The event turned out to be family and cultural, because my parents showed the liveliest interest in the exhibition. His paintings struck them even in their youth, when they visited museums either in St. Petersburg or in Feodosia, so the opportunity to see almost everything and immediately in one place was impossible to miss. So, we bought tickets, got into the car and went to meet the beautiful.
Taught by the bitter experience of the queue at Serov (TM), the administration of the gallery has introduced online ticket sales for visiting sessions. 250 tickets are scheduled for each session. At the same time, the entry time is prudently divided into thirty-minute intervals: not everyone is able to appear exactly on time; theatrical, academic and other delays must also be taken into account. An electronic ticket no longer needs to be additionally issued at the gallery box office or printed out from the terminal. Now scan the barcode directly from the paper. The idea of pre-sold sessions turned out to be surprisingly successful. The exhibition is very popular. Tickets are available for sessions in 10 days. On August 1, I bought tickets for 12 without any problems; on Friday, tickets were sold only for 23. However, those who do not have the Internet or do not have the opportunity to plan their affairs for such a long time also have a chance to get to the exhibition. For each session, 25-50 (depending on the occupancy of the hall) people from the live queue are also launched. Here, too, there were no special surprises left: people are also launched every half an hour, and signs with an approximate waiting time are placed along the line. So that there are no illusions... By the way, you can buy tickets in advance not only on the Internet, but also at a separate box office, but there is a sign in front of the entrance indicating the nearest possible date of the visit. In general, Serov's shortcomings were taken into account, so that the field kitchens of the Ministry of Emergencies can rest for the next couple of months. The disco will probably start closer to closing.
Since I laid a margin of time for traffic jams, parking (on weekends, when I came to reconnaissance, the queue for parking was simply dead, they stood without movement for half an hour, moving at the expense of the poor fellows who had lost their patience), etc., we arrived at the place an hour before the scheduled time. The line of spontaneous visitors lasted for an hour and a half, there is no queue as such for the passage of electronic tickets, just closer to the appointed time, people gather to enter directly with the last blow of the chimes. However, we waited with great pleasure on the benches in Museon Park. The weather was just lovely: pleasantly cool, the sun slightly covered by clouds. Mom has not been out in the city center for a long time: her health does not allow her to walk. Therefore, the park delighted her. I must say, landscapers really did a wonderful job. Instead of bright flowers, various herbs are planted in the flower beds, blooming discreetly with blue tufts or gray panicles. All this looks very stylish, pleasing to the eye and very soothing. When 11 o'clock struck, we headed for the doors. There are three frames at the entrance, visitors were quickly distributed between them, so there was no delay at all. Presenting paper with printed tickets to an intelligent lady with a scanner and armed with an audio guide, we finally entered the hall.
At the entrance there is a small video installation showing an endlessly looping footage of sea waves. Black and white shots look very dull, especially against the backdrop of the amazing light pouring from the paintings.
The "main" paintings of the artist are known to all. Dad, having crossed the threshold of the exhibition hall, immediately went in search of the painting "Wave", which fascinated him even in the Russian Museum.
"Ninth Wave", "Black Sea", "Rainbow", the most diverse bays - the waves in these pictures just call you to plunge into them or, on the contrary, recoil, saving your life.
The paintings at the exhibition were brought from many museums: the Tretyakov Gallery itself, the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg, the Naval Museum, palaces, from Feodosia, Yerevan. The painting "Chaos", located in the Vatican, did not come to the exhibition. The paintings are collected by themes: "Sea Symphonies", "Artist of the Naval Headquarters", "Captured by the Mystery of the Universe", "Nocturnes". They are united by amazing light and life. Spectators search in vain for illumination behind the paintings. Brushes, paints and talent - that's all the artist had.
His life turned out very well. A boy from a poor Armenian family, Hovhanez Ayvazyan (Gaivazovsky), attracted the attention of the Feodosia mayor Kaznacheev. Thanks to his help, the boy first studied at the gymnasium, and then was enrolled in the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. As a pensioner (now such students are called scholarship holders), he visited Italy, which of course fascinated him. The main love of the artist was the sea, sometimes critics, wishing to praise some picture, said that people who supposedly usually did not work out well in the picture came out well.
In 1844, Aivazovsky was appointed painter of the Main Naval Staff of the Russian Empire. However, it is quite amusing that in notifications of the next official honors: either a painter of the Main Naval Staff with the right to wear a uniform (!), Or later a professor at the St. But he had enough money: both collectors and the royal family bought his paintings, the Turkish Sultan ordered about 30 paintings from him to decorate the Dolmabahce Palace. Being a painter of the Main Naval Staff, Aivazovsky enjoyed great respect among military sailors, was friends with many famous naval commanders. 
"Review of the Black Sea Fleet in 1849".
The sailors even fired cannons on purpose so that the artist could see how the cannonball ricocheted through the water. He went on sea voyages, during the Crimean War he refused to leave the besieged Sevastopol for a long time.
Aivazovsky repeatedly visited Turkey, spoke Turkish, painted pictures for Sultan Abdul-Gaziz. I hung around his oriental paintings for a very long time. His images of Istanbul are very consonant with my impressions of this amazing city. 
The artist generally had a chance to travel a lot. At the end of his life, he even visited the United States, seeing Niagara Falls with his own eyes. 
But in our country, he had something to draw. In the paintings depicting Dagestan, its colors are surprisingly similar to the palette used to paint the Himalayas by Nicholas Roerich.
He painted pictures on both mystical and religious subjects. In the picture "The Flood" we diligently searched for Noah's Ark, but never found it :-) The picture is very large, with an abundance of details, it is extremely reminiscent of Bryullov's "The Last Day of Pompeii" (which greatly influenced Aivazovsky's work). I really wanted to take a picture of a kneeling visitor who looked at some important detail in the picture in this way, but I was too shy. There is in this something from peeping through a keyhole. Uncomfortable.
In the painting "Walking on the Waters" Christ is depicted ephemerally, as the light of the world. 
One of the most terrible pictures is "The sinking of the ship Lefort". This is still the largest catastrophe of a Russian warship. Together with him, 843 people perished in the depths of the sea. In the picture there are neither terrible waves, nor a broken ship. The ship lies at the bottom, around it are the souls of the dead. Someone is accepted by Christ, and someone does not ascend to heaven, only crying: "Remember me, Lord, in your kingdom," and someone does not even look up. The painting is usually exhibited at the Naval Museum.
The most vivid idea of Aivazovsky's gift, not talent, but precisely the gift, is given by the painting "Creation of the World".
"The earth was formless and empty, and the spirit of God hovered over the waters." The canvas itself is not the brightest in the exhibition, but there is one detail. The artist painted it in nine hours. The size of the painting is approximately 1.5 by 2 meters, that is, an area of at least 3 square meters. If you paint such an area with a wide paint brush, it will take about an hour. And then oil paints, small details, small brushes. In short, he did not and could not have time to think about his actions. His hand seemed to be led by someone.
And so he lived, kissed by God. His life was not the easiest, but certainly happy. And even if at the end of his life he was accused of salonism and commerce, it only meant that his works sold well during his lifetime, which is usually a rarity for brilliant artists.
We spent four hours at the exhibition. I would go again, since there is still time until November.
Everyone will have their own Aivazovsky. For example, I involuntarily overheard how one lady complained to her companion that she could no longer look at it: in every picture someone is sure to drown. Although critics believe that the artist gives his heroes a chance, albeit illusory, but to survive. But another lady, having fallen into a kind of euphoria, walked around the exhibition and, stopping at the paintings, read poetry. In a whisper, just for myself. There were a large number of mothers and grandparents trying to introduce their children to beauty. The children were joined with varying degrees of success. Someone tried to turn the steering wheel, prudently hidden under a glass cap, and someone sobbed violently, because everything was tired. I still have a feeling of bright joy from these pictures. Parents were also happy, because these pictures reminded them of the joyful events of their youth. We were also lucky with the weather. When we went outside, it turned out that during the hours spent in the museum, the pleasant coolness turned into an icy wind that overtook the lead clouds. But the downpour kindly waited until we got into the car, for which special thanks to him.
Go to the exhibition if you haven't been yet. You will not regret.
In the Museum of the city of St. Petersburg, there is an amazing painting by marine painter Ivan Aivazovsky called "The Flood". The painting began in 1864. The masterpiece reflected the faith of the marine painter. A huge number of paintings were created on biblical themes. "The Flood" is the epitome of beautiful stories from the Bible. The versatility of Ivan Aivazovsky's art never ceases to amaze. The ability to convey life and emotions on paper with paints makes every person who has seen the work of the artist at least once in his life breathe heavily.
The foamy sea again appears in the picture of the great marine painter. This art canvas clearly shows the wild life of the sea element, rather than a tale from the bible. The emphasis is on the sea, its beauty and rigidity, the contours of the artist's brush show the advantage of sea waves over all.
The catastrophic wave crest spares no one. Clear laws have been established by which the sea element lives. They are relentless and cruel. The nautical luxury overshadows the overall look of the art, as the power is released with the speed of thought. It was very important for the creator to show how strong nature can be before man. It is impossible to defeat her, and if you fall into the depths of the sea, you can’t go back.
People who die in the sea abyss show the role of this cataclysm. The powerful element attracts attention to itself so strongly as if by hypnosis. An alluring sad set of colors predicts the death of people and the inability to escape. The contrast of the artistic picture complements the horror and despair of a man who was left alone with the sea.
Along with water, sins and gloom go away, this is not death, the artist showed. The presented element is a glimmer of hope and faith, through darkness and sadness. For people, the only chance to purify and receive mercy from the Creator. The end result of the picture suggests a way out of the abyss into another world - the realm of goodness and light.
The great marine landscape painter painted not only sea views. Among his heritage, one can also find paintings on religious subjects - illustrations of biblical stories. However, even here he did not change himself: in almost every canvas the water element appears. Let's look at the Holy Scriptures through the eyes of Aivazovsky (with the help of the modern translation of the Bible of the Russian Bible Society).
world creation
World creation. 1864. Timing
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The earth was empty and desolate, darkness was over the abyss, and the spirit of God hovered over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light." And there was light. God saw how good the light was, and separated it from the darkness, gave the name "day" to the light, and the name "night" to the darkness. Evening came, morning came - the first day. And God said: “Let there be a vault in the middle of the water, dividing the waters in two.” And it became so. God created the vault, and separated the waters under the vault from the waters above the vault, and gave the vault the name "heaven". Evening has come, morning has come - the second day (Genesis 1:1-8).
global flood
Global flood. 1864. Timing
“The flood lasted for forty days. When the water began to rise, she lifted the ark, and the ark floated. The water continued to rise and flood the earth. The ark floated, and the water rose higher and higher until it covered the highest mountains that are under the sky. The water rose fifteen cubits above them, and the mountains disappeared under the water. And then all who lived on the earth perished: both the birds, and the cattle, and the beasts, and all the creatures that the earth was full of, and all the people. All who had the breath of life in their nostrils, all the inhabitants of the land, all died. Everything that was on earth - and people, and cattle, and all living creatures, and birds of the air - everything was swept away from the face of the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark survived. The flood lasted one hundred and fifty days." (Genesis 7:17–24).
Noah's descent from Mount Ararat
Noah's descent from Mount Ararat. 1889. National Gallery of Armenia
“On the twenty-seventh day of the second month, when the earth dried up, God said to Noah: “Come out of the ark, together with your wife, sons and wives of sons. And bring out all the animals - and birds, and cattle, and living creatures scurrying around the earth: let the earth be full of them, let them be fruitful and numerous. And Noah came out of the ark, along with his sons, his wife and wives of his sons, and then came the animals, small living creatures, birds - all the inhabitants of the earth, view after view. (Genesis 8:14–19).
Jews crossing the Red Sea
Jews crossing the Red Sea. 1891. USA, Collection K. and E. Sogoyan
“And the Lord said to Moses: “Stretch your hand over the sea - the waters will return and drown the Egyptians, and the chariots, and the horsemen!” Moses stretched out his hand over the sea - and by morning the sea returned. The Egyptians ran straight towards its waters - and the Lord plunged the Egyptians into the abyss of the sea! The water returned and swallowed them all - and the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the army of Pharaoh, who pursued the sons of Israel along the bottom of the sea. Not a single Egyptian survived! And the sons of Israel walked on the bottom of the sea as on dry land; on their right hand stood a wall of water, and on their left a wall of water. So the Lord saved the children of Israel that day from the Egyptians.” (Exodus 14:26-30).
Walking on the waters
Walking on the waters. 1888. State Museum of the History of Religion
“Immediately after that, He told the disciples to get into the boat and sail to the other side, without waiting for Him to let the people go. After parting with the people, He went up the mountain to pray alone. When evening came, He was there alone. And the boat was already at a distance of many stages from the shore, she fought with the waves, because the wind was contrary. At dawn, Jesus went to them - He was walking on the sea. When the disciples saw that He was walking on the sea, they were afraid. "It's a ghost!" they screamed in fear. "Calm down, it's me! Do not be afraid!" Jesus immediately spoke to them. Then Peter said to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to walk to You on the water." "Go," He said. Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water towards Jesus, but when he saw how strong the wind was, he got scared and began to drown. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted. Jesus immediately stretched out his hand and, picking him up, said: “Little faith, why did you doubt?” When they entered the boat, the wind died down. (Gospel of Matthew, 14:22–32).
In the State Russian Museum of St. Petersburg, Aivazovsky's painting "The Flood" is stored in storerooms. Unfortunately, art lovers are deprived of the opportunity to see its original. Perhaps the reason for this is the small area of the hall intended for the exposition of Aivazovsky's works. After all, the size of this masterpiece is really impressive 246.5 x 319.5 meters and it could take up an entire wall.
This can be said to be a terrible story, the painter began to write in 1862, and two years later he returned to this topic again and created another version, which is in the museum. It is painted in oil on canvas, there is also a version of drawing in watercolor on paper. It should be especially noted that having a multifaceted talent, Aivazovsky wrote a lot on biblical and historical topics.
The picture The Flood, which was exhibited at the exhibition of the Academy of Arts, received rave reviews from the Russian intelligentsia. The following year, Emperor Alexander II bought it for the Hermitage.
The beautiful stories of the holy book seemed to come to life under his magic brush. The palette of colors skillfully conveyed vitality and emotionality on the canvas. Please note that it is in front of Aivazovsky’s paintings in the museum that a handful of people always stand, unable to tear themselves away from the contemplation of these iridescent azure-turquoise hues that imperceptibly flow from the water element to the gloomy sky. In the picture "The Flood" golden-yellow colors, as if written only to illuminate the blue-violet darkness of the rest of the world, abandoned by Noah's ark.
The foamy sea surface appears before our eyes. The picture shows a more evil essence of the elements of the sea than is told about this in sacred books and legends. Aivazovsky deliberately focuses on the image of the sea, its charms and rigidity, the master's brush depicts a clear victory of the sea element. You should not expect mercy from her giant crest. There is a clear law, and only the sea obeys it. He is relentless and ruthless. And there is luxury and majesty in this too. The power of the elements is faster than human thought. The author convincingly shows the power of nature over living beings. No need to expect indulgence from her, and once in the abyss - there is no return.
The power of nature has always attracted the curiosity of mankind, like hypnosis. The woefully bewitching tones and shades are already a kind of prediction of death and inevitability. The contrast in the work adds to the despair of people left alone with the disaster.
However, water cleanses from sinfulness and hopeless blue-violet darkness, this is not the end - says Aivazovsky. The element that appears before us carries both a weak hope and faith, despite the darkness and sadness. This is a chance granted by the Almighty for purification and salvation. The work does not cause pessimism among the audience, since we are sure that a way out of the abyss into the bright world of goodness will be found very soon. The artist's sea is a peculiar basis of nature and history, especially in religious themes. However, religious iconography can hardly be called Aivazovsky's great success.
Aivazovsky's worldview with national roots was closely associated with the culture of Armenia. Ararat - the symbol of Armenia - the painter depicted more than a dozen times. His famous work "Noah's Descent from Ararat" was presented at the Paris exhibition.
The flood is a universal cataclysm, which is spoken of in many religions of the world. This gigantic flood is the punishment of the Supreme Being(s) for sinfulness and disobedience. The flood is retribution for the loss of morality. God wanted to rid the Earth of people mired in immorality and leave only the pious Noah with his family. Noah was then, according to the Bible, five hundred years old. He had three sons and it took them about a hundred years to build this "antediluvian" ship.
Having completed this grandiose activity, Noah boarded the ship, took a pair of each creature that then lived on Earth. The doors slammed shut, and at the same moment the water hit the land like a powerful wall. The disaster lasted 40 days and everyone died. Only those on board survived. The water rose above the mountains. Five months later, it slowly began to decrease, and on the 17th day of the 7th month, the ark sailed to Ararat. It took a long time before the land became visible.
Aivazovsky's painting "The Flood" is a rather rare work on a plot borrowed from the Bible. Here Aivazovsky brilliantly combined talent, imagination and love for improvisation. It is possible that none of his contemporaries could have portrayed the scale of the cataclysm so magnificently, the storm in the heavens and the sea, the huge waves sweeping over the rocks, where people and animals are unsuccessfully trying to escape. The author combined all the heroes of the work into groups - in the center is visible the figure of an old man, who is surrounded by a family, a woman dies nearby, nearby people are kneeling with their eyes turned to the sky. Naive images that denounce greed, the hope of avoiding fate are the king and priest sitting on elephants with golden vessels and jewelry. The sea at Aivazovsky is the basis of nature. He is more interested in the sea element. not a biblical story. It is to the sea, its indomitable power, that our eyes are riveted.
On the right side of the picture, the embankment of the city and residential buildings peep a little out of the darkness, no lompads are burning in any of the windows, most likely it’s three o’clock in the morning, all the inhabitants are sleeping peacefully, but soon the city will begin to wake up, and the serene sea will wake up behind it. With the help of oil paints on canvas, the artist was able to convey this short moment of serenity and tranquility of the sea element, when everything around seemed to freeze in anticipation of something important. Morning will soon come and the haze of mystery will disappear, a new day will come, but this will be a completely different story ...
Today, Aivazovsky's painting “Moonlight Night. Bath in Feodosia "is located in Taganrog in the city art gallery, its size is 94 by 143 cm.
The history of the famous painting by Ivan Aivazovsky on the biblical theme "The Flood".
The Flood is one of the most famous paintings by the great Russian artist Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky. The picture was painted in 1864. Canvas, oil. Dimensions: 246.5 x 369 cm. Currently located in the State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg.
The Flood is a picture of a religious direction. Here Aivazovsky depicted a biblical scene that tells how the whole world was swallowed up by the waters. As a result of this catastrophe, everyone died, except for Noah, who was able to save a variety of animals with the help of the ark he built. However, in his painting, Ivan Konstantinovich did not depict Noah and his ark at all, as other artists do, placing the key figure of biblical history in the center of the pictorial narrative. The marine painter was more attracted by the tragedy of ordinary people who are trying to escape from the advancing sea.
Aivazovsky is primarily known precisely as an unsurpassed marine painter. The sea in his paintings is often the main theme of the work. The artist was completely absorbed by the irresistible power of the water element, its beauty, mysteries, infinity and even cruelty. Of course, Aivazovsky simply could not get past such a plot, where the sea destroys almost all life on earth.
The painting depicts people who are fleeing from the advancing elements and raging waves at the very top of the rocks. Not only people, but also animals are trying to escape, but the merciless elements easily wash them into the depths of the sea. The artist emphasized this tragedy in gloomy tones on the right side of the picture. However, in the upper left corner we can see a bright light, which indicates that the flood is designed to free the earth from sins. The bright light in the picture is a symbol of what the very history of the Flood implies - the renewal of the world, the advent of the kingdom of good and light.
