Kramskoy Ivan Nikolaevich (1837-1887)
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy (1837 - 1887), Russian artist, critic and art theorist. Born in Ostrogozhsk (Voronezh province) on May 27, 1837 in a poor middle-class family.
Since childhood, I have been interested in art and literature. Since childhood, he has been self-taught in drawing, then, on the advice of a drawing lover, he began to work in watercolors. After graduating from the district school (1850), he served as a scribe, then as a retoucher for a photographer, with whom he roamed around Russia.
In 1857 he ended up in St. Petersburg, working in the photo studio of A. I. Denier. In the fall of the same year he entered the Academy of Arts and was a student of A. T. Markov. For the painting “Moses Brings Water Out of the Rock” (1863) he received a Small Gold Medal.
During his years of study, he rallied advanced academic youth around himself. He led the protest of Academy graduates (“revolt of the fourteen”), who refused to paint pictures (“programs”) based on the mythological plot set by the Council. The young artists submitted a petition to the Academy Council asking that they be allowed to each choose a theme for a painting to compete for a large gold medal. The Academy reacted unfavorably to the proposed innovation. One of the academy’s professors, architect Ton, even described the attempt of young artists this way: “in the old days you would have been given up as a soldier for this,” as a result of which 14 young artists, with Kramskoy at their head, refused in 1863 to write on the topic given by the academy - “ Feast in Valhalla” and left the academy.
The artists who left the Academy united into the St. Petersburg Artel. They owe a lot to Kramskoy for the atmosphere of mutual assistance, cooperation and deep spiritual interests that reigned here. In his articles and extensive correspondence (with I.E. Repin, V.V. Stasov, A.S. Suvorin, etc.) he defended the idea of “tendentious” art, not only reflecting, but also morally transforming an inert, false world.
At this time, Kramskoy’s vocation as a portrait painter was completely determined. Then he most often resorted to his favorite graphic technology using white, an Italian pencil, he also worked using the so-called “wet sauce” method, which made it possible to imitate photography. Kramskoy had a painting technique of subtle completeness, which some sometimes considered unnecessary or excessive. Nevertheless, Kramskoy wrote quickly and confidently: in a few hours the portrait acquired a resemblance: in this regard, the portrait of Dr. Rauchfus, Kramskoy’s last dying work, is remarkable. This portrait was painted in one morning, but remained unfinished, since Kramskoy died while working on this painting.
“Portrait of Princess Ekaterina Alekseevna Vasilchikova”
The portraits created at this time were mostly commissioned, made for the sake of earning money. The portraits of the artists A. I. Morozov (1868), I. I. Shishkin (1869), G. G. Myasoedov (1861), P. P. Chistyakov (1861), N. A. Koshelev (1866) are well known. The nature of Kramskoy’s pictorial portrait is meticulous in drawing and light and shadow modeling, but restrained in color scheme. Artistic language corresponded to the image of a democrat commoner, who was a frequent subject of the master’s portraits. These are the artist’s “Self-Portrait” (1867) and “Portrait of the Agronomist Vyunnikov” (1868). From 1863 to 1868, Kramskoy taught at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists.
"Portrait of an old peasant"
However, over time, Artel began to gradually deviate in its activities from the high moral principles declared at its inception, and Kramskoy left it, carried away by a new idea - the creation of a partnership of Traveling Art Exhibitions. He took part in the development of the Charter of the Partnership and immediately became not only one of the most active and authoritative members of the board, but also the ideologist of the Partnership, defending and justifying the main positions. What distinguished him from other leaders of the Partnership was his independence of worldview, rare breadth of views, sensitivity to everything new in artistic process and intolerance to any dogmatism.
“Portrait of Sofia Ivanovna Kramskoy”
At the first exhibition of the Partnership, “Portrait of F. A. Vasilyev” and “Portrait of M. M. Antokolsky” were exhibited. A year later, the painting “Christ in the Desert” was shown, the idea of which had been incubated for several years. According to Kramskoy, “even among previous artists, the Bible, Gospel and mythology served only as a pretext for expressing completely contemporary passions and thoughts.” He himself, like Ge and Polenov, in the image of Christ expressed the ideal of a person filled with high spiritual thoughts, preparing himself for self-sacrifice. The artist managed to speak convincingly here about a very important problem for the Russian intelligentsia moral choice, which confronts everyone who understands their responsibility for the fate of the world, and this rather modest painting has gone down in history Russian art.
"Portrait of Empress Maria Feodorovna"
The artist repeatedly returned to the theme of Christ. The defeat ended the work on the original plan big picture“Laughter (“Hail, King of the Jews”)” (1877 - 1882), depicting the crowd’s mockery of Jesus Christ. The artist worked selflessly on it ten to twelve hours a day, but never finished it, soberly assessing his own powerlessness. While collecting material for it, Kramskoy visited Italy (1876). He traveled to Europe in subsequent years.
"Bouquet of flowers. Phloxes"
“Portrait of Sonya Kramskoy, the artist’s daughter”
"Forest path"
Poet Apollo Nikolaevich Maikov. 1883.
“Portrait of the singer Elizaveta Andreevna Lavrovskaya, on the stage in the Assembly of the Nobility”
“Portrait of the artist N.A. Koshelev”
“Portrait of the artist Fyodor Aleksandrovich Vasiliev”
"The Artist's Family"
"Russian monk in contemplation"
"Laughter. "Hail, King of the Jews"
"Contemplator"
Christ in the desert.1872
"Somnambulist"
Mermaids. (May Night) 1871
“Reading. Portrait of Sofia Nikolaevna Kramskoy"
“A peasant with a bridle. Mina Moiseev"
"Empress Maria Feodorovna, wife of Emperor Alexander III"
"Miller"
"Girl with a loose braid"
"Female portrait"
"Female portrait"
"Female portrait"
"Girl in a Deep Shawl"
"Moses' Prayer after the Israelites Crossed the Black Sea"
“Portrait of Nikolai Kramskoy, son of the artist”
"Portrait of Alexander III"
Portrait of Sergei Kramskoy, the artist’s son. 1883
Portrait of Olga Afanasyevna Raftopulo. 1884
Inconsolable grief. 1884
An insulted Jewish boy. 1874
Unknown. 1883
Portrait of Varvara Kirillovna Lemokh as a child. 1882
“Portrait of the artist Ilya Efimovich Repin”
“Portrait of the Ukrainian writer and artist Taras Grigorievich Shevchenko”
“Portrait of actor Vasily Vasilyevich Samoilov”
“Portrait of P.A. Valuev”
"Female portrait"
"Self-Portrait"
"Portrait of the artist Shishkin"
"Portrait of a Lady"
“Portrait of astronomer O.V. Struve, director of the Pulkovo Observatory”
“Portrait of P.I.Melnikov”
"Beekeeper"
“N.A. Koshelev. Music lesson"
Kramskoy, painting portrait his daughter, Sofia Ivanovna Kramskoy, married to Junker. 1884
Female portrait. 1884
Actor Alexander Pavlovich Lensky as Petruchio in Shakespeare's comedy The Taming of the Shrew. 1883
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The canvas belongs to early stage creativity of the artist, but many of his inherent distinctive features, which determined the painter’s style in the future. The portrait depicts the master’s wife, with whom the marriage was successful [...]
The portrait of the poet and artist Taras Grigoryevich Shevchenko was commissioned by philanthropist Pavel Tretyakov. The image of the Ukrainian poet was supposed to replenish the collection artistic images famous artists. By the time the canvas was created, Taras Shevchenko had already […]
The artist Kramskoy was an outstanding portrait painter. The secret of his success was that he sought to capture not only external resemblance, but also to reveal, guess and convey the hidden, deep features of individuality. Also Ivan Nikolaevich […]
The great Russian painter Ivan Kramskoy was one of the key figures in Russian culture of the second half of the 19th century century. In fact, it was he who transformed the genre of portrait realism, becoming ideological inspirer many artists, thanks to him Russian painting […]
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy was an excellent portrait painter and was fond of genre painting and was a successful critic. Before entering the Academy of Arts, located in St. Petersburg, he was engaged in photo retouching. The master worked on the canvas “Laughter” for […]
For many art connoisseurs, Kramskoy is associated with peasants. He is one of the few artists who skillfully captured the individual characters of his heroes on canvas. “Peasant with a Bridle” from 1883 is one such example. […]
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy (May 27, 1837, Ostrogozhsk - March 24, 1887, St. Petersburg) - Russian painter and draftsman, master of genre, historical and portrait painting; art critic.
Self-portrait. 1874
Kramskoy was born on May 27 (June 8, new style) 1837 in the city of Ostrogozhsk, Voronezh province, in the family of a clerk.
After graduating from the Ostrogozh district school, Kramskoy was a clerk in the Ostrogozh Duma. From 1853 he was a photo retoucher; First, the future artist was taught in several techniques how to “finish photographic portraits with watercolors and retouching” by his fellow countryman M. B. Tulinov, then he worked for the Kharkov photographer Ya. P. Danilevsky. In 1856 he came to St. Petersburg, where he was engaged in retouching in the then famous photography of Alexandrovsky.
In 1857, Kramskoy entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts as a student of Professor Markov.
In 1863, the Academy of Arts awarded him a gold medal for his painting “Moses Bringing Out Water from a Rock.” Before finishing his studies at the Academy, all that remained was to write a program for a big medal and receive a pension abroad. The Academy Council proposed a theme from the Scandinavian sagas “A Feast in Valhalla” to the students for the competition. All fourteen graduates refused to develop this topic, and petitioned to be allowed to each choose a topic of their own choosing. Subsequent events went down in the history of Russian art as the “Revolt of the Fourteen.” The Academy Council refused them, and Professor Tone noted: “if this had happened before, then all of you would have been soldiers!” On November 9, 1863, Kramskoy, on behalf of his comrades, told the council that they, “not daring to think about changing academic regulations, humbly ask the council to exempt them from participating in the competition.” Among these fourteen artists were: I. N. Kramskoy, B. B. Wenig, N. D. Dmitriev-Orenburgsky, A. D. Litovchenko, A. I. Korzukhin, N. S. Shustov, A. I. Morozov , K. E. Makovsky, F. S. Zhuravlev, K. V. Lemokh, A. K. Grigoriev, M. I. Peskov, V. P. Kreitan and N. V. Petrov. The artists who left the Academy formed the “Petersburg Artel of Artists”, which existed until 1871.
In 1865, Markov invited him to help paint the dome of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. Due to Markov's illness, the entire main painting of the dome was done by Kramskoy, together with the artists Wenig and Koshelev.
From 1863 to 1868 he taught at the Aid Society Drawing School applied arts. In 1869, Kramskoy received the title of academician.
In 1870, the “Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions” was formed, one of the main organizers and ideologists of which was Kramskoy. Influenced by the ideas of Russian democratic revolutionaries, Kramskoy defended the view of high public role the artist, the principles of realism, the moral essence and nationality of art.
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy created a number of portraits of outstanding Russian writers, artists and public figures(such as: Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, 1873; I. I. Shishkin, 1873; Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov, 1876; M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, 1879 - all are in Tretyakov Gallery; portrait of Botkin[specify] (1880) - private collection, Moscow).
One of famous works Kramskoy - “Christ in the Desert” (1872, Tretyakov Gallery).
A successor to the humanistic traditions of Alexander Ivanov, Kramskoy created a religious turning point in moral and philosophical thinking. He gave the dramatic experiences of Jesus Christ a deeply psychological life interpretation (the idea of heroic self-sacrifice). The influence of ideology is noticeable in portraits and thematic paintings - “N. A. Nekrasov during the period of “The Last Songs,” 1877-1878; "Unknown", 1883; “Inconsolable Grief”, 1884 - all in the Tretyakov Gallery.
The democratic orientation of Kramskoy's works, his critical insightful judgments about art, and persistent research into objective criteria for assessing the characteristics of art and their influence on it, developed democratic art and a worldview on art in Russia in the last third of the 19th century.
Moses' prayer after the Israelites crossed the Black Sea. 1861
While reading Portrait of Sofia Nikolaevna Kramskoy, the artist’s wife. 1866–1869
Female portrait. 1867
Portrait of the artist K. A. Savitsky. 1871
Mermaids. 1871
Portrait of the artist M. K. Klodt. 1872
Christ in the desert. 180 x 210 cm. 1872
Portrait of A. I. Kuindzhi. 1872
Beekeeper. 1872
A girl with a loose braid. 1873
Portrait of I. I. Shishkin. 1873
Portrait of the writer Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. 1873
An insulted Jewish boy. 1874
Forest worker. 1874
Portrait of the writer Ivan Alexandrovich Goncharov 1874
Peasant's head 1874
Portrait of Sofia Nikolaevna and Sofia Ivanovna Kramskoy, the artist’s wife and daughter. 1875
Portrait of the writer Dmitry Vasilyevich Grigorovich 1876
Portrait of Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov. 1876
Portrait of the sculptor Mark Matveevich Antokolsky. 1876
N. A. Nekrasov during the period. The last songs. 1877–1878
Portrait of the writer Mikhail Evgrafovich Saltykov (N. Shchedrin). 1879
Portrait of Adrian Viktorovich Prakhov, art historian and art critic. 1879
Moonlit Night 1880
Portrait of Doctor Sergei Petrovich Botkin 1880
Portrait of actor Vasily Vasilyevich Samoilov. 1881
Portrait of the publisher and publicist Alexey Sergeevich Suvorin. 1881
Portrait of Anatoly Ivanovich Kramskoy, the artist’s son. 1882
Portrait of Sofia Ivanovna Kramskoy, the artist’s daughter. 1882
Girl with a cat. 1882
Unknown. 1883
Peasant with a bridle Mina Moiseev. 1883
Actor Alexander Pavlovich Lensky as Petruchio in Shakespeare's comedy "The Taming of the Shrew." 1883
Bouquet of phlox flowers. 1884
Inconsolable grief. 1884
Kramskoy painting a portrait of his daughter, Sofia Ivanovna Kramskoy, married to Junker. 1884
Portrait of the philosopher Vladimir Sergeevich Solovyov. 1885
Portrait of Alexander III. 1886
Children in the forest. 1887
Fully
Russian painter and draftsman, master of genre, historical and portrait painting; art critic
Ivan Kramskoy
short biography
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy(June 8, 1837, Ostrogozhsk - April 5, 1887, St. Petersburg) - Russian painter and draftsman, master of genre, historical and portrait painting; art critic.
After graduating from the Ostrogozh district school, Kramskoy was a clerk in the Ostrogozh Duma. In 1853 he began retouching photographs. Kramskoy’s fellow countryman M.B. Tulinov taught him in several techniques “to finish photographic portraits with watercolors and retouching,” then the future artist worked for the Kharkov photographer Yakov Petrovich Danilevsky. In 1856, I. N. Kramskoy arrived in St. Petersburg, where he was engaged in retouching in the then famous photographic studio of Alexandrovsky.
In 1857, Kramskoy entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts as a student of Professor Markov.
Riot of the fourteen. Artel of artists
Portrait of the artist Shishkin. (1880, Russian Museum)
In 1863, the Academy of Arts awarded him a small gold medal for his painting “Moses Bringing Out Water from a Rock.” Before finishing his studies at the Academy, all that remained was to write a program for a big medal and receive a pension abroad. The Academy Council offered students a competition on a theme from the Scandinavian sagas “The Feast in Valhalla.” All fourteen graduates refused to develop this topic and petitioned to be allowed to each choose the topic as they wished. Subsequent events went down in the history of Russian art as the “Revolt of the Fourteen.” The Academy Council refused them, and Professor Tone noted: “If this had happened before, then all of you would have been soldiers!” On November 9, 1863, Kramskoy, on behalf of his comrades, told the council that they, “not daring to think about changing academic regulations, humbly ask the council to exempt them from participating in the competition.” Among these fourteen artists were: I. N. Kramskoy, B. B. Wenig, N. D. Dmitriev-Orenburgsky, A. D. Litovchenko, A. I. Korzukhin, N. S. Shustov, A. I. Morozov , K. E. Makovsky, F. S. Zhuravlev, K. V. Lemokh, A. K. Grigoriev, M. I. Peskov, V. P. Kreitan and N. P. Petrov. The artists who left the Academy formed the “Petersburg Artel of Artists”, which existed until 1871.
In 1865, Markov invited him to help paint the dome of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. Due to Markov's illness, the entire main painting of the dome was done by Kramskoy together with the artists Wenig and Koshelev.
In 1863-1868 he taught at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists. In 1869, Kramskoy received the title of academician.
Wandering
The grave of I. N. Kramskoy at the Tikhvin cemetery in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra (St. Petersburg)
In 1870, the “Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions” was formed, one of the main organizers and ideologists of which was Kramskoy. Under the influence of the ideas of Russian democratic revolutionaries, Kramskoy defended an opinion consonant with them about the high social role of the artist, the fundamental principles of realism, the moral essence of art and its nationality.
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy created a number of portraits of outstanding Russian writers, artists and public figures (such as: Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, 1873; I. I. Shishkin, 1873; Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov, 1876; M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, 1879 - all are in the Tretyakov Gallery; portrait of S. P. Botkin (1880) - State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg).
One of Kramskoy’s most famous works is “Christ in the Desert” (1872, Tretyakov Gallery).
A successor to the humanistic traditions of Alexander Ivanov, Kramskoy created a religious turning point in moral and philosophical thinking. He gave the dramatic experiences of Jesus Christ a deeply psychological life interpretation (the idea of heroic self-sacrifice). The influence of ideology is noticeable in portraits and thematic paintings - “N. A. Nekrasov during the period of “The Last Songs,” 1877-1878; "Unknown", 1883; “Inconsolable Grief”, 1884 - all in the Tretyakov Gallery.
USSR postal envelope, 1987:
150 years since the birth of Kramskoy
The democratic orientation of Kramskoy's works, his critical insightful judgments about art, and persistent research into objective criteria for assessing the characteristics of art and their influence on it, developed democratic art and a worldview on art in Russia in the last third of the 19th century.
IN last years Kramskoy was sick with a heart aneurysm. The artist died from an aortic aneurysm on March 24 (April 5), 1887, while working on a portrait of Dr. Rauchfuss, when he suddenly bent over and fell. Rauchfuss tried to help him, but it was too late. I. N. Kramskoy was buried at the Smolensk Orthodox Cemetery. In 1939, the ashes were transferred to the Tikhvin cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra with the installation of a new monument.
Installed in Tsarskoye Selo sculptural composition Kramskoy and Unknown by sculptor Alexander Taratynov.
Family
- Sofya Nikolaevna Kramskaya (1840-1919, nee Prokhorova) - wife
- Nikolai (1863-1938) - architect
- Sophia - daughter, artist, repressed
- Anatoly (02/01/1865-1941) - official of the Department of Railway Affairs of the Ministry of Finance
- Mark (? −1876) - son
Addresses in St. Petersburg
- 1863 - apartment building of A.I. Likhacheva - Sredny Avenue, 28;
- 1863-1866 - 17th line V.O., building 4, apartment 4;
- 1866-1869 - Admiralteysky Prospekt, building 10;
- 1869 - 03/24/1887 - Eliseev's house - Birzhevaya line, 18, apt. 5.
Gallery
Kramskoy's works
Mermaids, 1871
Christ in the Desert, 1872
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy (May 27, 1837, Ostrogozhsk - March 24, 1887, St. Petersburg) - Russian painter and draftsman, master of genre, historical and portrait painting; art critic.
Kramskoy was born on May 27 (June 8), 1837 in the city of Ostrogozhsk, Voronezh province, in the family of a clerk.
After graduating from the Ostrogozh district school, Kramskoy was a clerk in the Ostrogozh Duma. In 1853 he began retouching photographs. Kramskoy’s fellow countryman M.B. Tulinov taught him in several techniques “to finish photographic portraits with watercolors and retouching,” then the future artist worked for the Kharkov photographer Yakov Petrovich Danilevsky. In 1856, I. N. Kramskoy arrived in St. Petersburg, where he was engaged in retouching in the then famous photographic studio of Alexandrovsky.
In 1857, Kramskoy entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts as a student of Professor Markov.
In 1863, the Academy of Arts awarded him a small gold medal for his painting “Moses Bringing Out Water from a Rock.” Before finishing his studies at the Academy, all that remained was to write a program for a big medal and receive a pension abroad. The Academy Council offered students a competition on a theme from the Scandinavian sagas “The Feast in Valhalla.” All fourteen graduates refused to develop this topic and petitioned to be allowed to each choose the topic as they wished. Subsequent events went down in the history of Russian art as the “Revolt of the Fourteen.” The Academy Council refused them, and Professor Tone noted: “If this had happened before, then all of you would have been soldiers!” On November 9, 1863, Kramskoy, on behalf of his comrades, told the council that they, “not daring to think about changing academic regulations, humbly ask the council to exempt them from participating in the competition.” Among these fourteen artists were: I. N. Kramskoy, B. B. Wenig, N. D. Dmitriev-Orenburgsky, A. D. Litovchenko, A. I. Korzukhin, N. S. Shustov, A. I. Morozov , K. E. Makovsky, F. S. Zhuravlev, K. V. Lemokh, A. K. Grigoriev, M. I. Peskov, V. P. Kreitan and N. P. Petrov. The artists who left the Academy formed the “Petersburg Artel of Artists”, which existed until 1871.
In 1865, Markov invited him to help paint the dome of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. Due to Markov's illness, the entire main painting of the dome was done by Kramskoy together with the artists Wenig and Koshelev.
In 1863-1868 he taught at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists. In 1869, Kramskoy received the title of academician.
In 1870, the “Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions” was formed, one of the main organizers and ideologists of which was Kramskoy. Under the influence of the ideas of Russian democratic revolutionaries, Kramskoy defended an opinion consonant with them about the high social role of the artist, the fundamental principles of realism, the moral essence of art and its nationality.
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy created a number of portraits of outstanding Russian writers, artists and public figures (such as: Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, 1873; I. I. Shishkin, 1873; Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov, 1876; M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, 1879 - all are in the Tretyakov Gallery; portrait of S. P. Botkin (1880) - State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg).
One of Kramskoy’s most famous works is “Christ in the Desert” (1872, Tretyakov Gallery).
A continuator of the humanistic traditions of Alexander Ivanov, Kramskoy created a religious turning point in moral and philosophical thinking. He gave the dramatic experiences of Jesus Christ a deeply psychological life interpretation (the idea of heroic self-sacrifice). The influence of ideology is noticeable in portraits and thematic paintings - “N. A. Nekrasov during the period of “The Last Songs,” 1877-1878; "Unknown", 1883; “Inconsolable Grief”, 1884 - all in the Tretyakov Gallery.
The democratic orientation of Kramskoy's works, his critical insightful judgments about art, and persistent research into objective criteria for assessing the characteristics of art and their influence on it, developed democratic art and a worldview on art in Russia in the last third of the 19th century.
In recent years, Kramskoy was sick with a heart aneurysm. The artist died from an aortic aneurysm on March 24 (April 5), 1887, while working on a portrait of Dr. Rauchfuss, when he suddenly bent over and fell. Rauchfuss tried to help him, but it was too late. I. N. Kramskoy was buried at the Smolensk Orthodox Cemetery. In 1939, the ashes were transferred to the Tikhvin cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra with the installation of a new monument.
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