When I first saw this picture, I stood rooted to the spot at the entrance to the hall of the Russian Museum. I couldn't take my eyes off small painting on the wall, as if glowing and therefore alluring. People crowded around her and heatedly discussed the effect.

It seems like nothing special. The plot is like a plot. Night, river, moon, lunar path. But the same effect internal source The lights just drove me crazy. I couldn’t forget it for a long time, and a year ago, while in St. Petersburg, I looked for it for a long time in the Russian Museum. And I found it in my native Moscow in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Reproduction or photographs will not give such an effect. You need to watch her live.

Yes, of course, we studied the work of this artist.

He lived in the era of traveling exhibitions, even took part in one of the exhibitions, but from a certain point on he kept himself somewhat aloof. Having left the Partnership, but without spoiling relations with it, Kuindzhi organized in 1880 for the first time in Russia an exhibition of one artist, and, moreover, not yet a cycle of works, but only one painting. It was a bold, perhaps even daring, innovation. The much sensational “ Moonlight night on the Dnieper." Rumors circulated around the city even before the exhibition. At first, the painting could be seen in Kuindzhi’s studio, where he allowed the public on Sundays for two hours. Then the painting was exhibited at the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, and all of enlightened St. Petersburg besieged its premises for days on end. It is difficult to imagine a greater triumph for the artist. Not only critics wrote about this picture, but also the scientist D.I. Mendeleev, poet Ya.P. Polonsky. “What a storm of delight Kuindzhi raised! Kramskoy. The canvas was purchased directly from the workshop by Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich.

His student was Nicholas Roerich. Not surprising, right? The same style of local fills with color, the same internal mysticism of a seemingly simple plot.

In Markhi we studied another painting of his as one that most accurately conveys his style. This " Birch Grove"And to this day, when I find myself among the birches on a bright sunny day, I see that picture in front of me. Tree trunks, a green lawn drenched in the sun, a thin stream. Nothing special. But that’s what magic consists of when ordinary things begin to appear unusual phenomena.

Let's go back ten years before the appearance of the painting with the mystical moon.

Kuindzhi was born in Mariupol into the family of a poor Greek shoemaker. Twice in the early 1860s he tried to enter the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, and he was not accepted. Only in 1868 he became an auditor

The influence of the great Aivazovsky marked Kuindzhi’s first works, many of which have not survived. Studying at the Academy of Arts, meeting I.N. Kramskoy and I.E. Repin laid the foundation for realistic perception. But in 1876, he dramatically changed his style, presenting the painting “Ukrainian Night,” in which he managed to convey the sensory perception of a southern summer night.

Numerous accusations of simplifying the canvas, clumsy colors - that’s what he faced. Like any creative person, following her own path.but the listener. The influence of the great Aivazovsky marked Kuindzhi’s first works, many of which have not survived. Studying at the Academy of Arts, meeting I.N. Kramskoy and I.E. Repin laid the foundation for realistic perception. But in 1876, he dramatically changed his style, presenting the painting “Ukrainian Night,” in which he managed to convey the sensory perception of a southern summer night.

In the field of life's tasks, Kuindzhi left important bequests to Russian artists. As an example throughout his life, Kuindzhi called for protecting oneself from all captivity, called to serve, as he himself served all his life, to free art, called to defend the freedom of creativity.

(1841-1910) - great Russian artist Greek origin. He is an unsurpassed landscape painter, whose paintings are in the most famous museums and are truly priceless. One of the most famous paintings Kuindzhi is “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper”.

Painting " Moonlit night on the Dnieper"was painted in 1880, oil on canvas. 105 × 144 cm. Currently located in the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. In 1880, after completing the painting, Arkhip Kuindzhi organized an exhibition, and this picture was the only exhibit at this exhibition. The painting was exhibited on Bolshaya Morskaya in St. Petersburg, in the hall of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists. Despite the fact that the exhibition consisted of only one canvas, there were whole queues of people wanting to see new job a great artist, which has an amazingly powerful effect. The event became a real sensation. To avoid a crush, people were allowed into the hall in groups.

The painting shows a wide space with a river and the moon. The plain is crossed by a ribbon of river, which looks greenish from the phosphorescent light of the moon. The moon in the picture emits a bewitching and mysterious light.

During Kuindzhi’s time, he was suspected of using some unusual paints, and sometimes of having connections with evil spirits, which helped him create something that no one had ever succeeded in. However, the secret of a great artist is to search for a composition that would allow the most realistic expression of light, as well as to carefully select the slightest changes in color and light relationships. And in this matter, Kuindzhi simply has no equal.

The fame of “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper” spread throughout Moscow even before work on the painting was completed. Every Sunday for two hours, Kuindzhi opened the doors of his workshop so that everyone could see the canvas, which was not yet finished. To make sure that one painting was enough for an exhibition, Kuindzhi invited friends to his studio, among whom were Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev, Yakov Polonsky, Ivan Kramskoy, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, as well as correspondents on whom he tested the power of influence of “Moonlit Night” on the Dnieper."

The picture looks truly enchanting and incredibly realistic. It is noted that some viewers, not believing their gases, looked behind the picture to make sure that there was no lamp there that created such a believable light. It was a huge success, and after that Kuindzhi decided to make two copies of the canvas. The first copy is in the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, and the second copy is in the Livadia Palace in Yalta. The original was sold to Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (1858-1915) even before its first show.

Information about Arkhip Kuindzhi’s childhood is very fragmentary and incomplete. Even the date of his birth is not known reliably. A few documents have survived, on the basis of which researchers of Kuindzhi’s biography call his birthday January 15, 1841. This event took place in a suburb of Mariupol called Karasu.

Talent and Poverty (1841-1854)

It is believed that the artist’s ancestors were Greeks who lived in Crimea in close proximity to the Tatars. There was a gradual interpenetration of cultures, the language barrier was erased, mixed marriages. Therefore, it is quite possible that there is Tatar blood in Kuindzhi’s family, although the artist himself always said that he considered himself Russian.

The surname “Kuindzhi” (in the original transcription Kuyumdzhi) in the Tatar language means the name of the craft: “goldsmith”. It is known that the artist’s grandfather was indeed a jeweler. Brother Arkhipa translated his surname into Russian and became Zolotarev.

Birth talented child V poor family does not promise him any privileges. Kuindzhi's father, Ivan Khristoforovich, was a shoemaker and could not provide his children with prosperity. When Arkhip was three years old, his father suddenly died. The mother lived very short after this. The little orphans were left in the care of Father Kuindzhi’s brother and sister, who took turns taking care of them as best they could.

Thanks to the support of his relatives, the boy learned to read and write, studying with a familiar Greek teacher, and later briefly attended the local city school. He did not like studying there and found it very difficult. It was during this period that his drawing abilities first clearly manifested themselves. Getting carried away, the kid drew not only on random scraps of paper, but also on furniture or a fence. This activity brought him genuine joy.

Poverty forced him to work as a shepherd, as an assistant to a grain merchant, or as a brick counter during the construction of a church. But drawing was still his main passion. This continued until 1855, when one of the adults, noticing the boy’s talent, advised him to go and study drawing with Aivazovsky in Feodosia. Arkhip Kuindzhi made this long journey on foot, since he had nothing to pay for the journey.

New turn (1855-1859)

Crimean landscapes captured the imagination of an impressionable teenager. Aivazovsky was absent at that time, so his copyist, Adolf Fessler, out of the kindness of his heart, took part in the fate of young Arkhip. He taught him his first real drawing lessons. For poor and shy Arkhip, this meant that he had hope of becoming an artist.

He stayed in Feodosia for several months. Aivazovsky’s daughter in her memoirs described him as a short, very curly-haired boy in a straw hat, very quiet and shy.

Aivazovsky himself, upon returning to Feodosia, failed to recognize Kuindzhi’s talent and did not begin to study with him. True, he entrusted him with mixing paints and painting his fence. Disappointed and depressed by this turn of events, the young man returns home.

Luck on the third try (1860-1868)

IN hometown Kuindzhi works for several months as a retoucher for a photographer, and later goes in search of work, first to Odessa, and from there to Taganrog. This city greeted him more welcomingly. Arkhip is hired into the photo studio of S.S. Isakovich, again as a retoucher. And he continues to draw.

Having finally realized that he would not be able to realize his dream in such conditions, Kuindzhi gave up everything and moved to St. Petersburg, where he tried to enter the Academy of Arts. However, fate gave him a new grimace - failure in the exams. The second attempt was also unsuccessful.

But talent and love for painting required an outlet and pushed me to overcome obstacles. Kuindzhi persistently painted and in 1868 exhibited his first painting entitled “Tatar hut in the Crimea.” This work gives him access to the Academy of Arts, where he is enrolled as a volunteer student.

During this fertile period, Kuindzhi creates incredibly poignant paintings “Autumn thaw”, “ Forgotten Village" and " Chumatsky tract in Mariupol ".

They are painted in an innovative manner. Carefully selected shades very accurately convey the gloom and dullness of the bleak landscapes. The unusual colors and special play of shadows greatly impressed the audience, but they received mixed assessment among artists.

"Northern" period (1869-1873)

Kuindzhi was very attracted to working on landscapes. He developed his own special technique for applying paints, which made it possible to create such unusual visual illusions that his friends called him a hoaxer behind his back.

Inspired by views northern nature, the artist in a short period created such masterpieces as “Lake Ladoga”, “Snow”, “On the Island of Valaam”, “St. Isaac’s Cathedral by Moonlight”.

Again a turn and a meteoric rise (1874-1881)

In 1874, the life of Arkhip Kuindzhi received new content: the artist married Vera Leontyevna Ketcherdzhi. He was in love with her since teenage years. Previously, this marriage was impossible due to Kuindzhi’s extreme poverty and the rich origin of the bride.

Now the sale of paintings has made the artist a wealthy person. He was able to visit England, France, Austria, Switzerland and other countries to get acquainted with various schools of painting.

A new, more joyful period of life has arrived. And the artist’s paintings acquired a different tone. “Birch Grove”, “Dnieper in the Morning”, “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper”, “Ukrainian Night” written at that time made an incredible impression on the public.

The bright, almost decorative play of colors made the paintings simply glow. Some even tried to look behind the canvas to make sure there was no artificial moonlight. Kuindzhi's contemporary, poet Ya. Polonsky, looking at the paintings, wondered in bewilderment: is this a painting or a window frame, behind which a landscape of incomprehensible beauty opens?

Silence of a Genius (1882-1910)

After such a resounding success, Kuindzhi’s friends reasonably expected new paintings and subjects. But the artist has his own logic - he stopped exhibitions for 20 years. At this time, he continued to write, study literature, tutor students, and build a dacha in Crimea.

Despite the active and touchy character, Arkhip Kuindzhi was reputed to be very kind person. He constantly and free of charge supported his students with money and established prizes for the best young artists. His kindness also extended to animals and birds.

From the written memoirs of the artist’s contemporaries it is known that every day around noon he went out into the yard to feed the birds. Already accustomed to such a ritual, sparrows, crows, doves and other winged brethren flocked to him. The birds were not afraid of him at all, they sat on his hands, which only made the owner happy.

In 1901, Kuindzhi broke his “silence” by presenting new masterpieces to the discerning public: “Evening in Ukraine”, the theological plot “Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane” and a new version of “Birch Grove”. They still excite and fascinate the viewer, captivating the eye for a long time.

He did not exhibit again and many of his paintings became known only after his death. The brilliant artist died on July 11, 1910. The cause of death was a diseased heart.

"Moonlit Night on the Dnieper"(1880) - one of the most famous paintings Arkhip Kuindzhi. This work created a real sensation and acquired mystical fame. Many did not believe that the light of the moon could be conveyed in this way only artistic means, and looked behind the canvas, looking for a lamp there. Many stood silently for hours in front of the painting, and then left in tears. Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich bought “Moonlit Night” for his personal collection and took it with him everywhere, which had tragic consequences.

"Moonlit Night on the Dnieper" by Arkhip Kuindzhi. The glory and tragedy of the picture

The name of Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi became famous as soon as the public saw his paintings “After the Rain” and “Birch Grove”. But at the Eighth Exhibition of Peredvizhniki artists, the works of A.I. Kuindzhi were absent, and this was immediately noticed by the audience. P.M. Tretyakov wrote to I. Kramskoy from Moscow that even those few who previously did not have a very warm attitude towards the artist’s works are grieving over this.
In the summer and autumn of 1880, during the break with the Wanderers, A.I. Kuindzhi worked on new picture. Rumors spread throughout the Russian capital about the enchanting beauty of “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper.” For two hours on Sundays, the artist opened the doors of his studio to those interested, and the St. Petersburg public began to besiege her long before the completion of the work.
This picture has gained truly legendary fame. I.S. Turgenev and Ya. Polonsky, I. Kramskoy and P. Chistyakov, D.I. Mendeleev came to the workshop of A.I. Kuindzhi, and the famous publisher and collector K.T. Soldatenkov had an eye on the painting. Directly from the workshop, even before the exhibition, “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper” was bought by Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich for huge money.
And then the painting was exhibited on Bolshaya Morskaya Street in St. Petersburg, in the hall of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists. The artist’s performance with a personal exhibition, and even consisting of only one small painting, was an unusual event. Moreover, this picture did not interpret some unusual historical plot, but was a landscape of a very modest size. But A.I. Kuindzhi knew how to win. The success exceeded all expectations and turned into a real sensation. Long queues formed on Bolshaya Morskaya Street, and people waited for hours to see this extraordinary work. To avoid crowding, the public was allowed into the hall in groups.
A.I. Kuindzhi was always very attentive to the display of his paintings, placing them so that they were well lit, so that they were not disturbed by neighboring paintings. This time “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper” hung on the wall alone. Knowing that the effect moonlight fully manifested under artificial lighting, the artist ordered to drape the windows in the hall and illuminate the picture with a beam of electric light focused on it. Visitors entered the dimly lit hall and, spellbound, stood before the cold glow of moonlight.
A wide space stretching into the distance opened up before the audience; the plain, crossed by the greenish ribbon of a quiet river, almost merges with the horizon dark sky covered with rows of light clouds. In the heights they parted slightly, and the moon looked through the resulting window, illuminating the Dnieper, the huts and the web of paths on the near bank. And everything in nature became silent, enchanted by the wonderful radiance of the sky and the Dnieper waters.
The sparkling silver-greenish disk of the moon flooded the earth immersed in the peace of night with its mysterious phosphorescent light. It was so strong that some of the spectators tried to look behind the picture to find a lantern or lamp. But there was no lamp, and the moon continued to emit its bewitching, mysterious light.
The waters of the Dnieper reflect this light like a smooth mirror; the walls of Ukrainian huts turn white from the velvety blue of the night. This majestic spectacle still immerses viewers in thoughts about eternity and the enduring beauty of the world. So, before A.I. Kuindzhi, only the great N.V. Gogol sang about nature. The number of sincere admirers of A.I. Kuindzhi’s talent grew; a rare person could remain indifferent to this picture, which seemed like witchcraft.
A.I. Kuindzhi depicts the celestial sphere as majestic and eternal, striking viewers with the power of the Universe, its immensity and solemnity. Numerous attributes of the landscape - huts creeping along the slope, bushy trees, gnarled stems of tartar - are absorbed in darkness, their color is dissolved in a brown tone.
The bright silvery light of the moon is shaded by depth of blue color. With his phosphorescence, he transforms the traditional motif with the moon into one so rare, meaningful, attractive and mysterious that it transforms into poetically excited delight. There were even suggestions about some unusual colors and even strange artistic techniques, which the artist allegedly used. Rumors of a secret artistic method A.I. Kuindzhi, the secret of his colors was discussed even during the artist’s lifetime, some tried to catch him in tricks, even in connection with evil spirits.
Perhaps this happened because A.I. Kuindzhi focused his efforts on the illusory transfer of the real lighting effect, on the search for such a composition of the picture that would allow him to express the feeling of broad spatiality as convincingly as possible. And he coped with these tasks brilliantly. In addition, the artist defeated everyone in distinguishing the slightest changes in color and light relationships (for example, even during experiments with a special device that were carried out by D.I. Mendeleev and others).
When creating this canvas, A.I. Kuindzhi used a complex painting technique. For example, he contrasted the warm reddish tone of the earth with cold silvery shades and thereby deepened the space, and small dark strokes in illuminated areas created a feeling of vibrating light.
All newspapers and magazines responded to the exhibition with enthusiastic articles, and reproductions of “Moonlit Night on the Dnieper” were sold in thousands of copies throughout Russia. The poet Ya. Polonsky, a friend of A.I. Kuindzhi, wrote then: “I positively don’t remember standing in front of any picture for so long... What is this? Picture or reality? In a gold frame or open window Have we seen this month, these clouds, this dark distance, these “trembling lights of sad villages” and these shimmers of light, this silvery reflection of the month in the streams of the Dnieper, skirting the distance, this poetic, quiet, majestic night? The poet K. Fofanov wrote the poem “Night on the Dnieper,” which was later set to music.
The audience was delighted by the illusion of natural moonlight, and people, according to I.E. Repin, standing in “prayerful silence” in front of the canvas by A.I. Kuindzhi, left the hall with tears in their eyes: “This is how the artist’s poetic charms acted on the chosen ones believers, and they lived in such moments with the best feelings of the soul and enjoyed the heavenly bliss of the art of painting.”
Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, who bought the painting, did not want to part with the canvas, even when going on a trip around the world. I.S. Turgenev, who was in Paris at that time (in January 1881), was horrified by this thought, about which he indignantly wrote to the writer D.V. Grigorovich: “There is no doubt that the painting... will return completely ruined , thanks to the salty vapors of the air, etc.” He even visited the Grand Duke in Paris while his frigate was in the port of Cherbourg, and persuaded him to send the painting to a short time in Paris. I.S. Turgenev hoped that he would be able to persuade him to leave the painting at the exhibition in the Zedelmeyer Gallery, but he failed to persuade the prince.
The humid, salt-saturated sea air, of course, negatively affected the composition of the colors, and the landscape began to darken. But the lunar ripples on the river and the radiance of the moon itself are conveyed by the genius A.I. Kuindzhi with such power that, looking at the picture even now, viewers immediately fall under the power of the eternal and Divine.