in which the central place in the picture is occupied by a human skull, the image of which is intended to remind of the vanity and frailty of human life.

The painting by F. de Champagne presents three symbols of the frailty of existence - Life, Death, Time through the images of a tulip, a skull, an hourglass.

Historical genre

Historical genre is a genre in which the paintings depict important events and socially significant phenomena of the past or present. It is noteworthy that the picture can be dedicated not only to real events, but also to events from mythology or, for example, described in the Bible. This genre very important for history, both for the history of individual peoples and states, and of humanity as a whole. In paintings, the historical genre is inseparable from other types of genres - portrait, landscape, battle genre.

Battle genre

The battle genre (from the French bataille - battle) is a genre in which the paintings depict the culmination of a battle, military operations, a moment of victory, scenes from military life. Battle painting is characterized by the image in the picture large quantity of people.

Religious genre

Religious genre is a genre in which the main story line– biblical (scenes from the Bible and Gospel). The theme relates to religious and icon painting, the difference between them is that paintings of religious content do not participate in religious services, and for the icon this is the main purpose. Iconography translated from Greek. means "prayer image". This genre was limited by the strict framework and laws of painting, because is intended not to reflect reality, but to convey the idea of ​​​​God's principle, in which artists are looking for an ideal. In Rus', icon painting reaches its peak in the 12th-16th centuries. The most famous names of icon painters are Theophanes the Greek (frescoes), Andrei Rublev, Dionysius.

How the transitional stage from icon painting to portrait stands out Parsuna(distorted from Latin persona - person, person).

Everyday genre

The paintings depict scenes of everyday life. Often the artist writes about those moments in life of which he is a contemporary. The distinctive features of this genre are the realism of the paintings and the simplicity of the plot. The picture can reflect the customs, traditions, and structure of everyday life of a particular people.

TO household painting include such famous paintings like “Barge Haulers on the Volga” by I. Repin, “Troika” by V. Perov, “Unequal Marriage” by V. Pukirev.

Epic-mythological genre

Epic-mythological genre. The word myth comes from the Greek. "mythos", which means tradition. The paintings depict the events of legends, epics, traditions, ancient Greek myths, ancient tales, plots of works of folklore.

Allegorical genre

Allegorical genre (from the Greek allegoria - allegory). Paintings are painted in such a way that they have a hidden meaning. Insubstantial ideas and concepts, invisible to the eye (power, good, evil, love), are conveyed through the images of animals, people, and other living beings with such inherent characteristics that have symbolism already fixed in the minds of people and help to understand the general meaning of the work.

Pastoral (from the French pastorale - pastoral, rural)

A genre of painting that glorifies and poetizes simple and peaceful rural life.

Caricature (from Italian caricare - to exaggerate)

A genre in which, when creating an image, a comic effect is deliberately used by exaggerating and sharpening features, behavior, clothing, etc. The purpose of caricature is to offend, in contrast, for example, to caricature (from the French charge), the purpose of which is simply to make fun. Closely related to the term “caricature” are such concepts as popular print and grotesque.

Nude (from French nu - naked, undressed)

The genre in which paintings depict the naked human body is most often female.

Deception, or trompe l'oeil (from French. trompe-l'œil - optical illusion)

A genre whose characteristic features are special moves, creating an optical illusion and allowing one to blur the line between reality and image, i.e. the misleading impression that an object is three-dimensional when it is two-dimensional. Sometimes blende is distinguished as a subtype of still life, but sometimes people are also depicted in this genre.

To complete the perception of decoys, it is advisable to consider them in the original, because reproduction is unable to fully convey the effect that the artist depicted.

Thematic picture

A mixture of traditional genres of painting (domestic, historical, battle, landscape, etc.). In another way, this genre is called a figurative composition, its characteristic features are: the main role is played by a person, the presence of action and a socially significant idea, relationships (conflicts of interests/characters) and psychological accents are necessarily shown.