Portrait of a woman at the end of the 19th century in Russia

Russian history portrait painting- a unique phenomenon in the history of world culture as a whole, because its roots go back to Orthodox iconography and feeds on the fertile soil of deeply religious spirituality. If in Western Europe the art of portraiture dates back to Greco-Roman ancient models, that is, in pre-Christian times, then in Russia the principles of icon painting initially served as models for creating portraits.

Here one could, of course, argue; after all, Russian portrait painters were well acquainted with ancient culture, copied numerous “antiquities” - they studied drawing, depicting Greek and Roman sculptural portraits and statues of ancient deities. But, honing their mastery of technical techniques of painting according to the Western model, in their internal content the artists remained connected with Orthodox spirituality by all threads, and the physicality of the images, so characteristic of European masterpieces of painting, faded into the background. The first portraits in the history of Russian painting appeared relatively (from a historical perspective) recently - in the 17th century. They received the name “parsuna”. One of the first “parsuns” - “Portrait of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich” of the early 17th century, from the collection of the State historical museum in Moscow. As you might guess, the name “parsuna” comes from the word “person”. Then it was an unprecedented innovation - real people were depicted, and not iconographic biblical images and scenes.

In former times, it was considered unacceptable egoism to portray contemporaries. However, it is no coincidence that there is an opinion among artists that any painting is a self-portrait. No matter how much the artist wants to be objective, to renounce his “ego” in the name of the purity of images, all the same, in every work he expresses himself, spiritualizes everything with his own spiritual energy. In the art of Russian portraiture, the author's principle is intertwined with the artist's penetration into the depths of the inner world and with the desire to express that spark of God that is originally inherent in every person. This is already noticeable in those very similar “parsuns” to traditional icons, the names of the authors of which, unfortunately, have sunk into oblivion. And in subsequent centuries, when Western European academic principles began to prevail in Russian art, and then the trends of romanticism and realism, Russian portrait art did not lose its Orthodox basis in the depth of the internal content of the images. This was especially manifested in the desire to see the “light of God” in the darkness of the human soul, in which the earthly, bodily and worldly things are certainly illuminated by living spirituality. The ideas of searching for the “spark of God” in the earthly world have always been close to Orthodox culture, but they reached their culmination in the second half of the 19th century, when they became a key aspect in the quest of the creative intelligentsia - let us remember the outstanding works of F. M. Dostoevsky and L. N. Tolstoy.

Vivid, original, sometimes striking with their inner strength, sometimes touching with their vulnerability, sometimes surprising with extravagance, images of women created by artists of the late 19th century appear before us. Perhaps, with all the diversity of characters, temperaments, external qualities of women depicted in portraits, the main property that unites them can be called the word “Mariness,” that is, in every woman the artist (consciously or not) expresses something that makes her similar to the biblical Mary... Only with which one - the Virgin Mary or Mary Magdalene, the attentive reader will ask and will be absolutely right. But there is no definite answer to this - after all, in female nature the essences of both are intertwined. Yes, and since the art of the late 19th century gravitates towards realism, the property of “Mary” is a reflection of both principles, mysterious purity, innocence, and sinfulness, worldly weakness, which is redeemed by the power of divine forgiveness and mercy. The dilemma between the images of the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene is also latently present in female images created by masters of words - for example, the textbook Sonechka Marmeladova. Remember how much dirt of earthly sin there is in her life and how much power of self-sacrifice! Or Nastasya Filippovna - sometimes a demonic woman, sometimes the embodiment of compassion, mercy and sensitivity. In portrait art, especially in female images created at the end of the 19th century, realistic principles are not reduced to copying nature and displaying psychological qualities; they are closely related to the entire complexity of philosophical, religious and intellectual quests that then reigned among the creative intelligentsia.

The image of the mysterious stranger, sung by Alexander Blok in 1906, seemed to be anticipated by I. N. Kramskoy in his painting of 1883. Isn’t it her - “slowly, walking among the drunken, always without companions, alone, breathing perfume and mists, she sits down by the window.” Like deja vu, I remember lines from A. Blok’s poem when looking at famous painting I. N. Kramskoy.

The woman in the portrait looks somewhat arrogantly at the viewer from the height of her carriage. Who is she and where is she going? We can only guess, build our own conclusions and assumptions. Maybe she is a lady of the demimonde, hurrying to a ball, maybe she is a bride or the wife of some official or merchant. One way or another, her social status According to the artist, it should not interest the viewer. If in the 18th century the reflection of social status in any portrait was considered absolutely necessary, then at the end of the 19th century the individual was in the foreground, with all the complexity of his inner spiritual life and uniqueness. individual traits appearance. And I. N. Kramskoy himself at the beginning of his creative path sought to convey social status, but still, in his early female portraits, spiritual reflection on individuality and uniqueness prevailed female beauty.

Each time the model seemed to dictate to the artist new approach, and the master had to look for a suitable artistic language for the truthful embodiment of the portrait image and to achieve a depth of penetration into spiritual world models.

Thus, in the portrait of E. A. Vasilchikova (1867), the artist conveys the charm of femininity, the purity of youth, the inspiring energy of beauty and inner spiritual harmony.

The muted tones of a burgundy and brownish background evoke the work of old masters, but the spontaneity and naturalness of her figure, the graceful carelessness of her gesture, the expressive insight of her gaze - all this speaks of realistic trends in art that were new for that time.

In the portrait of “The Stranger,” realistic principles are somewhat dissolved and inspired by echoes of neo-romantic trends and poetic mystery. I. N. Kramskoy’s commitment to the realistic trend in painting (and he was a prominent representative of the famous Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions) is manifested here in the absolute precision of the composition, in which everything is subordinated to the creation of a sublimely closed image. The smooth line of the stranger’s silhouette and the regular oval of her face concentrate the viewer’s attention, and the clearly defined space enclosed by the back of the carriage is inseparable from the plastic-volumetric modeling.

Although we have before us a generalized image of a “stranger,” how amazingly individual the features of her face are. In her gaze there is either contempt, or compassion, or sadness, or coldness - a mystery. The coloring of the picture is masterfully resolved, helping us - no, not to solve this riddle, but to endlessly admire the impossibility of solving it. The dark blue velvet and silk of her clothes - as a hint of the juxtaposition in her image of velvet tenderness and coldness of silk - emphasize the noble pallor of the skin and the natural beauty of the blush. The golden back of the open carriage adds warmth to the color of the picture, but glare and reflections seem to muffle the warm shades, emphasizing both the coldness of the weather and the strange inner coldness of the model, caused by the superficial influences of secular fashion or some deeply personal experiences. The woman’s figure stands out clearly against the backdrop of the snow-covered city, and only the white feathers on her hat visually connect her with the surrounding space. In her image one can see the melancholy of loneliness, she is an ideal to which the mortal world is alien, and, at the same time, she is just a glimpse of the artist’s contemporary. In this work, I. N. Kramskoy conveys to us his sadness, the artist’s eternal longing for ideal and perfection - as if inspiration, perfection for the subtle, fleeting. Another moment, and the invisible coachman will drive the horses, and the carriage, carrying the stranger into the unknown, will melt and disappear in a snowy shroud... Yes, the beauty will disappear, but the dream will remain, captured for centuries by the sensitive brush of the master.

However, you should not think that in the second half of XIX centuries, artists were only inspired by the image of strangers, the mystery female soul, an internal mystery. The opposite tendency also manifested itself very actively during this period - the depiction of women who are socially active, active, strong, even courageous and somewhat rude. After the abolition of serfdom and a number of reforms, the role of women in public life began to increase rapidly. And the artists of this period masterfully convey to us images of women, filled with a sense of self-worth, significance, pride, strength and independence.

Thus, in a painting by K. E. Makovsky from 1879, we see the owner of the ancient Kachanovka estate, located on the border of Poltava and Chernigov provinces. Sofya Vasilievna Tarnovskaya is the wife of a very influential Ukrainian philanthropist and collector Vasily Tarnovsky, a passionate lover of art, passionate about music (he even owned his own orchestra and theater) and literature, and, of course, painting. He invited the artist to stay at his estate, and at the same time to paint a number of paintings for him, among which was a portrait of his beloved wife, who actively supported her husband’s activities and shared his interests. The artist reveals to the audience the hidden character traits of the model.

K. E. Makovsky. Portrait of S. V. Tarnovskaya. 1879

The portrait shows a stately, no longer young, but strong-willed woman. In her gaze, a certain arrogance is combined with spiritual softness, characteristic of provincial women, not hardened by the emasculated social bustle of capital cities. The dark burgundy fabric serving as the background is reminiscent of theater scenes - it is quite possible that S. V. Tarnovskaya posed for the artist in the premises of the estate theater. And the artist, in turn, reminds the audience how similar our everyday life is to a stage performance. In some places the artist brings the dark green color of the clothing fabric to a deep black color, thereby emphasizing the sharpness of the falling shadow and enlivening the overall light-and-shadow modeling of volumetric-spatial solutions. In this approach one can feel the master’s inspiration from Rembrandt’s masterpieces. And in his sensitive psychologism, K. E. Makovsky is close to the famous Dutch painter. In the calmness of gestures and stately posture one feels inner confidence and a special natural, and not feigned, nobility of the soul. A slightly upturned nose indicates a manifestation of capriciousness, but in the general softness of facial features one can read simplicity and tranquility.

A striking example The most realistic female portrait of the period under review is the “Portrait of Olga Sergeevna Alexandrova-Gaines”, created by I. E. Repin in 1890. The artist is clearly interested in the image of this woman, as if she embodied the new social realities of that time: before us is an active, strong-willed, strong, even to some extent stern woman, aware of her importance and no doubt proud of it. I. E. Repin, a representative of the progressive Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions, gravitated towards the genre in his works. In the portraits he created, there is practically no neutral background - he depicts the model in her typical environment in order to more deeply reveal her inner world, to show the viewer the atmosphere, the environment with which the model is inextricably linked. Here the background was designed by I. E. Repin in as much detail as possible.

The gilded frame of the picture, tablecloths and carpets embroidered with gold thread, gilded book bindings on the table - all this creates an atmosphere of luxury, oriental chic, so close to the taste of the daughter of the Kazan merchant S. E. Alexandrov. The beauty of the merchant's prosperous life is shown with great attention by the artist. His inquisitive gaze does not lose sight of things brought from distant countries. Our attention is drawn, for example, to a giant decorative mother-of-pearl shell on the wall, probably from South-East Asia, or a beautiful Iranian carpet, reminiscent of the exquisite colors of Persian miniatures. Being married to the military engineer Governor-General of Kazan A.K. Gaines, Olga Sergeevna was actively involved in charity work and collecting paintings and engravings by Russian and foreign artists. The works of I. E. Repin are distinguished, as is easy to see from the example considered here, by the ability to see a person in all the complexity of his inner world and the originality of his external appearance.

In the color scheme of this portrait, we are especially struck by the abundance of different golden shades, sometimes “screaming”, as if flashing in the light, sometimes calmly flickering, sometimes muted and barely distinguishable, smoothly turning into other tones. The black velvet of the dress not only cleverly hides the fullness of the woman’s figure, but also makes her silhouette clearly readable in the context of the complexly constructed artistic space of the background. The dynamics of the pictorial handwriting clearly emerges in the rendering of ornaments - I. E. Repin does not convey them accurately, does not resemble the authors of ancient Persian miniatures, but outlines the bends of ornamental lines with large strokes, conveying to the viewer not the graphic nature of their image, but special mobility and expressiveness, musicality and poetry, which is akin to the exquisite rhythm of oriental poetry.

The ornate lines of ornaments on the tablecloth, on the carpet, on the bindings of books create a moving, measured rhythm, and the silhouette line seems to subjugate this rhythm, concentrating the viewer's attention. The heroine's costume seems inappropriately strict against such a bright and carefully designed background, captivating our gaze with a variety of patterns and spectacular luxury. However, the complexity of the lace patterns of the collar and sleeves seems to echo the lines of ornaments that are so rich in the background. It is worth paying attention to the positioning of the figure. The pose expresses inner strength of character, self-confidence, calmness and complacency. Before us is a strong-willed, independent, somewhat rude, but creative nature. It seems that she was left-handed - after all, she holds the fan in her left hand. And this is also a sign of originality, independence and creativity. Right hand Olga Sergeevna props up her head, as if weighed down by many thoughts, and left hand– the hand of a person accustomed to giving instructions holds a folded fan, lowered down. Olga Sergeevna seemed to think for a few minutes, sat down to rest, but another moment - and she would wave her fan, but not with a flirtatious gesture to move around her face with the manners of a salon young lady, but to give orders in her possessions, using it as a pointer and emphasizing the importance and emotional expressiveness of your words.

Facial features may seem rough at first glance. However, upon careful examination we will notice not only strong intellect, merchant prudence, willpower, but also slight sadness and fatigue in the look. Pride, arrogance and some coldness do not overshadow natural femininity, but give it a special taste. This femininity is in the neatness of the hair, in the sparkle of the eyes, in the slightly raised arches of the eyebrows, in the swelling of the lips and in the subtle blush of the cheeks. Behind the cold and calculating housewife, I. E. Repin was able to discern a sensitive female soul, fundamentally, of course, soft and vulnerable, but skillfully disguised by severity, inflexibility and deliberate efficiency. The portrait of Olga Sergeevna, created by an outstanding Russian painter, is distinguished by its humanity, poetic and at the same time realistic expressive depth, unsurpassed skill and amazing power of talent.

Lyrical and mysterious world The feelings and experiences of a woman are reflected in his work by V. A. Serov, who boldly discovered new possibilities for pictorial expressiveness of colors, combining in many of his works the impressionistic freshness and ease of swift strokes with high degree realistic generalization and clarity of transfer of nature, with truthful life-like persuasiveness of the created images. The light-air environment in his portraits creates an emotionally rich space that is in harmony with the inner world of the model. In the portraits we are considering here, we can easily notice the penetrating light, light and silvery, softening the plastic form and enriching the palette with a variety of shades. Like French impressionists, V. A. Serov saturates every stroke of his brush with luminous power. In the portrait of Z. V. Moritz, painted in 1892, V. A. Serov seems to “warm” with light a generally coldish coloring. Purple in the gamut it is considered the coldest, as opposed to red – the “warmest”, even “hot”, color. But the cold purple background is saturated with many reflections, the so-called “reflexes”, which bring major notes to the overall melancholic minor, imbued with subtle lyrical sadness, the sound of color. The colors are seen by the artist in their variability, impressionistic illusoryness. The feeling of anxious mobility is enhanced by the impetuously written feathers of the shawl, as if fluttering in the cold wind.

The emotionality of the image of Z. V. Moritz is given by the light and shadow solution, and the special posing of the figure, a slight turn of the head, and a slightly raised chin. Leaning back in her chair, she faces the viewer. This moment of communication with the viewer is generally a feature of many portraits of V. A. Serov. The portrait amazes with the accuracy of the image, the sharpness of the artist’s eye, and the improvisational ease that is successfully combined with high professionalism and masterly thoughtfulness of coloristic and compositional solutions. The play of light on the necklace slightly highlights the aristocratic whiteness of the skin. Simple and typical facial features are transformed by the artist - he spiritualizes them with inner concentration, poetry, in harmony with the general mood reigning in the picture.

V. A. Serov, in each of his works, uses the principles of plein air painting, thereby emphasizing the naturalness and special graceful lightness of the images, as well as close connection model with its surrounding space. With his work, he affirms his own understanding of the image of a woman and the means of its pictorial embodiment. The girl, spontaneous and breathing the beauty of youth, appears in the painting “Girl Illuminated by the Sun.”

The model does not seem to be posing, but as if living in this picturesque space. The coloring of the picture is based on a harmonious comparison of close-knit golden-green, brownish tones in summer nature, pinkish tones in the face and pale yellowish, as well as blue tones in clothes. The white color of the girl’s blouse is transformed by the play of light reflexes; all the shades of the sun’s glare breaking through the foliage of the mighty tree seem to spread in it like a rainbow. The portrait is also expressive in its silhouette. The face is outlined by a plastically expressive smooth line, fluid, turning into the general line of the silhouette of the figure. Here we find the temperament of the writing, the sonority of the colorful range, and poetic sensuality.

The portrait was painted by the master as if in one go, although the artist worked on it the whole summer, forcing his patient cousin to pose almost every day. The visible artistic lightness and naturalness was achieved by the artist with sensitivity and skill, observation and the ability to surprisingly subtly see, feel and embody both visual impressions of the surrounding world and the inner spiritual world of the depicted model.

Careful study and thoughtful reflection in the works of many artists and writers of that time of the life of the people, way of life and morals, brought the social genre to one of the first places in the artistic environment of that time. A noticeable trend in the painting of female portraits of the period under study was the interest of artists in images of women from the people, and not just in “socialites”, rich customers, or beautiful strangers. In fact, these images can also be called a kind of “strangers” - the artists did not leave their names for history, they sought to create a generalized image of their contemporaries, representatives of various social strata. Such “portraits” are not just “portraits” in the classical sense. These are “portraits – paintings”, close to everyday genre, which had reached the peak of its popularity by that time. By creating such works, artists seem to balance on a fine line between various genres– portrait and household.

The image of the flower saleswoman, captured by the brush of N. K. Pimonenko, is permeated with emphasized spontaneity and major vital energy.

The combination of a bright blue tone of clothing with the emerald green of lily leaves and their snow-white flowers, the effect of even sunlight - means that help to reveal human image. The background here is the bustle of the street, bathed in sunlight, the artistic space unfolds diagonally into the depths, emphasized by the line of the sidewalk and a series of houses standing in a row, enhancing the feeling of movement of figures hurrying about their business or idly strolling passers-by. The young girl’s ruddy and weather-beaten face attracts the viewer’s gaze with its openness and simplicity, sparkling and natural smile, and expressiveness of her gaze. She briskly sells white lilies, as if symbolizing in this context the flowering and purity of youth. The impression of freshness, the spontaneity of the birth of the image enchants our gaze and remains forever in our visual and mental memory.

Such works reveal humanistic ideals and the keen interest of the creative intelligentsia in the destinies of the people. home country. Close to icon painting, and at the same time deeply realistic and modern, the female image is embodied by N. A. Yaroshenko in the portrait of a sister of mercy. A strictly defined figure against a dark background, the ascetic features of the girl’s face, some flatness and internal isolation of the image - all this evokes images Orthodox icons. The colors are united in a calm, harmonious harmony. With an exquisite color scheme, an almost monochrome range of brownish-gray and pale golden tones, the artist emphasizes the “iconic quality” of the created image.

The appearance of a sister of mercy bears the features of a collective, typical image. The dark space is illuminated as if by a sudden burst of light. Here the light serves as an expressive and easily readable metaphor - like sunlight, the deeds of this young, fragile girl illuminate the lives of many people whom she helps. The exquisitely faded palette of the portrait thoughtfully juxtaposes the muted brown and grayish tones of clothing, the bright red cross and yellowish highlights. The artist’s hands are beautifully painted - overworked and fragile, they are the embodiment of femininity, warmth, care, tenderness... She is like a saint on a miraculous icon - after all, a miracle is not only something mystical, it can be performed by any person endowed with kindness of soul and the desire to do good . Every day of her life she performs a miracle - she warms the world with her help, the kindness of her soul and the value of her work.

At the very end of the 19th century, at the alarming turn of the turbulent national history and dramatic centuries, in 1900, in the female portrait, the tendencies of symbolism are increasingly strengthened, and realism fades into the background, the era changes, and new priorities appear in painting, the desire to reveal other possibilities of artistic language. This is natural - after all, the path of creative search is inexhaustible, mobile, and endless. The desire for decorative and symbolic expressiveness of color, for artistry, for playing with the viewer’s imagination is increasingly intensifying. Figurative expressiveness is not aimed at conveying living sensations and observations, but is focused on achieving subtle emotional and intellectual pleasure, poetry and allegory, some convention and poetic rhythm, which makes painting akin to music and words.

Sophisticated and mysterious image beautiful lady, romanticized and full of poetic harmony, was created by K. A. Somov in his famous work “The Lady in a Blue Dress”. This is no longer the same stranger from Kramskoy who seemed so natural and alive to us, as if appearing before us for a few moments from the shadow of centuries. K. A. Somov's Stranger is, rather, a portrait of an actress playing a role, putting on a mask and reflecting on a recently read poem. In fact, this is a portrait of the artist E. M. Martynova.

The finest play of halftones creates a lyrical mood. The subtlety of coloristic taste is manifested in the picturesque texture - matte-faded color, flowing strokes that echo the smooth contour line. The precision of the drawing and the flexibility of the stroke impart a certain dryness and decorativeness, emphasizing the artistry of the depicted lady. As a background, a conventional stylized landscape is skillfully played out, again evoking an association not so much with a real landscape, but with theatrical scenes. This kind of desire to recreate a fictional world is a departure from spiritually impoverished reality and full immersion into the world of creativity fully corresponds to the new aesthetic demands of the era. This paradigm manifests itself in many works of masters. creative association“The World of Art”, to which K. A. Somov belonged.

Perhaps the most prone to theatricalization of images, phantasmagoria and mysticism was M. A. Vrubel - his painting seems to be a mysterious esoteric revelation in color. He sought to embody beauty and see its inner secret, to lift the veil of the mystery of the very essence of beauty. The idea of ​​such a search is close to the new trends of the era and clearly echoes what we can observe in the poetry of that time, and in music, and in the theater. Suffice it to recall the lines of Ivan Bunin, written in 1901:

I am looking for combinations in this world,

Beautiful and secret, like a dream...

This, of course, is not a credo or a call, but a clear and apt formulation of the creative paradigm of the literary and artistic environment of the turn of the century.

M.A. Vrubel chooses a very original and unique style of writing. He paints not with forms, not with volumes, but with crushing small planes, like a mosaic flickering in the darkness...

He often created portraits of his wife N.I. Zabela-Vrubel playing theatrical productions, in the images of various characters - either she appears in the image of Gretel, or in the image of the Swan Princess from the opera by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov based on the fairy tale about Tsar Saltan.

The painting-portrait of the Swan Princess was created at the very turn of the century, in those troubled times that foreshadowed a series of dramatic changes.

M. A. Vrubel. Swan Princess. 1900

The feeling of tremulous movement is perfectly expressed by the color scheme. Lilac and cold dark blue highlights seem to enter into a dramatic confrontation with major pinkish and yellowish flashes of light reflexes, enhancing the depth of the sounding dissonance, telling in colors about the contradiction between dream and reality, heavenly and earthly, spiritual and worldly, sublime and mundane. The figure, exciting with its mystery, is depicted in violent movement, as if it were flapping its snow-white wings with all its might, trying with all its might to take off right in front of the surprised spectators. In the huge, wide-open eyes, large drops of tears seemed to freeze, glistening in unison with the glare of the sunset flames, uniting the colors of the picture in such a complex coloristic unity. What is this - an unsolved symbol or a masterly played role, or maybe a reflection of the inner subtle movements of the artist’s soul filled with exalted poetry? Perhaps, each viewer should find the answer himself, or better yet, simply not think about it, but enjoy the sparkling beauty that touches the hidden strings of the human soul, awakening a fairy tale in the depths of the heart.

Artists of all times have been inspired by images of women - strong and strong-willed or fragile and vulnerable, simple and modest or extravagant and brave, mature and full of everyday worries or young and naive, natural and earthly or sophisticated and mannered... In a series of female portraits created by the most talented domestic masters at the end of the 19th century, reflected a new understanding of women for those times, more liberated, free from age-old prejudices and, it would seem, sometimes challenging traditions, but, at the same time, closely connected with Orthodox spirituality and philosophical intellectual quests of the creative intelligentsia of that time. Having looked at just a few examples in this article, we were able to see how attentive brush artists are to the individual characteristics of models, how sensitively they understand the nature of the female soul and how sincerely they admire female beauty!

Art always helps us to understand ourselves deeper, to take a fresh look at own life and to the world around. And maybe, looking at the beautiful creations of artists, modern women, absorbed in a series of everyday bustle, will remember that a beautiful, mysterious stranger lives within them...

Lukashevskaya Yana Naumovna, art historian, independent art critic, exhibition curator, 2011, website.

IN early 19th century In the Empire era, naturalness and simplicity are in fashion. The ladies even tried to achieve a cosmetic effect using natural methods: if they needed paleness, they drank vinegar, if they wanted blush, they ate strawberries. Even jewelry goes out of fashion for a while. It is believed that the more beautiful a woman is, the less she needs jewelry...

In Empire times, the whiteness and delicacy of hands were so valued that they even wore gloves at night.

Madame Recamier is a famous Parisian beauty, the most famous owner of a literary salon in history.

The outfits clearly imitate antique clothing. Since these dresses were made mainly from thin translucent muslin, fashionistas risked catching a cold on particularly cold days.

To create spectacular draperies that beautifully outline natural characteristics, ladies used a simple technique of ancient sculptors - they moistened their clothes; it is no coincidence that the mortality rate from pneumonia was very high in those years.

The French "Journal de Mode" in 1802 even recommended its readers to visit the Montmarte cemetery to see how many young girls had fallen victim to "naked" fashion.

Parisian newspapers were full of mourning chronicles: “Madame de Noël died after the ball, at nineteen, Mademoiselle de Juinier at eighteen, Mlle Chaptal at sixteen!” In just a few years of this extravagant fashion, more women died than in the previous 40 years.

Theresa Tallien was considered “more beautiful than the Capitoline Venus” - her figure was so ideal. She introduced the “naked” fashion. The most light dress weighed 200 grams!

Only thanks to Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign did cashmere shawls come into fashion, which were widely popularized by the emperor’s wife, Josephine.

In the 20s years XIX centuries, the woman’s figure resembles an hourglass: rounded “swollen” sleeves, a wasp waist, a wide skirt. The corset came into fashion. The waist should be unnatural in volume - about 55 cm.

The desire for an “ideal” waist often leads to tragic consequences. So, in 1859, one 23-year-old fashionista died after a ball due to the fact that three ribs compressed by a corset pierced her liver.

For the sake of beauty, ladies were ready to endure various inconveniences: wide brims of ladies' hats that hung over their eyes, and they had to move almost by touch, long and heavy hems of dresses.

P. Delaroche. Portrait of the singer Henrietta Sontag, 1831.

In the authoritative British journal The Lancet in the 1820s, the opinion was expressed that women should blame the weight of their dresses, which was about 20 kilograms, for muscle weakness, diseases of the nervous system and other ailments. Ladies often got confused in their own skirts. Queen Victoria once sprained her ankle by stepping on her hem.

In the second half of the 19th century, the desire for artificiality was revived. A healthy complexion and tan, a strong, strong body became signs of low origin. The ideal of beauty was considered to be “wasp waists,” pale faces, delicacy and sophistication. The laughter and tears of a society beauty should be beautiful and graceful. The laughter should not be loud, but crumbly. When crying, you can drop no more than three or four tears and watch so as not to spoil your complexion.

Camille Claudel

Sick femininity is in fashion. It's about both about mental illnesses, in which imbalance borders on madness, the symbol of such a beauty can be Camille Claudel, the muse and student of the sculptor Auguste Rodin, and illnesses of the body, like Marguerite Gautier, a mortally ill courtesan with tuberculosis - the heroine of the novel “The Lady of the Camellias” by Alexander Dumas.

To give their faces a matte pallor, ladies took crushed chalk three times a day (well-purified chalk could be obtained in drugstores; use chalks intended for card game, it was impossible) and drank vinegar and lemon juice, and the circles under the eyes were achieved due to a special lack of sleep.

Vladimir Ivanovich Gau was born on February 4, 1816 in Revel. Watercolor artist Vladimir Gau left us with a wonderful gallery of portraits of his era. His works are in many museums and are a source of pride for collectors. A portrait artist, Gau painted many portraits royal family– Emperor Nicholas I, Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich and hundreds of portraits of the Russian nobility.

Vladimir Ivanovich Gau was born into the family of an artist. Johann Gau did not receive an art education; he became a self-taught artist and became famous in his time as a landscape artist and decorator. He taught this to his sons as well.

Vladimir's older brother Eduard Gau is known as a perspectival artist. His paintings are numerous images of the palaces of St. Petersburg and its suburbs, the Grand Kremlin Palace and its halls. In 1854, Eduard Gau became an academician “for the art and knowledge of pictorial perspective watercolor art.”

And little Voldemar also drew from childhood. But unlike his father and brother, he was attracted by the image of a person’s face. The father did not immediately agree with this inclination of the future court painter. After all, being a portrait artist meant listening to other people’s comments, finding the strength to paint as a capricious customer demands, and also being able to flatter him.

Therefore, first the father sends his son to study with academician Karl von Kügelchen. Old artist lived near Revel, in the Fridheim estate. I worked with patience and zeal young artist, and Kügelchen saw and appreciated the gift of a portrait painter in him, and therefore managed to convince Johann not to resist his son’s wishes.

Soon, with the assistance of Kügelchen, Waldemar Gau, already at the end of the 1820s, began to receive orders for portraits, which turned out to be so many that the young artist barely had time to complete them.

Being a portrait artist is not easy, but it is very honorable. Indeed, in those distant times, many people wanted to preserve their image in youth or adulthood, for themselves or as a keepsake for loved ones. Therefore, everyone had great respect for artists who knew how to paint portraits.

Then, and even now, they say about great artists that he paints a portrait, that he paints, and does not draw. Hence the word – painter. This is the kind of painter who could convey the image and soul of a person that Woldemar Gau wanted to become.

In 1832, the royal family arrived in Revel for sea bathing. By this time, many people here already knew about the young artist. Therefore, it is not surprising that rumors about him reached the imperial family. Empress Alexandra Feodorovna herself wanted the artist to paint portraits of her children. When the portraits were ready, the empress immediately realized that this was a real artist.

Alexandra Feodorovna took him under her protection, and in 1832 Gau was enrolled as a free student at the Imperial Academy of Arts, and “at the expense of the high patroness.” In 1835, V. Gau was invited to Tsarskoe Selo, where he painted portraits of the Grand Dukes Alexander, Konstantin, Nikolai, Mikhail and the Grand Duchesses Maria, Olga and Alexandra.

In 1836, Gau painted a portrait of Alexandra Feodorovna, which became one of the famous and best portraits empress. Alexandra Feodorovna is depicted in the living room of the “Cottage” in Alexandria. The empress’s calm, slightly tired face—she seemed lost in thought, looking ahead. Proud, straight posture, noble appearance...

In 1836, Vladimir Gau graduated from the Academy of Arts with a large silver medal. Soon he went abroad to further improve his skills. There were already famous artists in Russia at that time, whom the Russian nobility admired, but there was a lot to learn in Europe.

Gau visited Italy and Germany. Here he became acquainted with the works of Italian and German painters. Watercolor portrait genre in Europe it was more common, and small in size. These were the needs of society. Watercolor artists worked at every European court. Painted portraits were often replicated lithographically.

Returning to Russia, Vladimir Gau became a Court Painter. In 1849 he was awarded the honorary title of Academician watercolor painting. Many social beauties dreamed of receiving a portrait by Vladimir Gau. Among his models were almost all members of the Imperial House.

He painted portraits of the royal family and Russian nobility, executed in interiors or landscapes, portraits of actresses Imperial Theater: “singers and true beauties” A.M. Stepanova, dramatic actress V.N. Asenkova, dancer V.P. Volkova, actress M.I. Shiryaeva. Unfortunately, not all of the portraits can be seen today; some can only be understood from surviving lithographs.

Most of the portraits of V. Gau are of the Russian aristocracy of the 19th century, and therefore in each of those depicted there are elements of aristocracy in its external manifestation. This clear, calm face, straight posture, turn of the head, clothing - all this passes from portrait to portrait.

The portraits of women are especially beautiful, poetic, heartfelt and expressive. In them one can sense a virtuoso mastery of technique and the ability to capture the characteristic features of a model. Portraits of St. Petersburg beauties ensured the artist's success in society.

Look at any portrait of V. Gau - the gentle pretty faces of women, surrounded by the magical radiance of watercolors, nobility and dignity, a thoughtful or dreamy look, a languid expression...

Images of Countess Emilia Musina-Pushkina, Princess A.A. Golitsyna, N.N. Pushkina, M.V. Stolypina, one of the “fashionable women of the forties”, portrait of O.N. Skobeleva, mother of the outstanding Russian military leader General M.D. Skobelev, portrait of Anna Alekseevna Olenina, to whom A.S. Pushkin dedicated his poems-explanations of love. “I loved you...” or

“But, admit it yourself, it’s either
My Deer eyes!
What a thoughtful genius they are,
And how much childish simplicity
And how many languid expressions
And how much bliss and dreams!..."

In 1842, Gau married Louise-Matilda-Theodora Zanftleben, the daughter of a St. Petersburg tailor. The artist's family had three sons and six daughters. In the collection of the Russian Museum there are small pencil sketches and watercolors given by his grandson Magnus Viktorovich Hinze tell us about the events of his family life.

Some of the Gau family portraits are in Russia, and some are abroad. In the Yaroslavl collection art museum there are portraits of his eldest son Harald in infancy and three daughters - Maria, Olga and Eugenia.

Vladimir Gau is an artist from the 1840s to the 1860s. His portraits reflect the atmosphere of those years. For decades now, the artist Vladimir Gau’s brush has been telling us the life stories of people who lived many years ago. Thanks to him, we can get in touch with the past not only famous people, but also with the history of the country. A striking example can be the portraits of Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna.

Elena Pavlovna, gifted with a subtle artistic taste, herself posed for the artist and appreciated his talent. Elena Pavlovna, known for her active work for the benefit of Russia, amazed everyone with her intelligence, strong character.

The poet V.F. Odoevsky wrote about her: “Everything interested her, she knew everyone, understood everything, sympathized with everything. She was always learning something." Elena Pavlovna, being married to Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich, knew how to be useful in government affairs and the emperor himself.

When the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna died, according to her will, management of the Mariinsky and Midwifery Institutes passed to Elena Pavlovna. Maria Feodorovna knew that she was handing them over to safe hands. And indeed, from that time on, all the problems of medicine were always in the field of vision of Elena Pavlovna.

This woman seemed to have everything she needed to be happy. But it only seemed so. Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich was a completely different person, and the beauty and grace of his wife, whom poets admired, did not bother him. She buried her daughters - some in infancy, and the other two - Mary and Elizabeth - died at a young age.

After this, Elena Pavlovna completely devoted herself to public and charitable activities. It was she who created the first military community of sisters of mercy in Russia during Crimean War. For her activities and services to the liberation of peasants from serfdom, the Grand Duchess was called “Princesse la Liberte - Princess of Freedom” in society, and Emperor Alexander II awarded Elena Pavlovna the gold medal “Reform Worker”.

Among the hundreds of portraits painted with the brush of V. Gau, like every artist, there is great work, and there are also less successful ones. Many of his portraits do not have that warmth, cordiality and trust that is very often felt between the artist and his model.

In his portraits one can feel some restraint, and sometimes coldness, but this is understandable. The circle of his models, or rather those portrayed, is the imperial family, the Russian nobility.

Could he really feel with everyone that creative mood, silent communication and understanding that can exist between an artist and a model, so necessary for carrying out the difficult task of creativity? In addition, the court artist must be ready to unconditionally fulfill any wish of the customer, as his father warned him about.

In portraits depicting people close to the artist, the interest in a person, in his inner world, is completely different. In the period 1860-1890s, the works of V.I. Gau became rare. At this time, the watercolor portrait was being replaced by developing photography.

Vladimir Gau, a court artist of the imperial house, died on March 11, 1895, and was buried at the Smolensk Lutheran cemetery in St. Petersburg. His wife Louise Gau also rests here.

Mother Nature has not invented anything more perfect than a woman. He proved this with all the power of his talent all his life, and yet he proved it, one of greatest painters XIX century Franz Xavier Winterhalter. His surname is compound. And the first part is translated as “winter”. And how the second one is translated - everyone knows without me... But I don’t understand what it means in totality... This is the artist’s first mystery for me. :) So write a woman, as the hero of our story did, in mid-19th centuries in Europe, not many painters were able to do this. Customers were incredibly impressed that Winterhalter, like no one else, knew how to give grace and elegance to the female figure, mystery to the eyes, and promising slyness to the smile. And how he conveyed exquisite ladies' toiletries! Under his brush, satin flows silkily, lace is enveloped in the finest ligature, precious stones and pearls shimmer. But the most important thing: he fundamentally does not see any shortcomings in the ladies he portrays! In his portraits they are all incredibly beautiful, but at the same time they look like themselves. How he did it is Winterhalter's second mystery. But this is the greatest art!

Franz Xavier Winterhalter was born in 1805 in a small village in the Black Forest. At the age of 13 he left home to study drawing.

Self-portrait at the age of 17

And when he turned 18, he was awarded a scholarship from the Grand Duke of Baden for his talent and began studying at the Academy of Arts.

The guy earns a living hard work lithographer...

Self-portrait at the age of 25

Self-portrait with brother Herman

Wintrehalter's entry into court circles took place in 1828, when he became the drawing teacher of the Margravess Sophia of Baden. Soon the teacher is confirmed as a court artist...

Sophia, Margravess of Baden

But he did not stay in Baden, but moved to France, where at the exhibition of 1836 two of his genre paintings- Il dolce Farniente and Il Decameron.

Decameron

Winterhalter quickly became fashionable. They talk about him.

His success earns him a reputation as a master of aristocratic portraiture, capable of combining “precise portrait likeness with subtle flattery.” For this he was appointed court artist to Louis Philippe, King of France.
But in high artistic circles, Winterhalter’s reputation only suffered from this.

The critics turned away.

But orders from aristocrats rained down.

Victoria Augusta Antoinette of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Coharie, Duchess of Nemours

Francesca Carolina of Braganza, Princess de Joinville

The revolution and the fall of King Louis Philippe in 1848 forced Winterhalter to leave for Switzerland, where he returned to thematic painting and painted Florinda, a joyful celebration of female beauty. He paints shepherdesses, milkmaids and other simple rural girls...

Florinda

Spring

After the accession of Napoleon III to the throne, the demand for the artist returned the best houses France.

He continued to “subtly flatter”, depicting flowing satin and exciting lace...

Is there a woman who is indifferent to the image of the dress in which she poses for the artist?

But in addition, the skilled Winterhalter knew how to convey on canvas the silkiness of hair, the sparkle of eyes, velvety skin and the sensitivity of lips...

Critics criticized, but they could not stop the flow of orders from countesses, princesses, duchesses and empresses.

And they all stood patiently in line with him!

Alexandre Dumas saw this with his own eyes: “Ladies wait for months for their turn to get into Winterhalter’s atelier, they sign up, they have their serial numbers and wait - one for a year, another for eighteen months, the third for two years. The most titled have advantages..."

Queen Victoria, 1843

Queen Victoria, 1859

Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and a little prince Arthur accepts gifts from the Duke of Wellington

Immersed to the very top in the atmosphere of feminine charm, the artist only at the 47th year of his life decides to start his own family, but his marriage proposal was rejected.

History is silent about the name of this woman, but it makes hints, and one of them is ahead of us...

***
When the “royal artist” Winterhalter began to be in constant demand at the courts of Britain, Spain, Belgium, Germany, and France, this pan-European excitement could not pass by the Russian aristocrats. Russian noblewomen who came to Paris also stood in line.

There were empresses, grand duchesses, as well as beautiful representatives of princely and count families.

Leonilla Baryatinskaya, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sain, 1843

Leonilla Baryatinskaya, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sain, 1849

Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Emperor Nicholas I

Empress Maria Alexandrovna, wife of Alexander II

Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, daughter of Emperor Nicholas I

Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna, wife of Konstantin Nikolaevich,

younger brother of Emperor Alexander II

Countess Sofia Bobrinskaya, née Shuvalova

Princess Elizaveta Esperovna Trubetskoy

Elizaveta Alexandrovna Chernysheva, Princess Baryatinskaya

Sofia Trubetskoy Countess de Morny wife of Charles Auguste Joseph Louis Comte de Morny

Countess Olga Shuvalova

Elena Shuvalova, in her first marriage Orlova-Denisova

Over time, it has become obvious and generally accepted that the most exciting portrait of a Russian beauty by Winterhalter is the portrait of Varvara Dmitrievna Rimskaya-Korsakova.

Varvara Dmitrievna was a star of high society in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Varvara Dmitrievna Rimskaya-Korsakova

Arrogant Paris also bowed in admiration before her beauty, which overshadowed the beauty of the first French beauty, Empress Eugenie, which caused great dissatisfaction with the latter.

Empress Eugenie

Empress Eugenie with ladies-in-waiting

At the same time, Winterhalter painted the Russian beauty Varvara twice.

And both times his Rimskaya-Korsakova is not just beautiful, she is dazzlingly beautiful!

The artist’s noticeable personal sympathy does not allow us to classify the image of Varvara Dmitrievna as an ordinary ceremonial portrait.

But this allowed us to conclude that the artist was secretly in love with her.

Is it really?

But this forever remained Winterhalter’s third mystery, which he took with him to the grave in 1871, remaining unmarried.

Having painted so many portraits of Russian beauties, the artist had never been to Russia!

And Winterhalter also took this last mystery with him.

The month of March, considered Women's History Month, is coming to an end. And in his honor, here is a selection. 10 Of The Many Revolutionary Women Artists Who Made The World A Better Place With Their Art beautiful place, and more equal for half of humanity.

These are women artists who embodied the idea of ​​feminist art long before the term was coined. Were they in art during Italian Renaissance or in 19th century New York, their work proves that women are always capable of making a significant contribution to the world's art treasury.
The first reproduction shows Portrait of Alice Liddell by Cameron

1. Julia Margaret Cameron

Julia Margaret Cameron was 48 years old when she first picked up a camera. This happened back in the century before last, back in 1868. But in the short 11 years of her career as a photographer, Julia has achieved a lot.

Her dreamy portraits seem to revel in the imperfections of photography, using blurs and fog to evoke the distinct essence of a person over mimetic likenesses. I think if anyone on this list was Instagram-loved, it would be Cameron.

2. Propertia de Rossi

Properzia de Rossi (1491-1530) was born in Bologna and worked there all her life.

She probably wasPthe first woman to destroy the stereotypes of Renaissance society. Bolognese artist and sculptor, who, without regard to the past and present, was engaged in a truly masculine occupation - stone carving, marble processing and engraving.

As a girl, she began her journey with carving peach pits, which seemed like an amazing miracle due to the subtlety of their work and elegant manner.
On such a tiny bone, Rossi managed to convey all the passions of Christ, executed in the most beautiful carvings with countless characters.

3. Elisabetta Sirani

Born in 1638. Although she died at the young age of 27, Sirani created over 200 paintings during her life, combining dramatic dark backgrounds with edgy, bright colors and images of powerful heroines.

Daughter of the Bolognese school artist Giovanni Andrea Sirani, one of Guido Reni's closest students and collaborators.She began painting at the age of 12 under the influence of the connoisseur and art historian Carlo Cesare Malvasia, who later included her biography - the only woman - in his famous book on the artists of Bologna (1678).

At first, the father was skeptical about these activities, but a year later he accepted his daughter into the workshop. By the age of 17, she had become a fully established painter and engraver, and from that time on she kept a notebook in which she wrote down all her works.

Her style is close to Guido Reni, their works were confused several times: the famous alleged portrait of Beatrice Cenci by Sirani for a long time attributed to Reni.

4. Edmonia Lewis

American female sculptor of African-Indian descent

Born in Albany in 1844. His father is African American and his mother is from the Chippewa Indian tribe. Both parents died when she was a child. Edmonia and her older brother lived with her mother's relatives in Niagara Flats. Three years later, her brother suggested that she give up working at home and go to school.

Studied at Oberlin Preparatory College in Ohio, one of the first educational institutions USA, where women of different races were accepted. It was there that Edmonia became interested in sculpture and began her career in art.

However, she faces discrimination throughout her education - in​​ including being beaten and accused of poisoning a classmateV. After graduating, she moved to Boston to continue her work re-creating abolitionists and Civil War heroes.

She ended up spending most of her artistic career in Rome, where she created beautiful marble sculptures in the neoclassical tradition. She is best known for her marble sculpture, The Death of Cleopatra, and we can see why. The form has all the drama of Michelangelo.

5. Judith Leyster

Born in 1609 in Haarlem, the Netherlands, she became the first female artist registered with the Haarlem Guild of St. Luke.
She is best known for her "Self-Portrait". Famous for its playful fluidity, at a time when most portraits of women were stiff and serious.

6. Sofonisba Anguissola

Born in 1532.
Anguissola, the eldest of seven children, is of noble birth, and her father assured her that she would have the best education in whatever direction she chose.

He was apparently a man of his word, and Michelangelo became Anguissola's unofficial mentor. She received great opportunities because of wealth and status, but was still denied many opportunities as an artist because she was a woman.
For example, because it was considered inappropriate for a woman to look at nude models.

In the last years of her life, Anguissola painted not only portraits, but also canvases on religious themes, as in the days of her youth. However, many of her paintings were subsequently lost.
Her husband's successful trade and a generous pension from Philip II allowed her to paint freely and live comfortably. She was a leading portrait painter in Genoa until she moved to Palermo in her last years. In 1620 she created her last self-portrait.

7. Saint Catherine of Bologna

Born in 1413 An artist, a nun and, you guessed it, a saint. She grew up well trained in drawing, and with an education as the daughter of an aristocrat, she served as a maid of honor before entering a convent.
Now she is considered the patroness of artists.
Many artists came to visit her to study and share opinions about directions in the development of art.
She created her own own style, which many artists have sought to imitate.
Her success paved the way for other Renaissance women to become artists, such as Lavinia Fontana, Barbara Longhi, Fede Galizia and Artemisia Gentileschi.

8. Levina Teerlink

Born in 1593
Gentileschi, the daughter of an artist, grew up in her father's studio as a child.
At 18 she was raped by an artist Agostino Tassi, working with her father, and was subjected to interrogation, humiliation and even torture, wanting to achieve the conviction of the criminal.

After an agonizing seven-month trial for Artemisia, Tassi was found guilty and sentenced to a year in prison.

Having married the artist Pierantonio Stiattesi (the marriage was arranged by her father), Artemisia moved to Florence in the same year 1612.

Gentileschi's feminist work is filled with heroic women. Her aesthetic is equal parts bold and strong, eschewing traditional notions of feminine weakness.
Her paintings often combine sexuality and violence, for example, “Judith Kills Holofernes.”