March 28 in the gallery “House Nashokin” exhibition “Painting of the Romantic era of the State Russian Museum.” The uniqueness of the exhibition is the first time in thirty years the collection of the State Russian Museum (St. Petersburg) will be presented in Moscow. The exhibition will be on display 52 paintings, painted by well-known Russian artists like Ivan Aivazovsky, Fyodor Bruni, Karl Briullov, Alex Venetsianov, Orest Kiprensky, Alexander Orlov, Vasily Tropinin, Sylvester Shchedrin and others not only paintings, drawings, and a sculpture, furniture, bronze and costume will be included in the exposition of the exhibition.

The exhibition “Art of the Romantic era” – the first in a series of planned exhibitions from the collection of the Russian Museum – dedicated to the 200th anniversary of Paul Voinovicha Nashchokin. The very title of the gallery “House Nashokin” and locate it connect us with the Pushkin era. Who lived in the 30-s of the XIX century in the house known philanthropist Paul Voinovich Nashchokin, a close friend of Alexander Pushkin, who loved all kinds of art, but especially emphasizes painting, attracted and encouraged artists of all ranks, organized salons and art exhibitions.

Conceiving the exhibition “Russian Romanticism”, the organizers aim to show not only a collection of paintings of the Romantic era, versatility and diversity of his creative expressions, but also to reproduce the poetic atmosphere of Pushkin’s time.

Art of the first half of the XIX century, distant from us for a half century, continues to maintain a subtle charm and appeal. The notions of “romance” and “romantic” cause permanent interest and determine the perception of the art of an era, rich variety of stylistic research.

Aesthetic preferences of many Russian artists of the XIX century with the advent of change. Tranquility, harmony and luxury – the typical neoclassical ideals gave way to competing interest emotional states. Russian romanticism – is a very special chapter in the history of European art.

Work related to Romanticism, began to appear in Russia in the 1790s (the work of Theodosius Yanenko “Travelers caught Storm” (1796), “Self-Portrait in a helmet” (1792). They obvious prototype – Salvator Rosa, is very popular in turn of the XVIII and XIX centuries. Later protoromanticheskogo impact of this artist will be seen in the works of Alexander Orlovsky. Rogues, the fire scene, the battle was accompanied by his entire career.

As in other countries, the artists belonging to the Russian romanticism, made in the classic genres of portrait, landscape and genre scenes entirely new emotional mood.

At the heart of their work lay unfabled event.
“Young Gardener” (1817) Kiprensky, “Italian Midday” (1827) Briullov, “Reapers” and “Reaper” (1820) Venetsianov – the works of one of the typological series. They are focused on nature and clearly written with its use. However, the task of each of the artists – to embody the aesthetic perfection of a simple nature – led to a certain idealization of shapes, clothing, situations for the sake of creating an image, a metaphor.

Observing life, nature, the artist rethought her poeticizing visible. This qualitatively new combination of nature and imagination with the experience of ancient and Renaissance masters, the images are born, unknown art before, and is one of the features of romanticism of the first half of XIX century. Metaphorical nature, generally inherent in this work Venetsianov and Briullov, was one of the most important traits of romantic art and the portrait genre in particular.

The most significant achievements of Russian romanticism are works in the genre of portraiture. The brightest and the best examples of romanticism in the early period, when Russian artists were still not familiar with the Western romantic portrait.

“Portrait of a father (AK Schwalbe)” (1804) was written by Orest Kiprensky long before his trip to Italy in 1816. Kiprensky, internally ready for a romantic mirovoploscheniyu saw with new eyes, old masters. Dark color, shape, isolated light burning paint, intense drama have had a tremendous impact. “Portrait of a father,” of course, created under the influence of Rembrandt. But the great Dutch Russian artist took only external methods. “Portrait of a father” – the product is independent, with its own internal energy and the power of artistic expression.

The increased interest in personality, characteristic of Romanticism, predetermined flourishing genre of the portrait in the first half of the XIX century, which was particularly dominant self-portrait. The availability of a self-portrait was not a random episode. Artists have repeatedly written and painted themselves, and these works became a kind of diary, reflecting the different states of the soul and life stages, and at the same time is a manifesto addressed to contemporaries.

Variety of types of self-portrait reflects the perception by artists themselves as rich and multi-faceted personality. Then they are in a familiar and natural role of creator (“Self-Portrait in a velvet beret” AG Varnek, 1810s), then plunge into the past, as if trying on it for himself (“Self-Portrait in a helmet and armor” FI Yanenko , 1792), or, most often, is presented without any professional attributes, asserting the importance and intrinsic value of each person, relaxed and open to the world, seeking and fleeting, like, for example, F. Bruni and OA Orlovsky in self-portraits 1810s. Readiness for dialogue and openness inherent imaginative solution works 1810-1820’s, gradually replaced by fatigue and frustration, immersion, withdrawal (“Self-Portrait” by M. Terebenev). This trend is reflected in the development of the portrait genre in general.

“A landscape should be a portrait,” – wrote Batyushkov. This setting in his work held by most artists, drawn to the genre of landscape. Among the obvious exceptions, gravitated to the fantastic scenery, were Alexander Orlovsky (“Sea View”, 1809); Varnek AG (“Type in the vicinity of Rome,” 1809); PV Basin (“The sky at sunset in the vicinity of Rome, “” Evening Landscape “both – 1820).

Creating specific types, they maintained a direct sense, emotional intensity, reaching the compositional techniques of monumental sound.

Different nature were landscapes SF Shchedrin. Fills them harmony coexistence of man and nature (“terrace on the sea. Cappuccino near Sorrento”, 1827). Numerous species of Naples and the surrounding area enjoyed his brush extraordinary success and popularity.

Creating a romantic image of St. Petersburg in the Russian painting associated with the work of MN Vorobyov. On his canvases city appeared shrouded in mysterious fog St. Petersburg, a soft haze of white nights and sea moisture soaked atmosphere where blurred outlines of buildings, and the moonlight complete mystery. The same lyrical features and performance of the St. Petersburg area types (“Sunset near St. Petersburg,” 1832). However, the northern capital of the artists saw in another dramatic way, as an arena of conflict and combat natural disasters (VE Raev “Alexander Column on the Storm”, 1834).

In brilliant marinas Aivazovsky vividly embodied the romantic ideals of ecstasy and power struggles of natural forces, resistance of the human spirit and the ability to fight to the end. Still a great place in the heritage of the master take night seascapes on specific places where the storm gives way to the magic of the night time, which, according to the views of the romantics, filled with mysterious inner life, and where the artist’s paintings aim to retrieve the path of extraordinary light effects ( “View of Odessa by Moonlight,” “View of Constantinople by moonlight,” both – 1846).

Topic natural disasters and man, caught off guard – a favorite theme of romantic art, differently interpreted by artists 1800-1850’s. Work was based on actual events, but the meaning is not an objective image of the retelling.

A typical example is a picture of Peter’s Basin “Earthquake in Rocca di Papa, near Rome” (1830). It is dedicated to not only the description of the event, how many images of fear and horror of man faced with a display of the elements.

The most vivid example of the romantic metaphor is, of course, the work of Karl Briullov “The Last Days of Pompeii.”

Condition limiting the heating situation, the participants of which are on the verge of life and death, is fully consistent with the poetic symbol of romanticism, as expressed by the words “at the very abyss on the edge.”
Romanticism in Russia as an attitude existed in its first wave from the end of XVIII century and the 1850s. Romantic line in Russian art was not interrupted by the 1850s. Open romantics to a question on the art of being developed within the artists “Blue Rose.” Direct descendants of the Romantics, of course, were the Symbolists. Romantic themes, motifs, expressive techniques included in the art of different styles, trends, art groups. Romantic attitude or outlook, was one of the most vibrant, robust, productive. Having followers and successors.

The exhibition “Art of the Romantic era of the State Russian Museum” lets meet again with such masterpieces as “Portrait of E. Avdulinoy” hand OA Kiprensky or landscapes SF Shchedrin and Aivazovsky, rarely seen exhibited at the exhibition of works of masters whose names are familiar to lovers of art and whose work will appear in a new light … And much, probably, will be the opening of the Moscow audience, because it has never show on the opening days of Moscow.