Russian culture of the Silver Age

General characteristics of the Silver Age culture

Russian culture of the late XIX – early XX centuries. received the name of the Silver Age (term by N.A. Berdyaev). During this period, there was a meeting of two different cultural streams: on the one hand, traditions coming from the 19th century prevailed, on the other, a tendency to search for non-traditional forms appeared.

Characteristic of this era was that schools that deviated from socio-political themes in art were often considered as representatives of the opposition (A. Blok and A. Bely, M. Vrubel, V. Meyerhold). Those who consciously continued the classical traditions were considered as exponents of general democratic ideas.

At the turn of the century, many artistic associations arose in Russia: “The World of Art”, the Union of Russian Artists, etc. The so-called artistic colonies appeared - Abramtsevo and Talashkino, which brought together painters, architects, and musicians under one roof. The Art Nouveau style is emerging in architecture. A characteristic feature of the culture of the early 20th century was the emergence and rapid spread of urban mass culture. The most striking example of this phenomenon was the unprecedented success of a new type of spectacle - cinema.

Education and science

The growth of industry created a demand for educated people. However, the level of education changed slightly: the 1897 census recorded 21 literate people per 100 inhabitants of the empire, and in the Baltic states and Central Asia, among women and in rural areas this level was lower. State appropriations for the school increased from 1902 to 1912. more than 2 times. Since the beginning of the century, the question of compulsory primary education has been raised (it was adopted at the legislative level in 1908). After the revolution of 1905–1907 a certain democratization of higher education took place: elections of deans and rectors were allowed, student organizations began to form.

The number of secondary and higher educational institutions grew rapidly: by 1914 there were more than 200. Saratov University was founded (1909). In total, by 1914 there were about 100 universities in the country with 130 thousand students.

In general, the education system did not meet the needs of the country. There was no continuity between different levels of education.

In the field of humanities at the beginning of the 20th century. an important turning point occurs. Scientific societies began to unite not only the scientific elite, but also amateurs, everyone who wanted to engage in research activities. The most famous were:

1) geographical;

2) historical;

3) archaeological and other societies.

The development of natural science took place in close contact with world science.

The most striking phenomenon is the emergence of Russian religious and philosophical thought, an attribute of Russian philosophy.

Russian historical school at the beginning of the 20th century. won worldwide recognition. The research of A. A. Shakhmatov on the history of Russian chronicles and V. Klyuchevsky (pre-Petrine period of Russian history) became widely known throughout the world. Achievements in historical science are also associated with names:

1) P. N. Milyukova;

2) N. P. Pavlov-Silvansky;

3) A. S. Lappo-Danilevsky and others.

The modernization of the country also required a fresh influx of forces in the field of natural science knowledge. New technical institutes were opened in Russia. World-class scientists were physicist P. N. Lebedev, mathematicians and mechanics N. E. Zhukovsky and S. A. Chaplygin, chemists N. D. Zelinsky and I. A. Kablukov. Moscow and St. Petersburg have become recognized scientific capitals of the world.

At the beginning of the century, the geographical “discovery” of Russia was still ongoing. Vast unexplored spaces encouraged scientists and travelers to undertake risky expeditions. The travels of V. A. Obruchev, G. Ya. Sedov, A. V. Kolchak became widely known.

Among the famous scientists of this time is V. I. Vernadsky(1863–1945) - encyclopedist, one of the founders of geochemistry, the doctrine of the biosphere, which later formed the basis of his idea of ​​​​the noosphere, or the sphere of planetary intelligence. In 1903, the work of the creator of the theory of rocket propulsion was published K. E. Tsiolkovsky(1875–1935). The work was essential N. E. Zhukovsky(1847–1921) and I. I. Sikorsky(1889–1972) in aircraft manufacturing, I. P. Pavlova, I. M. Sechenova and etc.

Literature. Theater. Cinema

The development of literature followed the traditions of Russian classical literature of the 19th century, the living personification of which was L. N. Tolstoy. Russian literature of the early 20th century. represented by the names of A. P. Chekhov, M. Gorky, V. G. Korolenko, A. N. Kuprin, I. A. Bunin, etc.

Beginning of the 20th century was the heyday of Russian poetry. New movements were born: acmeism (A. A. Akhmatova, N. S. Gumilyov), symbolism (A. A. Blok, K. D. Balmont, A. Bely, V. Ya. Bryusov), futurism (V. V. Khlebnikov, V.V. Mayakovsky) and others.

This period was characterized by such features as:

1) modernist thinking of cultural creators;

2) strong influence of abstractionism;

3) patronage.

The periodical press has acquired great importance in the life of Russian society. The liberation (1905) of the press from preliminary censorship contributed to an increase in the number of newspapers (end of the 19th century - 105 daily newspapers, 1912 - 1131 newspapers in 24 languages) and an increase in their circulation. The largest publishing houses - I. D. Sytina, A. S. Suvorin, "Znanie" - published cheap publications. Each political movement had its own press organs.

Theater life was also intense, with the Bolshoi (Moscow) and Mariinsky (St. Petersburg) theaters occupying leading positions. In 1898, K. S. Stanislavsky and V. N. Nemirovich-Danchenko founded the Moscow Art Theater (originally the Moscow Art Theater), on the stage of which plays by Chekhov, Gorky and others were staged.

At the beginning of the 20th century. The attention of the musical community was drawn to the work of such talented Russian composers as:

1) A. N. Scriabin;

2) N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov;

3) S. V. Rachmaninov;

4) I. F. Stravinsky.

Particularly popular among various segments of the urban population was the one that appeared at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. cinema; in 1908 the first Russian fiction film “Stenka Razin” was released. By 1914, over 300 paintings had been produced in the country.

Painting

In the fine arts there was a realistic direction - I. E. Repin, the Association of Traveling Exhibitions - and avant-garde directions. One of the trends was an appeal to the search for national original beauty - the works of M. V. Nesterov, N. K. Roerich and others. Russian impressionism is represented by the works of V. A. Serov, I. E. Grabar (Union of Russian Artists), K. A Korovina, P.V. Kuznetsova (“Blue Rose”), etc.

In the first decades of the 20th century. artists united to organize joint exhibitions: 1910 - exhibition “Jack of Diamonds” - P. P. Konchalovsky, I. I. Mashkov, R. R. Falk, A. V. Lentulov, D. D. Burliuk and others. famous artists of this period - K. S. Malevich, M. Z. Chagall, V. E. Tatlin. Contacts with Western art, a kind of “pilgrimage to Paris,” played a major role in the development of artists.

The artistic movement “World of Art,” which emerged at the end of the 19th century, played a significant role in the development of Russian art. In Petersburg. In 1897–1898 S. Diaghilev organized and held three exhibitions in Moscow and, having provided financial support, created the magazine “World of Art” in December 1899, which gave the name to the movement.

“World of Art” opened Finnish and Scandinavian painting and English artists to the Russian public. As an integral literary and artistic association, the World of Art existed until 1904. The resumption of the group in 1910 could no longer return to its former role. Artists A. N. Benois, K. A. Somov, E. E. Lansere, M. V. Dobuzhinsky, L. S. Bakst and others united around the magazine. An important feature of the “Mirskusniks” was universalism - they acted as critics and art historians , theater directors and decorators, writers.

Early works M. V. Nesterova(1862–1942), who considered himself a student of V. G. Perov and V. E. Makovsky, were made on historical subjects in a realistic manner. Nesterov’s central work is “Vision to the Youth Bartholomew” (1889–1890).

K. A. Korovina(1861–1939) is often called the "Russian Impressionist". Indeed, of all the Russian artists of the turn of the 19th–20th centuries. he most fully assimilated some of the principles of this direction - a joyful perception of life, the desire to convey fleeting sensations, the subtle play of light and color. Landscape occupied a large place in Korovin’s work. The artist painted Parisian boulevards (“Paris. Boulevard des Capucines”, 1906), and spectacular sea views, and Central Russian nature. Korovin worked a lot for the theater and designed performances.

Art V. A. Serova(1865–1911) is difficult to attribute to a specific movement. In his work there is a place for both realism and impressionism. Serov became most famous as a portrait painter, but he was also an excellent landscape painter. Since 1899, Serov took part in exhibitions of the World of Art association. Under their influence, Serov became interested in historical topics (the era of Peter I). In 1907, he went on a trip to Greece (the paintings “Odysseus and Nausicaa”, “The Rape of Europa”, both 1910).

The great Russian artist is widely known M. A. Vrubel(1856–1910). The originality of his painting style lay in the endless fragmentation of the form on the edge. M.A. Vrubel is the author of tiled fireplaces with Russian heroes, benches with mermaids, sculptures (“Sadko”, “Snow Maiden”, “Berendey”, etc.).

Native of Saratov V. E. Borisov-Musatov(1870–1905) worked a lot in the open air (in nature). In his sketches he tried to capture the play of air and color. In 1897, he painted the sketch “Agave”; a year later “Self-Portrait with Sister” appeared. His characters are not specific people, the author himself invented them and dressed them in camisoles, white wigs, and dresses with crinolines. The paintings reveal a poetic, idealized world of old quiet “noble nests”, far from the general confusion of the modern turning point.

Architecture and sculpture

A new style has become widespread in architecture - modernism, with its inherent desire to emphasize the purpose of residential and public buildings. He widely used:

1) frescoes;

2) mosaic;

3) stained glass;

4) ceramics;

5) sculpture;

6) new designs and materials.

Architect F. O. Shekhtel(1859–1926) became a singer of the Art Nouveau style, and the flowering of architecture of this style in Russia is associated with his name. During his creative life, he built an extraordinary amount: city mansions and dachas, multi-storey residential buildings, commercial and industrial buildings, banks, printing houses and even baths. In addition, the master designed theatrical performances, illustrated books, painted icons, designed furniture, and created church utensils. In 1902–1904 F. O. Shekhtel rebuilt the Yaroslavsky railway station in Moscow. The façade was decorated with ceramic panels made in the Bramtsevo workshop, and the interior was decorated with paintings by Konstantin Korovin.

In the 1st decade of the 20th century, during the heyday of Art Nouveau, interest in the classics began to revive in architecture. Many masters used elements of the classical order and decor. This is how a special stylistic direction emerged - neoclassicism.

At the turn of the 19th–20th centuries. A new generation of sculptors was formed who opposed the realistic direction. Now preference was given not to careful detailing of the form, but to artistic generalization. Even the attitude towards the surface of the sculpture, on which fingerprints or marks of the master were preserved, has changed. Having an interest in the characteristics of the material, they often preferred wood, natural stone, clay and even plasticine. Especially stand out here A. S. Golubkina(1864–1927) and S. T. Konenkov, who became world famous sculptors.

In their romantic impulse, Art Nouveau architects often turned to their national past for inspiration and forms, drawing from there not so much specific architectural forms and details, as was the case in historicism, but trying to reproduce the spirit of folk or ancient architecture, creating vivid architectural images. Typical examples of this approach are the building of the Tretyakov Gallery, built according to the design of the artist V. Vasnetsov, and the Pertsov apartment building, built according to the design of the artist S. Malyutin.

Setting themselves the task of aesthetic harmonization of society, the architects in their search touched, of course, not only on individual construction, but also on the construction of industrial buildings (Printing House of Levinson F. Shekhtel in Moscow), railway stations, public and commercial institutions, and religious buildings.

The Art Nouveau monuments are all quite easily recognizable. Its external stylistic features are so characteristic that even a layman can easily recognize them. This is, first of all, a living, dynamic mass, free, moving space and an amazing, whimsical, whimsical ornament, the main theme of which is line.

The new stage in the development of Russian culture is conventionally called the “Silver Age”, starting from the reform of 1861 to the October Revolution of 1917. This name was first proposed by the philosopher N. Berdyaev, who saw in the highest cultural achievements of his contemporaries a reflection of the Russian glory of the previous “golden” eras, but this phrase finally entered literary circulation in the 60s of the last century.

The “Silver Age” occupies a very special place in Russian culture. This controversial time of spiritual search and wandering significantly enriched all types of arts and philosophy and gave birth to a whole galaxy of outstanding creative personalities. On the threshold of the new century, the deep foundations of life began to change, giving rise to the collapse of the old picture of the world. Traditional regulators of existence - religion, morality, law - did not cope with their functions, and the age of modernity was born.

However, they sometimes say that the “Silver Age” is a Westernizing phenomenon. Indeed, he chose as his reference points the aestheticism of Oscar Wilde, the individualistic spiritualism of Alfred de Vigny, the pessimism of Schopenhauer, and the superman of Nietzsche. The “Silver Age” found its ancestors and allies in various European countries and in different centuries: Villon, Mallarmé, Rimbaud, Novalis, Shelley, Calderon, Ibsen, Maeterlinck, d'Annuzio, Gautier, Baudelaire, Verhaeren.

In other words, at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries there was a reassessment of values ​​from the perspective of Europeanism. But in the light of a new era, which was the complete opposite of the one it replaced, national, literary and folklore treasures appeared in a different light, brighter than ever. Truly, it was the most creative era in Russian history, a canvas of greatness and impending troubles of holy Russia.

Slavophiles and Westerners

The abolition of serfdom and the development of bourgeois relations in the countryside exacerbated contradictions in the development of culture. They are revealed, first of all, in the discussion that has gripped Russian society and in the formation of two directions: “Western” and “Slavophile”. The stumbling block that did not allow the disputants to reconcile was the question: along what path is Russian culture developing? According to the “Western”, that is, bourgeois, or it preserves its “Slavic identity”, that is, it preserves feudal relations and the agrarian nature of culture.

The reason for highlighting the directions was the “Philosophical Letters” of P. Ya. Chaadaev. He believed that all the troubles of Russia were derived from the qualities of the Russian people, which were supposedly characterized by: mental and spiritual backwardness, underdeveloped ideas about duty, justice, law, order, and the absence of an original “idea.” As the philosopher believed, “the history of Russia is a “negative lesson” to the world.” A. S. Pushkin gave him a sharp rebuke, declaring: “For nothing in the world I would not want to change the Fatherland or have a different history other than the history of our ancestors, the way God gave it to us.”

Russian society was divided into “Slavophiles” and “Westerners.” The “Westerners” included V. G. Belinsky, A. I. Herzen, N. V. Stankevich, M. A. Bakunin and others. The “Slavophiles” were represented by A. S. Khomyakov, K. S. Aksakov, Yu. Samarin.

The “Westerners” were characterized by a certain set of ideas that they defended in disputes. This ideological complex included: denial of the originality of the culture of any people; criticism of Russia's cultural backwardness; admiration for Western culture, its idealization; recognition of the need for modernization, “modernization” of Russian culture, as a borrowing of Western European values. Westerners considered the ideal person to be a European - a businesslike, pragmatic, emotionally restrained, rational being, distinguished by “healthy egoism.” Characteristic of the “Westerners” was a religious orientation towards Catholicism and ecumenism (the fusion of Catholicism with Orthodoxy), as well as cosmopolitanism. In terms of political sympathies, the “Westerners” were republicans; they were characterized by anti-monarchist sentiments.

In essence, the “Westerners” were supporters of industrial culture - the development of industry, natural science, technology, but within the framework of capitalist, private property relations.

They were opposed by the “Slavophiles”, distinguished by their complex of stereotypes. They were characterized by a critical attitude towards European culture; its rejection as inhumane, immoral, unspiritual; absolutization in it of the features of decline, decadence, decomposition. On the other hand, they were distinguished by nationalism and patriotism, admiration for the culture of Russia, the absolutization of its uniqueness and originality, and the glorification of the historical past. The “Slavophiles” pinned their expectations on the peasant community, viewing it as the custodian of everything “sacred” in culture.

Orthodoxy was considered the spiritual core of culture, which was also viewed uncritically, and its role in the spiritual life of Russia was exaggerated. Accordingly, anti-Catholicism and a negative attitude towards ecumenism were asserted. Slavophiles were distinguished by a monarchical orientation, admiration for the figure of the peasant - the owner, the “master”, and a negative attitude towards workers as a “ulcer of society”, a product of the decomposition of its culture.

Thus, the “Slavophiles”, in essence, defended the ideals of an agrarian culture and took protective, conservative positions.

The confrontation between the “Westerners” and the “Slavophiles” reflected the growing contradiction between agrarian and industrial cultures, between two forms of property - feudal and bourgeois, between two classes - the nobility and capitalists. But hidden contradictions also worsened within capitalist relations - between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. The revolutionary, proletarian direction in culture stands out as independent and, in fact, will determine the development of Russian culture in the twentieth century.

Education and enlightenment

In 1897, the All-Russian population census was carried out. According to the census, in Russia the average literacy rate was 21.1%: men - 29.3%, women - 13.1%, about 1% of the population had higher and secondary education. In relation to the entire literate population, only 4% studied in secondary school. At the turn of the century, the education system still included three levels: primary (parochial schools, public schools), secondary (classical gymnasiums, real and commercial schools) and higher school (universities, institutes).

In 1905, the Ministry of Public Education submitted a draft law “On the introduction of universal primary education in the Russian Empire” for consideration by the Second State Duma, but this project never received the force of law. But the growing need for specialists contributed to the development of higher, especially technical, education. In 1912, there were 16 higher technical educational institutions in Russia, in addition to private higher educational institutions. The university accepted persons of both sexes, regardless of nationality and political views. Therefore, the number of students increased noticeably - from 14 thousand in the mid-90s to 35.3 thousand in 1907. Higher education for women received further development, and in 1911 women’s right to higher education was legally recognized.

Simultaneously with Sunday schools, new types of cultural and educational institutions for adults began to operate - workers' courses, educational workers' societies and people's houses - original clubs with a library, assembly hall, teahouse and trading shop.

The development of periodicals and book publishing had a great influence on education. In the 1860s, 7 daily newspapers were published and about 300 printing houses operated. In the 1890s there were 100 newspapers and approximately 1000 printing houses. And in 1913, 1263 newspapers and magazines were already published, and there were approximately 2 thousand bookstores in the cities.

In terms of the number of books published, Russia ranked third in the world after Germany and Japan. In 1913, 106.8 million copies of books were published in Russian alone. The largest book publishers are A.S. Suvorin in St. Petersburg and I.D. Sytin in Moscow contributed to introducing people to literature by publishing books at affordable prices: Suvorin’s “cheap library” and Sytin’s “library for self-education.”

The process of enlightenment was intensive and successful, and the number of the reading public grew rapidly. This is evidenced by the fact that at the end of the 19th century. there were approximately 500 public libraries and about 3 thousand zemstvo public reading rooms, and already in 1914 there were about 76 thousand different public libraries in Russia.

An equally important role in the development of culture was played by “illusion” - cinema, which appeared in St. Petersburg literally a year after its invention in France. By 1914 Russia already had 4,000 cinemas, which showed not only foreign but also domestic films. The need for them was so great that between 1908 and 1917 more than two thousand new feature films were produced. In 1911-1913 V.A. Starevich created the world's first three-dimensional animations.

The science

The 19th century brings significant successes in the development of domestic science: it claims equality with Western European science, and sometimes even superiority. It is impossible not to mention a number of works by Russian scientists that led to world-class achievements. D.I. Mendeleev discovered the periodic system of chemical elements in 1869. A. G. Stoletov in 1888-1889 establishes the laws of the photoelectric effect. In 1863, I. M. Sechenov’s work “Reflexes of the Brain” was published. K. A. Timiryazev founded the Russian school of plant physiology. P. N. Yablochkov creates an electric arc light bulb, A. N. Lodygin creates an incandescent light bulb.

A. S. Popov invents radiotelegraph. A. F. Mozhaisky and N. E. Zhukovsky laid the foundations of aviation with their research in the field of aerodynamics, and K. E. Tsiolkovsky is known as the founder of astronautics. P. N. Lebedev is the founder of research in the field of ultrasound. I. I. Mechnikov explores the field of comparative pathology, microbiology and immunology. The foundations of new sciences - biochemistry, biogeochemistry, radiogeology - were laid by V.I. Vernadsky. And this is not a complete list of people who have made an invaluable contribution to the development of science and technology. The significance of scientific foresight and a number of fundamental scientific problems posed by scientists at the beginning of the century is becoming clear only now.

The humanities were greatly influenced by the processes taking place in natural science. Humanities scientists, such as V. O. Klyuchevsky, S. F. Platonov, S. A. Vengerov and others, worked fruitfully in the field of economics, history, and literary criticism. Idealism has become widespread in philosophy. Russian religious philosophy, with its search for ways to combine the material and spiritual, the establishment of a “new” religious consciousness, was perhaps the most important area not only of science, ideological struggle, but also of all culture.

The foundations of the religious and philosophical Renaissance, which marked the “Silver Age” of Russian culture, were laid by V. S. Solovyov. His system is an experience of synthesis of religion, philosophy and science, “and it is not Christian doctrine that is enriched by him at the expense of philosophy, but on the contrary, he introduces Christian ideas into philosophy and with them enriches and fertilizes philosophical thought” (V.V. Zenkovsky). Possessing a brilliant literary talent, he made philosophical problems accessible to wide circles of Russian society; moreover, he brought Russian thought to universal spaces.

This period, marked by a whole constellation of brilliant thinkers - N.A. Berdyaev, S.N. Bulgakov, D.S. Merezhkovsky, G.P. Fedotov, P.A. Florensky and others largely determined the direction of development of culture, philosophy, and ethics not only in Russia, but also in the West.

Spiritual quest

During the “Silver Age” people are looking for new foundations for their spiritual and religious life. All kinds of mystical teachings are very widespread. The new mysticism willingly sought its roots in the old, in the mysticism of the Alexander era. Just as a hundred years earlier, the teachings of Freemasonry, Skoptchestvo, the Russian schism and other mystics became popular. Many creative people of that time took part in mystical rituals, although not all of them fully believed in their content. V. Bryusov, Andrei Bely, D. Merezhkovsky, Z. Gippius, N. Berdyaev and many others were fond of magical experiments.

Theurgy occupied a special place among the mystical rites that spread at the beginning of the twentieth century. Theurgy was thought of “as a one-time mystical act, which must be prepared by the spiritual efforts of individuals, but, once accomplished, irreversibly changes human nature as such” (A. Etkind). The subject of the dream was a real transformation of each person and the entire society as a whole. In a narrow sense, the tasks of theurgy were understood in almost the same way as the tasks of therapy. We also find the idea of ​​the need to create a “new man” in such revolutionary figures as Lunacharsky and Bukharin. A parody of theurgy is presented in the works of Bulgakov.

The “Silver Age” is a time of opposition. The main opposition of this period is the opposition of nature and culture. Vladimir Solovyov, a philosopher who had a huge influence on the formation of the ideas of the “Silver Age,” believed that the victory of culture over nature would lead to immortality, since “death is a clear victory of meaninglessness over meaning, chaos over space.” Theurgy was ultimately supposed to lead to victory over death.

In addition, the problems of death and love were closely connected. “Love and death become the main and almost the only forms of human existence, the main means of understanding him,” Solovyov believed. The understanding of love and death brings together the Russian culture of the “Silver Age” and psychoanalysis. Freud recognizes the main internal forces affecting a person as libido and thanatos, respectively sexuality and the desire for death.

Berdyaev, considering the problem of gender and creativity, believes that a new natural order must come in which creativity will win - “the gender that gives birth will be transformed into the gender that creates.”

Many people sought to break out of everyday life, in search of a different reality. They chased emotions, all experiences were considered good, regardless of their consistency and expediency. The lives of creative people were rich and full of experiences. However, the consequence of such an accumulation of experiences was often profound emptiness. Therefore, the fates of many people of the “Silver Age” are tragic. And yet, this difficult time of spiritual wandering gave birth to a beautiful and original culture.

Literature

Realistic trend in Russian literature at the turn of the 20th century. continued by L.N. Tolstoy, A.P. Chekhov, who created his best works, the theme of which was the ideological quest of the intelligentsia and the “little” man with his everyday worries, and young writers I.A. Bunin and A.I. Kuprin.

In connection with the spread of neo-romanticism, new artistic qualities appeared in realism, reflecting reality. The best realistic works by A.M. Gorky reflected a broad picture of Russian life at the turn of the 20th century with its inherent uniqueness of economic development and ideological and social struggle.

At the end of the 19th century, when, in the context of political reaction and the crisis of populism, part of the intelligentsia was overwhelmed by the mood of social and moral decline, decadence became widespread in artistic culture, a phenomenon in the culture of the 19th-20th centuries, marked by a renunciation of citizenship and immersion in the sphere of individual experiences. Many motifs of this direction became the property of a number of artistic movements of modernism that emerged at the turn of the 20th century.

Russian literature of the early 20th century gave rise to wonderful poetry, and the most significant movement was symbolism. For symbolists who believed in the existence of another world, the symbol was its sign and represented the connection between two worlds. One of the ideologists of symbolism, D. S. Merezhkovsky, whose novels are permeated with religious and mystical ideas, considered the predominance of realism to be the main reason for the decline of literature, and proclaimed “symbols” and “mystical content” as the basis of new art. Along with the demands of “pure” art, the Symbolists professed individualism; they were characterized by the theme of “spontaneous genius,” close in spirit to Nietzsche’s “superman.”

It is customary to distinguish between “senior” and “junior” symbolists. “The Elders”, V. Bryusov, K. Balmont, F. Sologub, D. Merezhkovsky, 3. Gippius, who came to literature in the 90s, a period of deep crisis in poetry, preached the cult of beauty and free self-expression of the poet. “Younger” Symbolists, A. Blok, A. Bely, Vyach. Ivanov, S. Solovyov, brought philosophical and theosophical quests to the fore.

The symbolists offered the reader a colorful myth about a world created according to the laws of eternal Beauty. If we add to this exquisite imagery, musicality and lightness of style, the enduring popularity of poetry in this direction becomes clear. The influence of symbolism with its intense spiritual quest and captivating artistry of creative manner was experienced not only by the Acmeists and Futurists who replaced the Symbolists, but also by the realist writer A.P. Chekhov.

By 1910, “symbolism completed its circle of development” (N. Gumilev), it was replaced by Acmeism. The participants of the acmeist group were N. Gumilyov, S. Gorodetsky, A. Akhmatova, O. Mandelstam, V. Narbut, M. Kuzmin. They declared the liberation of poetry from symbolist calls for the “ideal”, the return of clarity, materiality and “joyful admiration of being” (N. Gumilyov). Acmeism is characterized by a rejection of moral and spiritual quests and a tendency towards aestheticism. A. Blok, with his characteristic heightened sense of citizenship, noted the main drawback of Acmeism: “... they do not have and do not want to have a shadow of an idea about Russian life and the life of the world in general.”

However, the Acmeists did not put all their postulates into practice, as evidenced by the psychologism of A. Akhmatova’s first collections and the lyricism of the early 0. Mandelstam. Essentially, the Acmeists were not so much an organized movement with a common theoretical platform, but rather a group of talented and very different poets who were united by personal friendship.

At the same time, another modernist movement arose - futurism, which split into several groups: “Association of Ego-Futurists”, “Mezzanine of Poetry”, “Centrifuge”, “Gilea”, the participants of which called themselves Cubo-Futurists, Budtulians, i.e. people from the future.

Of all the groups that at the beginning of the century proclaimed the thesis: “art is a game,” the futurists most consistently embodied it in their work. Unlike the Symbolists with their idea of ​​“life building”, i.e. transforming the world through art, the futurists focused on the destruction of the old world. What the futurists had in common was the denial of traditions in culture and a passion for form-creation.

The demand of the Cubo-Futurists in 1912 to “throw Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy from the Steamship of Modernity” became scandalous.

The groups of Acmeists and Futurists, which arose in polemics with symbolism, in practice turned out to be very close to it in that their theories were based on an individualistic idea, and the desire to create vivid myths, and primary attention to form.

There were bright individuals in the poetry of this time who could not be attributed to a specific movement - M. Voloshin, M. Tsvetaeva. No other era has given such an abundance of declarations of its own exclusivity.

Peasant poets like N. Klyuev occupied a special place in the literature of the turn of the century. Without putting forward a clear aesthetic program, they embodied their ideas (the combination of religious and mystical motifs with the problem of protecting the traditions of peasant culture) in their creativity. “Klyuev is popular because it combines the iambic spirit of Boratynsky with the prophetic melody of an illiterate Olonets storyteller” (Mandelshtam). At the beginning of his career, S. Yesenin was close to peasant poets, especially Klyuev, who combined the traditions of folklore and classical art in his work.

Theater and music

The most important event in the social and cultural life of Russia at the end of the 19th century. was the opening of an art theater in Moscow in 1898, founded by K. S. Stanislavsky and V. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko. In the production of plays by Chekhov and Gorky, new principles of acting, directing, and performance design were formed. An outstanding theatrical experiment, enthusiastically greeted by the democratic public, was not accepted by conservative critics, as well as representatives of symbolism. V. Bryusov, a supporter of the aesthetics of conventional symbolic theater, was closer to the experiments of V.E. Meyerhold, the founder of metaphorical theater.

In 1904, the theater of V. F. Komissarzhevskaya arose in St. Petersburg, the repertoire of which reflected the aspirations of the democratic intelligentsia. The directorial work of E. B. Vakhtangov is marked by the search for new forms, his productions of 1911-12. are joyful and spectacular. In 1915, Vakhtangov created the 3rd studio of the Moscow Art Theater, which later became a theater named after him (1926). One of the reformers of the Russian theater, the founder of the Moscow Chamber Theater A. Ya. Tairov, sought to create a “synthetic theater” with a predominantly romantic and tragic repertoire, and to develop actors of virtuoso skill.

The development of the best traditions of musical theater is associated with the St. Petersburg Mariinsky and Moscow Bolshoi Theaters, as well as with the private opera of S. I. Mamontov and S. I. Zimin in Moscow. The most prominent representatives of the Russian vocal school, world-class singers were F. I. Chaliapin, L. V. Sobinov, N. V. Nezhdanova. The reformers of the ballet theater were choreographer M. M. Fokin and ballerina A. P. Pavlova. Russian art has received worldwide recognition.

The outstanding composer N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov continued to work in his favorite genre of fairy tale opera. The highest example of realistic drama was his opera The Tsar's Bride (1898). He, being a professor of composition at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, trained a whole galaxy of talented students: A.K. Glazunov, A.K. Lyadov, N.Ya. Myaskovsky and others.

In the works of composers of the younger generation at the turn of the 20th century. There was a shift away from social issues and an increase in interest in philosophical and ethical problems. This found its most complete expression in the work of the brilliant pianist and conductor, the outstanding composer S. V. Rachmaninov; in the emotionally intense music of A. N. Scriabin, with sharp features of modernism; in the works of I.F. Stravinsky, which harmoniously combined interest in folklore and the most modern musical forms.

Architecture

The era of industrial progress at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. made a real revolution in construction. New types of buildings, such as banks, shops, factories, and train stations, occupied an increasing place in the urban landscape. The emergence of new building materials (reinforced concrete, metal structures) and the improvement of construction equipment made it possible to use constructive and artistic techniques, the aesthetic understanding of which led to the establishment of the Art Nouveau style!

The works of F. O. Shekhtel most fully embodied the main development trends and genres of Russian modernism. The formation of style in the master’s work proceeded in two directions – national-romantic, in line with the neo-Russian style, and rational. The features of Art Nouveau are most fully manifested in the architecture of the Nikitsky Gate mansion, where, abandoning traditional schemes, the asymmetrical principle of planning was applied. The stepped composition, the free development of volumes in space, the asymmetrical projections of bay windows, balconies and porches, the emphatically protruding cornice - all this demonstrates the principle inherent in modernism of likening an architectural structure to an organic form.

The decorative decoration of the mansion uses such typical Art Nouveau techniques as colored stained glass windows and a mosaic frieze with floral patterns that encircles the entire building. The whimsical twists of the ornament are repeated in the interlacing of stained glass windows, in the design of balcony bars and street fencing. The same motif is used in interior decoration, for example, in the form of marble staircase railings. The furniture and decorative details of the building's interiors form a single whole with the overall design of the structure - to transform the domestic environment into a kind of architectural spectacle, close to the atmosphere of symbolic plays.

With the growth of rationalistic tendencies, features of constructivism emerged in a number of Shekhtel’s buildings, a style that would take shape in the 1920s.

In Moscow, the new style expressed itself especially clearly, in particular in the work of one of the creators of Russian modernism, L. N. Kekushev. A. V. Shchusev, V. M. Vasnetsov and others worked in the neo-Russian style. In St. Petersburg, modernism was influenced by monumental classicism, as a result, another style appeared - neoclassicism.

In terms of the integrity of the approach and the ensemble solution of architecture, sculpture, painting, and decorative arts, Art Nouveau is one of the most consistent styles.

Sculpture

Like architecture, sculpture at the turn of the century was liberated from eclecticism. The renewal of the artistic and figurative system is associated with the influence of impressionism. The features of the new method are “looseness”, lumpy texture, dynamic forms, permeated with air and light.

The very first consistent representative of this trend was P.P. Trubetskoy, refuses impressionistic modeling of the surface, and enhances the overall impression of oppressive brute force.

In its own way, the wonderful monument to Gogol in Moscow by sculptor N.A. Andreev, which subtly conveys the tragedy of the great writer, the “fatigue of the heart,” so in tune with the era, is also alien to monumental pathos. Gogol is captured in a moment of concentration, deep thought with a touch of melancholic gloominess.

An original interpretation of impressionism is inherent in the work of A. S. Golubkina, who reworked the principle of depicting phenomena in motion into the idea of ​​awakening the human spirit. The female images created by the sculptor are marked by a feeling of compassion for people who are tired, but not broken by life's trials.

Painting

At the turn of the century, instead of the realistic method of directly reflecting reality in the forms of this reality, the priority of artistic forms that reflected reality only indirectly was established. The polarization of artistic forces at the beginning of the 20th century and the polemics of multiple artistic groups intensified exhibition and publishing (in the field of art) activities.

Genre painting lost its leading role in the 90s. In search of new themes, artists turned to changes in the traditional way of life. They were equally attracted by the theme of the split of the peasant community, the prose of stultifying labor and the revolutionary events of 1905. The blurring of the boundaries between genres at the turn of the century in the historical theme led to the emergence of the historical genre. A.P. Ryabushkin was not interested in global historical events, but in the aesthetics of Russian life in the 17th century, the refined beauty of ancient Russian patterns, and emphasized decorativeness.

The artist’s best paintings are marked by penetrating lyricism and a deep understanding of the unique way of life, characters and psychology of the people of pre-Petrine Rus'. Ryabushkin’s historical painting is a country of ideals, where the artist found relief from the “leaden abominations” of modern life. Therefore, historical life on his canvases appears not as a dramatic, but as an aesthetic side.

In the historical paintings of A.V. Vasnetsov we find the development of the landscape principle. The work of M. V. Nesterov represented a version of a retrospective landscape, through which the high spirituality of the heroes was conveyed.

I. I. Levitan, who brilliantly mastered the effects of plein air painting, continuing the lyrical direction in landscape, approached impressionism and was the creator of the “conceptual landscape” or “mood landscape”, which is characterized by a rich range of experiences: from joyful elation to philosophical reflections on the frailty of all earthly things .

K. A. Korovin is the most prominent representative of Russian impressionism, the first among Russian artists to consciously rely on the French impressionists, increasingly moving away from the traditions of the Moscow school of painting with its psychologism and even dramatism, trying to convey this or that state of mind with the music of color. He created a series of landscapes that were not complicated by any external plot-narrative or psychological motives.

In the 1910s, under the influence of theatrical practice, Korovin came to a bright, intense style of painting, especially in the still lifes that the artist loved. With all his art, the artist affirmed the intrinsic value of purely pictorial tasks; he made people appreciate the “charm of incompleteness”, the “study quality” of the painting manner. Korovin’s canvases are a “feast for the eyes.”

The central figure of turn-of-the-century art is V. A. Serov. His mature works, with impressionistic luminosity and the dynamics of a free brushstroke, marked a turn from the critical realism of the Wanderers to “poetic realism” (D. V. Sarabyanov). The artist worked in different genres, but his talent as a portrait painter, endowed with a keen sense of beauty and the ability for sober analysis, is especially significant. The search for the laws of artistic transformation of reality, the desire for symbolic generalizations led to a change in artistic language: from the impressionistic authenticity of the paintings of the 80-90s to the conventions of modernity in historical compositions.

One after another, two masters of pictorial symbolism entered Russian culture, creating a sublime world in their works - M. A. Vrubel and V. E. Borisov-Musatov. The central image of Vrubel’s work is the Demon, who embodied the rebellious impulse that the artist himself experienced and felt in his best contemporaries.

The artist's art is characterized by a desire to pose philosophical problems. His thoughts about truth and beauty, about the high purpose of art are sharp and dramatic, in his inherent symbolic form. Gravitating towards the symbolic-philosophical generalization of images, Vrubel developed his own pictorial language - a broad stroke of “crystalline” shape and color, understood as colored light. The colors, sparkling like gems, enhance the feeling of special spirituality inherent in the artist’s works.

The art of the lyricist and dreamer Borisov-Musatov is reality transformed into a poetic symbol. Like Vrubel, Borisov-Musatov created in his canvases a beautiful and sublime world, built according to the laws of beauty and so different from the surrounding one. Borisov-Musatov’s art is imbued with sad reflection and quiet sorrow, the feelings experienced by many people of that time, “when society was yearning for renewal, and many did not know where to look for it.”

His style developed from impressionistic light-air effects to a pictorial and decorative version of post-impressionism. In Russian artistic culture at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. Borisov-Musatov’s creativity is one of the most striking and large-scale phenomena.

Far from modern themes, “dreamy retrospectivism” is the main theme of the association of St. Petersburg artists “World of Art”. Rejecting academic-salon art and the tendentiousness of the Wanderers, relying on the poetics of symbolism, the “Mirskusniks” searched for an artistic image in the past.

For such an open rejection of modern reality, the “Mir Iskusstiki” were criticized from all sides, accusing them of fleeing to the past - passeism, decadence, and antidemocratism. However, the emergence of such an artistic movement was not an accident. “The World of Art” was a unique response of the Russian creative intelligentsia to the general politicization of culture at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. and excessive journalisticism of fine art.

The work of N.K. Roerich is addressed to pagan Slavic and Scandinavian antiquity. The basis of his painting has always been landscape, often directly from nature. The features of Roerich's landscape are associated both with the assimilation of the experience of the Art Nouveau style - the use of elements of parallel perspective to combine in one composition various objects, understood as pictorially equivalent, and with a passion for the culture of ancient India - the opposition of earth and sky, understood by the artist as a source of spiritualism.

The second generation of “miriskusniks” included B. M. Kustodiev, a gifted author of an ironic stylization of popular popular print, and Z. E. Serebryakova, who professed the aesthetics of neoclassicism. The merit of the “World of Art” was the creation of highly artistic book graphics, printmaking, new criticism, and extensive publishing and exhibition activities.

Moscow participants in the exhibitions, opposing the Westernism of the “World of Art” with national themes and graphic stylistics with an appeal to the plein air, established the exhibition association “Union of Russian Artists”. In the depths of the “Union” the Russian version of impressionism and an original synthesis of the everyday genre with the architectural landscape developed.

The artists of the “Jack of Diamonds” association (1910-1916), turning to the aesthetics of post-impressionism, fauvism and cubism, as well as the techniques of Russian popular prints and folk toys, solved the problems of identifying the materiality of nature and constructing forms with color. The initial principle of their art was the affirmation of the subject as opposed to spatiality. In this regard, the image of inanimate nature - still life - was put in first place. The materialized, “still life” element was also introduced into the traditional psychological genre – portraiture.

“Lyrical Cubism” by R.R. Falk was distinguished by its peculiar psychologism and subtle color-plastic harmony. The school of mastery, completed at the school by such outstanding artists and teachers as V. A. Serov and K. A. Korovin, in combination with the pictorial and plastic experiments of the leaders of the “Jack of Diamonds” I. I. Mashkov, M. F. Larionov, A. V. Lentulov determined the origins of Falk’s original artistic style, a vivid embodiment of which is the famous “Red Furniture”.

From the mid-1990s, futurism became an important component of the visual style of “Jack of Diamonds,” one of the techniques of which was the “montage” of objects or parts thereof, taken from different points and at different times.

The primitivist tendency associated with the assimilation of the stylistics of children's drawings, signs, popular prints and folk toys, manifested itself in the work of M. F. Larionov, one of the organizers of the “Jack of Diamonds. Both folk naive art and Western expressionism are close to the fantastic and irrational paintings of M. Z. Chagall. The combination of fantastic flights and miraculous signs with everyday details of provincial life in Chagall’s canvases is akin to Gogol’s stories. The unique creativity of P. N. Filonov came into contact with the primitivist line.

The first experiments of Russian artists in abstract art date back to the 10s of the last century; V. V. Kandinsky and K. S. Malevich became true theorists and practitioners. At the same time, the work of K. S. Petrov-Vodkin, who declared a continuous connection with ancient Russian icon painting, testified to the vitality of the tradition. The extraordinary diversity and inconsistency of artistic quests, numerous groups with their own programmatic guidelines reflected the tense socio-political and complex spiritual atmosphere of their time.

Conclusion

The “Silver Age” became precisely the milestone that predicted future changes in the state and became a thing of the past with the advent of the blood-red year of 1917, which changed human souls beyond recognition. And no matter how much they wanted to assure us of the opposite today, everything ended after 1917, with the beginning of the civil war. There was no “Silver Age” after that. In the twenties, inertia still continued (the heyday of imagism), because such a wide and powerful wave as the Russian “Silver Age” was, could not move for some time before collapsing and breaking.

If most of the poets, writers, critics, philosophers, artists, directors, composers, whose individual creativity and common work created the “Silver Age,” were alive, the era itself was over. Each of its active participants realized that, although people remained, the characteristic atmosphere of the era, in which talents grew like mushrooms after rain, had come to naught. What was left was a cold lunar landscape without atmosphere and creative individuals - each in a separate closed cell of his creativity.

The attempt to “modernize” culture associated with the reform of P. A. Stolypin was unsuccessful. Its results were less than expected and gave rise to new controversies. The increase in tension in society occurred faster than responses to emerging conflicts were found. Contradictions between agrarian and industrial cultures intensified, which was also expressed in contradictions in economic forms, interests and motives for people’s creativity, and in the political life of society.

Deep social transformations were required in order to provide space for the cultural creativity of the people, significant investments in the development of the spiritual sphere of society and its technical base, for which the government did not have enough funds. Patronage, private support and financing of significant public and cultural events did not help either. Nothing could radically transform the cultural appearance of the country. The country found itself in a period of unstable development and found no other way out other than social revolution.

The canvas of the “Silver Age” turned out to be bright, complex, contradictory, but immortal and unique. It was a creative space full of sunshine, bright and life-giving, thirsting for beauty and self-affirmation. It reflected the existing reality. And although we call this time the “silver” and not the “golden age,” perhaps it was the most creative era in Russian history.

Information sources:

• rustrana.ru – article “Culture of the Silver Age”
• shkola.lv – article “Silver Age of Russian Culture”

History of world and domestic culture Konstantinov S.V.

47. Painting, architecture and sculpture of the Silver Age

In the fine arts there was a realistic movement, whose representatives were I. Repin, the Association of Traveling Exhibitions and avant-garde movements. One of the trends was an appeal to the search for national original beauty - the works of M. Nesterov, N. Roerich and others. Russian impressionism is represented by the works of V. Serov, I. Grabar (Union of Russian Artists), K. Korovin, P. Kuznetsov (“Blue Rose” ") and etc.

In the first decades of the 20th century. artists united to organize joint exhibitions: 1910 - exhibition “Jack of Diamonds” - P. Konchalovsky, I. Mashkov, R. Falk, A. Lentulov, D. Burliuk, etc. Among the famous artists of this period are K. Malevich, M . Chagall, K. Tatlin. Contacts with Western art, a kind of “pilgrimage to Paris,” played a major role in the development of artists.

The artistic movement “World of Art,” which emerged at the end of the 19th century, played a significant role in the development of Russian art. In Petersburg.

Early works M. V. Nesterova (1862–1942) made on historical subjects in a realistic manner. Nesterov’s central work is “Vision to the Youth Bartholomew” (1889–1890).

K. A. Korovina (1861–1939) often called "Russian impressionist".

Art V. A. Serova (1865–1911) difficult to attribute to a specific direction. In his work there is a place for both realism and impressionism.

The great Russian artist is widely known M. A. Vrubel (1856–1910). The originality of his painting style lay in the endless fragmentation of the form on the edge. Native of Saratov V. E. Borisov-Musatov (1870–1905) I worked a lot in the open air (in nature). In his sketches he tried to capture the play of air and color.

A new style has become widespread in architecture - modernism, with its inherent desire to emphasize the purpose of residential and public buildings.

Architect F. O. Shekhtel (1859–1926) became a singer of the Art Nouveau style; the flourishing of architecture of this style in Russia is associated with his name. In 1902–1904 F. O. Shekhtel rebuilt the Yaroslavl station in Moscow.

At the turn of the 19th–20th centuries. A new generation of sculptors was formed who opposed the realistic direction. Now preference was given not to careful detailing of the form, but to artistic generalization. Even the attitude towards the surface of the sculpture, on which fingerprints or marks of the master were preserved, has changed. Having an interest in the characteristics of the material, they often preferred wood, natural stone, clay and even plasticine. Especially stand out here A. S. Golubkina (1864–1927) And S. Konenkov, who became world famous sculptors.