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After the end of the war in 1856, on the way from France, where international exhibition his works were exhibited, Aivazovsky visited Istanbul for the second time. He was warmly welcomed by the local Armenian diaspora, and also, under the patronage of the court architect Sarkis Balyan, was received by Sultan Abdul-Mejid I. By that time, the Sultan's collection already had one painting by Aivazovsky. As a sign of admiration for his work, the Sultan awarded Ivan Konstantinovich with the Order of Nishan Ali, IV degree.
The third trip to Istanbul, at the invitation of the Armenian diaspora, I. K. Aivazovsky makes in 1874. Many artists of Istanbul at that time were influenced by the work of Ivan Konstantinovich. This is especially evident in the marine painting of M. Jivanyan. The brothers Gevork and Vagen Abdullahi, Melkop Telemaku, Hovsep Samandjiyan, Mkrtich Melkisetikyan later recalled that Aivazovsky also had a significant influence on their work. One of Aivazovsky's paintings was presented by Sargis Bey (Sarkis Balyan) to Sultan Abdulaziz. The Sultan liked the picture so much that he immediately ordered the artist 10 canvases with views of Istanbul and the Bosphorus. While working on this order, Aivazovsky constantly visited the Sultan's palace, made friends with him, as a result, he painted not 10, but about 30 different canvases. Before the departure of Ivan Konstantinovich, an official reception was arranged for the padishah in honor of awarding him the Order of Osmania II degree.
A year later, Aivazovsky again goes to the Sultan and brings him two paintings as a gift: “View of St. Petersburg from the Holy Trinity Bridge” and “Winter in Moscow” (these paintings are currently in the collection of the Dolmabahce Palace Museum).
Another war with Turkey ended in 1878. The San Stefano peace treaty was signed in a hall whose walls were decorated with paintings by a Russian artist. It was a symbol of the future good relations between Turkey and Russia.
Paintings by I. K. Aivazovsky, who were in Turkey, were repeatedly exhibited in various exhibitions. In 1880, an exhibition of the artist's paintings was held in the building of the Russian embassy. Upon its completion, Sultan Abdul-Hamid II presented I.K. Aivazovsky with a diamond medal.
In 1881, the owner of the art store, Ulman Grombach, held an exhibition of works famous masters: Van Dyck, Rembrandt, Breigl, Aivazovsky, Jerome. In 1882, the art exhibition I. K. Aivazovsky and Turkish artist Oskan Efendi. The exhibitions were a huge success.
In 1888, another exhibition was held in Istanbul, organized by Levon Mazirov (nephew of I. K. Aivazovsky), which presented 24 paintings by the artist. Half of the proceeds from her went to charitable purposes. Just these years account for the first graduation of the Ottoman Academy of Arts. Aivazovsky’s style of writing is traced in the works of the Academy graduates: “The sinking of the Ertugrul ship in Tokyo Bay” by the artist Osman Nuri Pasha, the painting “The Ship” by Ali Jemal, some marinas of Diyarbakir Tahsin.
In 1890, Ivan Konstantinovich's last trip to Istanbul was. He visited the Armenian Patriarchate and the Yildiz Palace, where he left his paintings as a gift. On this visit, he was awarded the Order of the Medjidie I degree by Sultan Abdul-Hamid II.
At present, several famous paintings Aivazovsky are in Turkey. In the Military Museum in Istanbul there is a painting of 1893 “A Ship on the Black Sea”, a painting of 1889 “A Ship and a Boat” is stored in one of the private collections. In the residence of the President of Turkey there is a painting “Sinking during a storm” (1899).
A very valuable article for both the viewer and the professional artist.
Why is the Aivazovsky Sea so alive, breathing and transparent? What is the axis of any of his paintings? Where should we look to enjoy his masterpieces to the fullest? As he wrote: is it long, short, joyful or painful? And what does impressionism have to do with Aivazovsky?
Of course, Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky was born a genius. But there was also a craft that he mastered brilliantly and in the intricacies of which one wants to understand. So, from what were the sea foam and moon paths of Aivazovsky born?
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Storm on rocky shores.
"Secret colors", Aivazovsky wave, glazing
Ivan Kramskoy wrote to Pavel Tretyakov: “Aivazovsky probably has the secret of composing paints, and even the paints themselves are secret; I have never seen such bright and pure tones even on the shelves of Muscat shops. Some of Aivazovsky's secrets have come down to us, although the main one is not a secret at all: in order to write the sea like that, you need to be born by the sea, live near it long life, for which you can’t get enough of them.
The famous “Aivazovsky wave” is a foamy, almost transparent sea wave, which feels like it is moving, swift, alive. The artist achieved transparency using the glazing technique, that is, applying the thinnest layers of paint on top of each other. Aivazovsky preferred oil, but often his waves seem like watercolors. It is as a result of glazing that the image acquires this transparency, and the colors seem very saturated, but not due to the density of the stroke, but due to the special depth and subtlety. Aivazovsky's virtuoso glazing is a delight for collectors: most of his paintings are in excellent condition - the thinnest layers of paint are less prone to cracking.
Aivazovsky wrote rapidly, often creating works in one session, so his glazing technique had author's nuances. Here is what Nikolai Barsamov, the longtime director of the Feodosia art gallery and the greatest connoisseur of Aivazovsky's work: “... he sometimes glazed water over a semi-dry underpainting. Often the artist glazed the waves at their base, which gave depth and strength to the colorful tone and achieved the effect of a transparent wave. Sometimes glazing darkened significant planes of the picture. But glazing in Aivazovsky's painting was not mandatory. last step work, as was the case with the old masters with a three-layer method of painting. All his painting was basically carried out in one step, and glazing was often used by him as one of the ways to apply a paint layer on white ground at the beginning of work, and not just as final registrations at the end of work. The artist sometimes used glazing at the first stage of work, covering significant planes of the picture with a translucent layer of paint and using the white ground of the canvas as a luminous lining. So sometimes he wrote water. Skillfully distributing a layer of paint of various densities over the canvas, Aivazovsky achieved a true transmission of the transparency of water.
Aivazovsky turned to glazes not only when working on waves and clouds, but with their help he was able to breathe life into the land. “Aivazovsky painted earth and stones with coarse bristly brushes. It is possible that he cut them on purpose so that the hard ends of the bristles would leave furrows on the paint layer, says art critic Barsamov. - The paint in these places is usually laid in a dense layer. As a rule, Aivazovsky almost always glazed the ground. The glazing (darker) tone, falling into the furrows from the bristles, gave a kind of liveliness to the colorful layer and greater reality to the depicted form.
As for the question “where did the paint come from?”, it is known that in last years he bought paints from the Berlin firm Mewes. Everything is simple. But there is also a legend: as if Aivazovsky bought paints from Turner. Only one thing can be said about this: it is theoretically possible, but even if so, Aivazovsky definitely did not paint all 6,000 of his works with Turner paints. And the picture that the impressed Turner dedicated the poem to was created by Aivazovsky even before he met the great British marine painter.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Bay of Naples on a moonlit night.
“In your picture I see the moon with its gold and silver, standing above the sea, reflected in it. The surface of the sea, on which a light breeze catches up with a quivering swell, seems to be a field of sparks. Forgive me great artist if I was mistaken in taking the picture for reality, but your work fascinated me, and delight took possession of me. Your art is eternal and powerful, because genius inspires you,” William Turner’s poems about Aivazovsky’s painting Bay of Naples on a Moonlit Night.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Among the waves.
The main thing is to start, or At the pace of Aivazovsky
Aivazovsky always began work with the image of the sky, and he wrote it in one go - it could be 10 minutes or 6 hours. He painted the light in the sky not with the side surface of the brush, but with its end, that is, he “illuminated” the sky with numerous quick touches of the brush. The sky is ready - you can relax, get distracted (however, he allowed himself this only with paintings that took a lot of time). The sea could write in several passes.
To work on a painting for a long time in the view of Ivan Aivazovsky is, for example, to paint one canvas for 10 days. That is how much it took the artist, who at that time was 81 years old, to create his own big picture- Among the waves. At the same time, according to his confession, his whole life was a preparation for this picture. That is, the work required maximum effort from the artist - and for ten whole days. But in the history of art, it is not uncommon for paintings to be painted for twenty or more years (for example, Fyodor Bruni wrote his “ copper serpent» 14 years old, started in 1827 and finished in 1841).
In Italy, Aivazovsky certain period got along with Alexander Ivanov, the same one who wrote The Appearance of Christ to the People for 20 years, from 1837 to 1857. They even tried to work together, but soon quarreled. Ivanov could work on a sketch for months, trying to achieve the special accuracy of a poplar leaf, while Aivazovsky managed to walk all around and paint several pictures during this time: “I can’t write quietly, I can’t pore for months. I don’t leave the picture until I speak out.” So different talents, different ways to create - hard labor and joyful admiration of life - could not stay close for long.
Ivan Aivazovsky next to his painting, photograph, 1898.
Aivazovsky at the easel.
“The atmosphere of the workshop was exceptionally simple. In front of the easel was a simple chair with a wicker reed seat, the back of which was plastered with a rather thick layer of paint, since Aivazovsky had a habit of throwing his hand with a brush behind the back of the chair and sitting half a turn to the picture, looking at it, ”- from the memoirs of Konstantin Artseulov , this grandson of Aivazovsky also became an artist.
Creativity as joy
Aivazovsky's muse (forgive us this pompousness) is joyful, not painful. “From the ease, apparent ease of the movement of the hand, from the contented expression of the face, one could safely say that such work is a real pleasure,” these are the impressions of the official of the Ministry imperial court, writer Vasily Krivenko, who watched how Aivazovsky works.
Aivazovsky, of course, saw that for many artists their gift is either a blessing or a curse, other paintings are written almost with blood, exhausting and exhausting their creator. For him, approaching the canvas with a brush has always been the most great joy and happiness, he acquired a special lightness and omnipotence in his workshop. At the same time, Aivazovsky listened carefully to good advice, did not dismiss the remarks of people whom he valued and respected. Although not enough to believe that the lightness of his brush is a drawback.
Plein air VS workshop
Only the lazy did not talk about the importance of working with nature in those years. Aivazovsky, on the other hand, preferred to make fleeting sketches from life, and write in the studio. “Preferred”, perhaps, is not quite the right word, it's not about convenience, it was his principled choice. He believed that it was impossible to depict from nature the movement of the elements, the breath of the sea, the peals of thunder and the flashing of lightning - and that was what interested him. Aivazovsky had a phenomenal memory and considered his task "in nature" to absorb what was happening. Feeling and remembering, in order to return to the studio, throw out these feelings on the canvas - that's why nature is needed. At the same time, Aivazovsky was an excellent copyist. During training with Maxim Vorobyov, he demonstrated this skill to the fullest. But copying - at least someone's paintings, even nature - seemed to him much less than he was able to do.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Amalfi Bay in 1842. Sketch. 1880s
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Coast in Amalfi.
About the rapid work of Aivazovsky and what his sketches from nature were, the artist Ilya Ostroukhov left detailed memories:
"With the manner of doing artwork late famous marine painter Aivazovsky, I happened to get acquainted in 1889, during one of my foreign trips, in Biarritz. At about the same time that I arrived in Biarritz, Aivazovsky also arrived there. The venerable artist was already then, as I remember, about seventy years old ... Having learned that I was well acquainted with the topography of the area, [he] immediately pulled me for a walk along the ocean shore. The day was stormy, and Aivazovsky, fascinated by the view of the ocean surf, stopped on the beach ...
Without taking his eyes off the ocean and the landscape of distant mountains, he slow motion got my little one notebook and drew only three lines with a pencil - the outline of distant mountains, the line of the ocean at the foot of these mountains, and the line of the coast from myself. Then we went on with him. After walking about a verst, he stopped again and made the same drawing of several lines in the other direction.
“It’s a cloudy day today,” Aivazovsky said, “and you can only tell me, please, where the sun rises and sets here.
I pointed. Aivazovsky put a few dots in the book and hid the book in his pocket.
- Now let's go. For me this is enough. Tomorrow I will paint the ocean surf in Biarritz.
The next day, three spectacular pictures of the sea surf were really written: in Biarritz: in the morning, at noon and at sunset ... "
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Biarritz. 1889
Aivazovsky's sun, or what does impressionism have to do with it
The Armenian artist Martiros Saryan noticed that no matter how grandiose the storm Aivazovsky portrayed, in the upper part of the canvas, always through the accumulation thunderclouds a ray of light will break through - sometimes clear, sometimes thin and barely noticeable: "It is in it, this Light, that the meaning of all the storms depicted by Aivazovsky lies."
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Storm in the North Sea.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Moonlight night. 1849
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Bay of Naples on a moonlit night. 1892
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. The ship "Empress Maria" during a storm. 1892
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Moonlit night in Capri. 1841
If this is the sun, then it will light the blackest storm, if lunar path, then fill the entire canvas with its flicker. We are not going to call Aivazovsky either an impressionist or a forerunner of impressionism. But let's quote the words of patron Alexei Tomilov - he criticizes Aivazovsky's paintings: "The figures are sacrificed to such an extent that it is not possible to recognize: in the foreground they are men or women (...) air and water flaunt." We say about the Impressionists that the main characters of their paintings are color and light, one of the main tasks is the transmission of light-air mass. In the works of Aivazovsky, light is in the first place, and yes, quite right, air and water (in his case, this is about the sky and the sea). Everything else is built around this main thing.
He strives not only to portray plausibly, but to convey sensations: the sun should shine so that you want to close your eyes, the viewer will shrink from the wind, recoil from the wave in fright. The latter, in particular, was done by Repin, when Aivazovsky suddenly opened the door of the room in front of him, behind which stood his "Ninth Wave".
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Ninth shaft.
How to look at Aivazovsky's paintings
The artist gave absolutely unambiguous recommendations: you should look for the brightest point on the canvas, the source of light, and, peering intently at it, slide your eyes over the canvas. For example, when he was reproached that Moonlit Night was not finished, he argued that if the viewer “turns his main attention to the moon and gradually, adhering to the interesting point of the picture, looks at other parts of the picture in passing, and beyond that, not forgetting that this is a night that robs us of all reflection, then such a viewer will find that this picture is more finished than it should be.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Moonlit night in Crimea. Gurzuf, 1839, 101×136.5 cm.
Konstantin Aivazovsky is not one of those artists who lose inspiration in the process and leave the work unfinished. But one day this happened to him too - he did not finish the painting "The Explosion of the Ship" (1900). Death intervened. This unfinished work especially valuable for researchers of his work. It allows you to understand what the artist considered the main thing in the picture, with the study of which elements he began work. We see that Aivazovsky began with the ship and the flame of the explosion - something that will take the viewer by the soul. And the artist left the details, on which the viewer will simply glide with his eyes, for later.
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Ship explosion. 1900
Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski. Azure grotto. Naples. 1841
The modern viewer is sometimes discouraged by the intense color of Aivazovsky's paintings, his bright, uncompromising colors. There is an explanation for this. And this is not at all the bad taste of the artist.
Fragment of Ivan Aivazovsky's painting "Ship in the Stormy Sea" (Hermitage).
Today we look at the marinas of Aivazovsky in museums. Often these are provincial galleries, with a dilapidated interior and no special lighting, which is replaced by simple light from the window. But during the life of Aivazovsky, his paintings hung in rich living rooms and even in palaces. Under stucco ceilings, on walls pasted over with luxurious tapestries, in the light of chandeliers and candelabra. It is quite possible that the artist took care that his paintings were not lost against the background of colorful carpets and gilded furniture.
Connoisseurs say that Aivazovsky's night landscapes, which often look rustic in poor natural light or under rare lamps, come to life, become mysterious and noble, as the artist intended them to be, when viewed by candlelight. Especially those paintings that Aivazovsky painted by candlelight.
The Black Sea is the constant and most frequent object of the image of Ivan Aivazovsky. A native of Feodosia, great marine painter he knew his native shores almost by heart, which is why the waters of the Black Sea are so diverse in his work. "Black Sea" - Aivazovsky's painting, which attracts with its simplicity and inner strength. It depicts nothing but the sea, and that is what makes it thin and beautiful.
Marine painter Ivan Aivazovsky
The real name of the recognized master of the seascape is Hovhannes Ayvazyan, he comes from the family of an impoverished Armenian merchant. Due to the heavy financial position young Aivazovsky could not afford a decent education in the art of drawing and painting until he attracted the attention of the chief architect Feodosia with his natural talent.
After initial help from his benefactor, Aivazovsky managed to quickly achieve recognition and popularity. Big role in achieving the status of an academician of arts, his unique manner of depicting water in general and seascapes in particular played.
The painter's talent was not limited to images of the sea, as evidenced by his numerous portraits, rare genre compositions and religious themes. However, Aivazovsky's only and inextinguishable passion was the sea.
The Black Sea in the work of Aivazovsky
Despite the fact that "The Black Sea" (Aivazovsky's painting, painted in 1881) is the only canvas with this name, the great marine painter often depicted the waters of the Black Sea on his canvases. The artist was born in Feodosia and lived there most own life. Aivazovsky believed that it was impossible to draw water from nature, since it is the most fickle and changeable of the elements. However, the shores and waves of his native Black Sea were so familiar to him that he could depict their various states from memory.
Among the huge artistic heritage author the largest number paintings is dedicated to the Black Sea, which was a constant theme of the artist. Aivazovsky depicted the Black Sea in all its guises - in calm and in a storm, day and night, in the rays of the morning sun or in the fire of sunset. The work of the great marine painter leaves no doubt about his love and affection for his native shores.
Description of the painting by Aivazovsky “Black Sea”
Despite the frequent depiction of native shores, in creative heritage Aivazovsky, there is only one painting, which is simply called "The Black Sea". This canvas was created by the artist in 1881 and offers viewers a view of the endless sea space, frozen on the canvas just before the start of the storm. The second name of the picture is "A storm begins to play out on the Black Sea."
"Black Sea" - Aivazovsky's painting, characterized by the simplicity of the plot and practically perfect proportions compositions. The canvas depicts a darkened sea with frequent, restless, but not yet high waves, decorated with small foam crests. Such waves, penetrated by rays of light and as if glowing from within, were called by the artist's contemporaries "Aivazovsky's waves".
The horizon line divides the picture almost perfectly into two equal parts - a stormy sea below, a darkened sky above, and between them a thin strip of land and a lone sail striving towards it barely peep through a veil of fog.
Painting analysis
"The Black Sea" - Aivazovsky's painting, which attracts the eye with a relaxed harmony and unusually realistic color palette. In addition to the fact that the picture is compositionally divided in half into the sea and the sky, the elements of these two parts seem to be reflected in each other.
The dark clouds on the right merge and form an equilateral wedge with the dark waves of the raging sea. The play of light and shadow in the picture creates a lively composition, the dynamism of which is emphasized by the horizon line slightly tilted to the left.
The symmetry of the forms in the picture is the opposite of the asymmetry in the application of colors: while the sky is replete with a rich palette of shades, including purple, blue, azure, gray and ivory, the sea stretching under the sky cannot boast of such chromatic diversity. The sea in Aivazovsky's painting "The Black Sea" is made in blue-green, muted colors. The painting "Black Sea" (Aivazovsky masterfully depicted the state of the water element) should conquer not with an abundance of details and a riot of colors, but with realism, natural beauty and the strength of the raging sea.
The Black Sea on other canvases by Aivazovsky
The Black Sea was eternal theme Aivazovsky and never for a long time left the canvases on which the great marine painter worked. The artist's works glorify the beauty, variability and natural power of the water element, so it is not surprising that the Black Sea close to Aivazovsky is shown in his paintings in all its diversity and inconstancy.
The calm and serene Black Sea can be seen in the paintings “Entrance to the Sevastopol Bay” and “Gurzuf”, and its waters, pierced by the rays of the setting sun, are captured on the canvases “View of the sea from the mountains of Crimea” and “Sunset near the Crimean coast”. The description of Aivazovsky’s painting “Storm on the Black Sea” is complicated by the fact that there are three paintings with this name in the marine painter’s heritage.
Aivazovsky depicted the Black Sea in the first rays rising sun(“Sunrise in Feodosia”) and in a stormy wind (“View of Odessa from the sea”). In the artist’s paintings, they are swallowed up by fog (“ Foggy morning”) or illuminated by the bright moon (“Feodosia. Moonlit night”). Each image of the Black Sea suggests that the marine painter Ivan Aivazovsky carefully kept it in his memory all his life and even in Italy did not stop painting views of his native shores.
Ivan Aivazovsky was born into the family of a bankrupt businessman, so his childhood was spent in poverty, but the boy's talent was noticed and he was helped. He took over something from a local architect, after which he studied at the Simferopol gymnasium, where he impressed influential people with his success in drawing, who helped him enter the Academy of Arts.
Ivan Konstantinovich did not immediately determine his own interests. A decisive role in his work was played by his arrival in St. french artist F. Tanner, who mastered the techniques of depicting water. In 1836, Tanner accepted the young man as his assistant and taught him the techniques he knew. Already in the autumn of the same year, Ivan Aivazovsky presented five seascapes. These paintings were rated very highly, they appeared in the newspapers. And in 1837, for two new works, he was given a large gold medal and was awarded the title of artist, these paintings were “The Big Raid in Kronstadt”, “Calm on the Gulf of Finland”. In the spring of 1838, Ivan Konstantinovich returned to Feodosia, where he set up a workshop for himself, in which he began to work, gaining experience in writing from nature.
From 1840 to 1844 Aivazovsky stayed in Italy as a foreign pensioner from the Academy of Arts, and also visited Germany, France, Spain, Holland. During these four years, the artist worked fruitfully and exhibited his works, which everywhere had big success. After returning from his wanderings, Aivazovsky received the title of academician of the Academy of Arts, and was also assigned to the Main Naval Staff. All this allowed Ivan Aivazovsky the following year to go with the expedition of the famous Russian navigator and geographer F.P. Litke to Turkey, Greece, Asia Minor and gain new impressions, which he subsequently used in his paintings. Aivazovsky also repeatedly visited the Caucasus, Egypt, Nice, Florence, and even America.
In 1846, Aivazovsky built himself a new spacious workshop in Feodosia, where he mainly worked. Now he worked more, relying on a rare visual memory and techniques that he learned a long time ago and has since perfected them, bringing them to automatism. The artist could paint a large picture in a couple of hours, which he did more than once, showing off his skill and talent to astonished spectators.
The legacy of Aivazovsky was a whole pictorial encyclopedia the sea, which he captured in the most varied states. He left 6000 paintings, which are unequal. Among them there are formulaic, average quality, and excellent ones, such as the well-known "Ninth Wave" (1850) or "Black Sea" (1881). In addition, Aivazovsky wrote many historical battle paintings, which tell about the victorious battles of the Russian fleet. The sea is what he wrote with skill and love. Trying to write simple landscapes, Aivazovsky received more modest results, portraying a person, became helpless.
