The largest progressive democratic art association, the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions (1870-1923), was created by Russian painters and sculptors of a realistic direction. The emergence of the Association was largely due to the crisis of the salon academic art, the general rise of democratic culture in the 50-60s of the XIX century and was prepared by the activities of the St. Petersburg Artel of Democratic Artists, headed by Ivan Kramskoy.
The artel of free artists, organized in 1863 after the defiant exit from the Academy of its graduates - competitors for a big gold medal ("revolt of fourteen"), for a number of years was a kind of art center in St. Petersburg, opposing the Academy and its art, far from the demands of life, from contemporary reality. Moscow artists Myasoedov, Perov, V. E. Makovsky, Pryanishnikov, Savrasov at the end of 1869 suggested that the St. Petersburg Artel unite all together and form a new society. In 1870, the "Partnership", already approved by the government, began its activities. Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy, who in 1870 became one of the founding members of the Association, its leader and ideological inspirer, played a very important role in the creation of the Society of Wandering Artists.
By the time the Association was created, the St. Petersburg Artel had almost ceased to exist, and some of its members joined the new association. The main thing that the members of the new organization managed to achieve first of all was the organization of independent exhibitions and their movement around the cities of Russia. "Wanderers", as the members of the Association began to be called, set themselves the task of the widest propaganda of art and the social and aesthetic education of the masses. Already in the 50s and 60s of the 19th century, in contrast to the pseudo-classical art that was planted by the Imperial Academy of Arts, there was a close rapprochement with the life of democratic art. And with the advent of the Wanderers, the new art develops in line with advanced Russian literature, music, theater, social thought, forming a powerful stream of Russian democratic culture, inspired by the advanced social ideas of its time.
The Association of Russian Wanderers brought together all the best painters and sculptors of the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries. These are Perov and Kramskoy, Myasoedov and V. Makovsky, Savitsky and Maximov, Pryanishnikov and Ge, Savrasov and Shishkin, Kuindzhi and Dubovskoy, V. Vasnetsov and Polenov, Kostandi and Pimonenko, Gun and Nevrev, Repin and Surikov, Serov and Levitan, Yaroshenko and Nesterov, Kasatkin and S. Ivanov, Popov and Arkhipov, Posen and Andreev, Baksheev and Byalynitsky-Birulya, Beggrov and Ammosov and many others. Konstantin Makovsky, Antokolsky, Vereshchagin, K. Korovin, S. Korovin, Malyavin, Ryabushkin, Volnukhin, Bogdanov-Belsky, Konenkov and others participated as exhibitors at some exhibitions of the Wanderers.
In the 70-80s of the 19th century, the activity of the Partnership reached its peak. The leading place in the traveling exhibitions belonged to the paintings of Repin, as well as Surikov, Kramskoy, Polenov, Nesterov, Myasoedov, Makovsky, Perov. In their work, they reflected the most significant phenomena of the surrounding reality in all their complexity and contradiction. The Wanderers had a huge impact on all aspects of the artistic life of Russia, on the formation of national art schools. Among the members of the Association and exhibitors were artists of various nationalities. Many of them became the founders of the realistic, democratic art of their peoples.
The role of the Wanderers in art education is great. Many prominent Wanderers taught for many years at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture (Perov, Savrasov, Pryanishnikov, Levitan, Serov, Polenov, Arkhipov and others). Since 1894, Repin, V. Makovsky, Kuindzhi, Shishkin, and later Kiselev, Dubovskoy and other artists have joined the professorship of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, who greatly increased the role and authority of the Academy as a center of art education.
Reference and biographical data of the Small Bay Planet Art Gallery are prepared on the basis of materials from the History of Foreign Art (edited by M.T. Kuzmina, N.L. Maltseva), the Artistic Encyclopedia of Foreign Classical Art, and the Great Russian Encyclopedia.
"The Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions is a significant phenomenon in Russian art that arose in the second half of the 19th century and brought together leading artists, spokesmen for the progressive views and aesthetic ideas of their time."
The emergence of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions as a completely new form of organizing art exhibitions is due to a number of reasons, which should be discussed in more detail. The rise of public consciousness in the late 1850s - early 1860s led to reforms and the abolition of serfdom, which gave impetus to the liberation of the human spirit, the emancipation of the individual.
During the period of change in the socio-economic formation, a sharp exacerbation of social contradictions that were not eliminated by the abolition of serfdom in the 60s of the XIX century, "the need to comprehend the new social conditions of our time" arises.
In the 19th century, the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts remained the center of the country's creative life. In the 19th century, the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts remained the center of the country's creative life.
It was a fairly conservative institution "... with the pedagogical teaching system that prevailed here, outdated standards of aesthetics that had lost touch with the advanced Russian artistic culture, developing in line with educational ideas."
By this time, a new school of realistic art was beginning to take shape in Russia. Many artists touch upon the life of the common man more expressively and broadly in their works. It was at this time that a national school of realistic painting was formed with its own characteristics largely due to the contradictions of social development and the intense spiritual quest of the Russian intelligentsia.
A characteristic national feature of Russian critical realism is its pronounced social coloring. The emergence of such contradictions between the new wave in art, inspired by changes in the political and spiritual sphere and the old established world of outgoing classicism, was this impetus that brought painting to a new spiral of development. Considering this problem, one should dwell in more detail on the life of the pre-reform Academy, the microclimate that reigned within the walls of this institution, created in 1757 in the likeness of the English and French Academies of Arts. As mentioned above, “... the Academy of Arts continued to be a legislator in art, requiring, as before, imitation of classicist models, not allowing freedom of creativity.
The desire of artists to throw off the fetters of ideas about artistic creativity alienated from modern life led to a revolt of the "fourteen Protestants", when some of the graduates broke with the Academy of Arts. It was the first open protest against dogmatism in art. What was this bold action taken by young artists? This question can be answered by recalling the background of this incident. Of course, the refusal to paint a picture on a mythological plot far from the pressing problems of our time clearly expressed the desire of the new generation of masters who entered the artistic life of the country to bring national art closer to modernity.
Here is what I.N. Kramskoy - in a letter to his friend photographer and amateur artist M.B. Tulinov: "My dear Mikhail Borisovich! Pay attention! On November 9, the following circumstance happened: 14 of the students applied for diplomas for the title of class artists. At first glance, there is nothing surprising. But the fact of the matter is that these 14 are not ordinary students, but people who can write for the 1st gold medal.The thing is as it was: a month before this time we filed requests for permission to freely choose subjects for us, but in our before we decided to submit a second request, we went to each professor separately, reasoned, asked and heard that our request had a basis ... In a word, each individual turned out to be a good person, and when they came together, they again refused and decided to give one story historians, and one plot to genre painters, who have chosen their plots from time immemorial.
The second important part of the prehistory of the creation of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions is the existence of the St. Petersburg Artel of Free Artists. In 1863 there was the first Artel, it was headed by I.N. Kramskoy. I.N. Kramskoy was an outstanding portrait painter, he was also an outstanding theorist of realism, approaching in a number of his positions a materialistic understanding of the historical process. In his aesthetic concept, Kramskoy was a follower of Belinsky and Chernyshevsky and a tireless fighter for rallying all the best forces of Russian art under the banner of realism. In the days of the "rebellion" he was still a young man - tall, thin, with a narrow slit of intently looking eyes. But even then, his peers saw in him their true leader. Kramskoy himself later called November 9 "the only honestly lived day." In addition to the first Artel, in 1864 a second artistic Artel was created, which included V.M. Maksimov, at that time still a student of the Academy, P. Krestonostsev, A.A. Kiselev, N. Koshelev, V.A. Bobrov and others. But it fell apart two years later, as it did not include a single person with a strong organizational grip.
The St. Petersburg Artel of Artists was a fairly independent organization, whose members sought to build their way of life on the principle of a commune. But as the revolutionary situation subsided, the utopian nature of this organization was bound to show itself over time. Artel had its charter, goals and objectives of existence. According to him, the goal of the Artel was: "... firstly, to unite by labor, strengthen and secure their financial position and enable them to sell their works to the public /.../ and secondly, to open the acceptance of artistic orders in all sectors arts".
After some time, the Artel surrenders its positions and turns into a workshop that accepted state and private orders for portraits, church paintings and all kinds of other decorative crafts. After some time, the activities of the Artel began to noticeably fade away. In part, this circumstance was "contributed" by the departure of I.N. Kramskoy. Describing the activities of this organization, the following conclusions can be drawn: Firstly, Artel's misfortune was that it failed only to fulfill profitable orders "... without setting itself the fulfillment of fundamental tasks."
Secondly, these associations, having played, of course, "... a positive role, did not fully justify themselves."
But still, these were attempts to form independent creative unions. Meanwhile, a new community of artists takes the place of the Artel of Artists. Its initiator is G.G. Myasoedov, a pensioner of the Academy of Arts, who graduated from it a year before the "revolt of fourteen Protestants".
"Grigory Grigorievich Myasoedov (1835-1911) Studied at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts under T.A. Neff, A.T. Markov. Painter. Pensioner of the Academy in France, Italy, Spain. Academician. One of the organizers of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. Provided creative and methodological assistance to art schools in Ukraine and Tataria".
G.G. Myasoedov lived in Italy until 1869. There he became close to N. Ge. Conversations about the further development of Russian painting and Russian art prompted the idea of creating a new type of art and exhibition association. Knowing about the existence of the Artel, having visited one of its "Thursday meetings", Myasoedov realized that it had already played its role, very useful and important as the first independent art organization that existed without the help of the Academy.
Then he already realized that the model of the organizational structure of the Artel was very narrow, because it included a small group of St. Petersburg artists. Upon arrival in Moscow, G.G. Myasoedov met with well-known artists by that time: Perov, Pryanishnikov, landscape painters Savrasov and Kamenev. In a conversation with them, the idea of creating the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions of Russia was born. Persistent and painstaking work begins to implement this plan. The further fate of Russian democratic painting will be connected with the activities of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. Returning in the winter of 1868-1869 from Italy, G.G. Myasoedov "... threw the idea of organizing exhibitions by some circle of artists to the Artel."
Artel accepted this new idea with great interest and sympathy. It was not only a way out of the current situation, but also a huge step forward. In 1869, the St. Petersburg Artel and a group of Moscow artists: Perov, Pryanishnikov, Makovsky, Savrasov and others, decided to unite. Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy would later write: "I urged my comrades to part with the stuffy hut and build a new crowbar, bright and spacious. Everyone grew up, it became already crowded for everyone ..."
But this idea had to be carried out. A charter was needed to regulate the activities of this organization, and which would give it an official status. After a long and painstaking work, Myasoedov submits for discussion among Moscow artists the first draft of the charter of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. One copy was sent to Italy by Kramskoy and Ge, and the second to St. Petersburg in Artel. Kramskoy and Ge, returning from Italy, begin to actively promote Myasoedov's idea among artel workers. The charter had to be approved legally. "This frightened some artel workers, who forgot about their rebellious past, were afraid to complicate relations with the Academy and official circles."
The novelty of the idea of this organization was that, in the words of N.A. Yaroshenko "... bring art out of those closed chambers in which it was the property of a few and make it the property of all ..."
The desire to bring the people closer to art for the artists of the 60s and 70s was closely connected with ideological educational tasks. The activity of the artist was seen as a public service. And they tried to make the plots and the pictorial language intelligible and understandable for everyone ... "
During this period, among artists, there was a discussion not only of the draft of the future charter of the Partnership, but also of the very form of organization. What will she be? The founders of the Comrade eventually settled on a mobile form of exhibition activity. Although it immediately became clear that it would be much more burdensome and difficult. The cause of organizing traveling exhibitions was greatly facilitated by the realization that a democratic-minded spectator appeared everywhere, interested in the development of precisely the realistic trend in art. The task of this organization was formulated quite specifically: "the creation of such an association, which would be managed by the artists themselves, united by a common ideological and creative aspirations, and which would undertake to solve their material problems, contributing to the realization of works".
On November 23, 1869, the initiative core of the Moscow group of artists sent a proposal to the Artel with a request to unite in order to organize "mobile exhibitions (the word mobile appeared later). The Charter, which was submitted in the artel" ... for general consideration, with the participation of persons whom you will find it useful to invite, you could bring it to the proper completeness and in this form deliver us a copy of it.
The letter also mentions "... a collection of signatures of those who would like to participate in the affairs of the Partnership, to work on approving the charter
The message was signed by 23 Moscow artists: G. Myasoedov, V. Perov, L. Kamenev, L. Savrasov, V. Sherwood, I. Pryanishnikov, N. Ge, I. Kramskoy, K. Lemokh, Vasiliev, A. Volkov, M. Klodt, N. Dmitriev-Orenburgsky, K. Trutovsky, N. Sverchkov, A. Grigoriev, F. Zhuravlev, N. Petrov, V. Jacobi, A. Korzukhin, I. Repin, I. Shishkin, A. Popov. In the original of this document there was a note: "Those who cannot appear may give written powers of attorney or express their thoughts by correspondence."
After discussing this proposal at a general meeting of the St. Petersburg Artel, some of the artists agreed and signed the letter. Thus, an agreement was reached on the founding of a new organization. Analyzing this period in the history of the Wanderers, it must be said that the very birth of the idea of creating such an organization and the great zeal applied to achieve its goal, applied by artists, will mark the beginning of a new era in the artistic life of Russia in the second half of the 19th century. The founding year of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions was 1869. An organization of this nature had no analogues not only in Russia, but even in the more enlightened countries of Europe. With extraordinary energy and passion, I.N. took up a new business. Kramskoy. "If G.G. Myasoedov was the main initiator of the Partnership, then I.N. Kramskoy, as its critic, theorist, publicist, became its recognized ideological leader." N.N. Ge.
Turning directly to the activities of the Partnership, the question arises - is there a connection between these three historical events: the "rebellion of the fourteen", the existence of the Artel and the creation of a new exhibition organization? I must say that formally the St. Petersburg Artel, as an organization, did not participate in the creation of the Partnership. Subsequently, questions about the connection between the "fourteen rebels" and the Wanderers repeatedly arose. Now, in the light of the historical perspective, it is clear that in their essence, ideological orientation, according to the artistic program, the Wanderers during the period of the emergence of the Partnership acted as the successors of the Artel. And the fact that Kramskoy played a leading role in both cases speaks of direct succession."
The first draft of the charter was based on its original version, written by G.G. Myasoyedov. Having undergone some changes during the editing process, it had the following sections.
Section I. Purpose of the charter: "The purpose of the founding of the Association of a mobile art exhibition is to give the inhabitants of the province the opportunity to follow the progress of Russian art. In this way, the Association tries to expand the circle of art lovers, open up new ways for the sale of works of art."
From this section, the form of exhibition activity and the material factor of the artist's interest become clear.
The second section announces the rights of the new organization: "The partnership has the right to arrange exhibitions of works of art in all cities of the Russian Empire." We will find out later. that exhibitions were held not only in Russia, but also abroad.
The third section speaks about the composition and membership in this organization: "Artists who have not left classes can be members of the Association, all members of the Association must be full members." This wording determines the creative nature of this artistic union, since the continuation reads: "... The paintings that should make up the exhibition must be written for it (ie, unknown to the public) ...".
The next section is "About entry". Both rather well-known artists and "... those unknown to the Partnership present their works at the annual general meeting and, upon acceptance of their paintings for the exhibition, are recorded as members of the Partnership" to join this organization.
This meeting was a kind of exam, which helped to identify really talented artists and eliminate possible accidents. We will learn about the obligations of the members of the Partnership from the next paragraph, here the obligations of the exhibitors are stipulated, in terms of organizational and creative aspects of the activity. From the fifth section it can be seen: when, how, where the general meeting met and what powers it carried "... considers the actions of the management ... checks the income and expense books, elects new members of the board, accepts members of the board of the partnership ..., sets the date for the future exhibition and makes a division of the sums to be divided".
Analyzing this paragraph, we can conclude that the activities of the Partnership and its organization were quite democratic.
tired of the academic monopoly in the visual arts for a long time, they strove for the independence of creative work.
One way or another, the creation of the membership of the united artists was facilitated by the interest of many artists to really bring art closer to the masses, thereby ensuring their independence from various institutions, patrons and organizations patronized by the government.
In 1863, 14 graduate artists, headed by I. Kramskoy, refused to write a graduation picture on the proposed mythological theme Feast in Valhalla and demanded to choose the plot of the picture themselves, which they were categorically refused, after which
many artists defiantly left the academy. The solution was this: that it was necessary to form an independent artel of artists in the style of communes, independent of the academic monopoly, the Union of Russian Artists. It did not last long and broke up after 7 years, although by this time in 1870 a new movement was born - the partnership of the Wanderers or the partnership of traveling art exhibitions TPHV and their movement around the cities of Russia, this is an association of professional artists. The work of the Wanderers brought together many artists in unity and ideological positions, rejection of academicism with its decorative landscapes, sham theatricality and various mythologies.
Artists sought to show in their works the ideological side of fine art, which was valued much higher than aesthetic, setting themselves the task of broadly promoting fine art, the purpose of which was the social and aesthetic education of the masses, bringing them closer to the life of democratic art. To reveal in his paintings the true living life of the oppressed peasantry, suffering from the power of the landowners and the rich, this was the main task. Many of the works of the Wanderers were painted from nature in the style of genre painting, while other works were painted under the imagination from real life.
Russian Wanderers demonstrated with great persuasiveness the existence of a new creative movement at the first exhibition that opened, gradually emerging from the 60s. At this exhibition, the painting of the Wanderers was demonstrated - paintings by many famous artists in all popular genres: portrait, landscape and historical genre. In total, 47 exhibits were exhibited that turned academic ideas about painting upside down, this was the first step in the success of the Wanderers who showed their paintings in a different dimension. By this time, the academy had undergone some changes. as the old settings gradually receded into the past.
The 19th century is the golden age of Russian fine arts, which gave birth to a large number of famous Russian artists who left their descendants a rich heritage, the value of which is simply immeasurable. Thanks to the Russian Wanderers, the most famous artists of that time, the paintings of Russian painting help all of humanity to comprehend those ideas about the life of those years and the work of Russian artists who, with great difficulty, achieved the creation of a partnership of traveling art exhibitions.
Famous artists of the Wanderers
Kramskoy Ivan Nikolayevich (1837 - 1887) Ivan Kramskoy is a wonderful master of the portrait genre, Portrait of an unknown beautiful stranger, I. I. Shishkin, etc. His famous painting Christ in the Desert caused a storm of emotions and long-lasting controversy.A well-known painter, one of the main reformers in art, known for his anti-academic activities, advocating for the free development of young artists. he painted a number of famous portraits: L. N. Tolstoy, M. E. Saltykov - Shchedrin, Nekrasov, A. D. Litovchenko, Sofia Nikolaevna Kramskoy and many others. Kramskoy is the main founder and founder of the TPHV. Without Kramskoy, it is impossible to imagine all those undertakings of artistic culture with its latest transformations, which revealed to the masses the whole truth of life in art. The artist at one time gained unprecedented popularity, based on this, he was often entrusted with ordering a portrait, respectively, portraits of his brushes constantly rose in price during his lifetime.
(1834-1882) . His famous paintings Tea Party in Mytishchi, The arrival of the police officer for the investigation, Perov’s paintings are imbued with genuine tragedy: Old parents at the grave of their son, a very touching picture Troika, Bird catcher, The last tavern at the outpost, The arrival of a governess in a merchant’s house, a picture of Fishermen, is also very popular picture Hunters at rest.which today is considered the most discussed and loved by all hunters. Many of the master's early works are imbued with a critical, accusatory perception, representing picturesque caricatures of that time. Beautiful portraits of contemporaries of famous writers, among these works are portraits of Dostoevsky, Turgenev, and Ostrovsky. Perov, like no one else, revealed in his works the spirit of ideology and freedom of creative choice.
(1830-1897) An excellent landscape painter, a master of the lyrical Russian landscape, his famous painting The Rooks Have Arrived, His other paintings are no less popular Forest Road, At the Gates of the Monastery, Spring Day.After Savrasov, the Lyrical landscape gained the peak of popularity among other artists. The artist revealed in his paintings all the subtle beauty of the Russian landscape with extraordinary lyricism, the mystery of being, which turned all the ideas of his contemporaries about native Russian nature. I. Levitan spoke about Savrasov like this: Savrasov tried to find those intimate ones in the most simple and ordinary. deeply touching, often sad features that are so strongly felt in our native landscape and so irresistibly affect the soul. From the origins of the artist Savrasov's work in the Russian visual art of the landscape, lyricism was revived, emphasized by the boundless love for his native land.
(1850-1873) The work of this young artist, who lived a short, short life, enriched Russian painting with many landscapes, such as Wet Meadow, Thaw, In the Crimean mountains, the Swamp Painting was painted brightly in autumn colors.Vasiliev was able to show in his works the nature of the transitional state from a dull bad weather to a sunny state. Favorite motifs in his paintings are God-forgotten country roads, ravines, potholes, old peasant houses that have grown into the ground. Before Vasiliev and Savrasov, Russian artists depicted Swiss, Italian views, and native Russian places were considered unworthy of embodiment. Vasiliev managed to reveal in the landscape the state of the dull Russian nature, reflecting its true beauty, forcing contemporaries to admire the beauty of nature that had not been seen before in the village. Vasiliev lived a very short life as an artist, but even in such a short time he painted a dozen works, beautiful romantic landscapes.
(1841-1910) The famous painting by Kuindzhi Moonlit night on the Dnieper, attracts with the calm grandeur of nature, the Dnieper in the morning, Birch Grove -In his paintings, the artist showed Russian nature in a hitherto unseen method of painting, revealing the sublime image of landscapes, sparkling with unusual color and contrast of pure colors and light. Rays of light breaking through the fog, playing in puddles on muddy roads, noticeably emphasize the artist's skill in the picturesque techniques of moonlight, the mysterious light of the moon on a dark night, the bright red reflections of dawn on the walls of Ukrainian huts. He truthfully painted a picture of the Forgotten Village, in which he boldly reflected the plight of the Russian people. Kuindzhi found his own unique, independent path in the art of landscape.
(1860-1900) Magnificent master of quiet and calm landscapes. Autumn day Sokolniki, Gloomy day, Evening ringing After the rain, and conveying a bright autumn mood Golden autumn famous canvases - paintings Above Eternal Peace, Evening, Spring. Big water, Quiet abode and the picture Children running from a thunderstorm, Reaper, Peasant lunch in the field.Russian painter, representative of classical academism. He personified a person immersed in the world of beauty and grace, a connoisseur of human psychologism and refined feelings. His portraits, the Boyar at the window. V.A. Morozov, Portrait of Alexander II and many many others. Historical paintings "Healing of the Blind", "Agents of Demetrius the Pretender kill the son of Boris Godunov", Death of Ivan the Terrible, Demon and Tamara and Judgment of Paris and others. Many of his works are saturated with lyricism and psychologism. There were many wonderful moments in the life of Konstantin Makovsky, he was considered a highly paid artist of that time. To some extent, from time to time he was in search of new solutions, he was inclined towards impressionism, for which he was even criticized for moving away from the ideas of the Wanderers.
(1846-1920) A remarkable Russian painter in his life work, he has always been a fan of the everyday genre. Several of his well-known canvases, paintings about Russian poverty in the villages Date, summer outdoor recreation in a rich family On a hot day, or the First tailcoat. Two strangers. 1885, painting with village children Playing money. 1870.Since 1872, he was a member of the Union of Wanderers, and later, two years later, he became a member of the management of the Soz. His paintings were often exhibited to the public such as "Visit to the Poor" 1874, "Waiting" 1875, Bank Collapse" (1881) in most of these exhibitions of the Wanderers. Most of all, of course, Makovsky was fascinated by social topics, and he wrote quite a few similar works. Regarding such subjects, Makovsky painted many portraits, for example, a portrait of the artists I. M. Pryanishnikov and E. Sorokin, many portraits were written for the rich, he painted the poor, peasants and peasant women, sometimes he was engaged in etchings and liked to write watercolors. Under his leadership, such artists as V. Baksheev and Arkhipov became famous at MUZhVZ.
Stepanov Aleksey Stepanovich (1858-1923) Russian artist, academician of the Academy of Arts, since 1888 joined the union of the Wanderers, and at this exhibition the painting by Stepanov Losy brought the artist considerable success. Stepanov's artistic style attracts with its unique sketchiness with limited use of the color of the paints of his palette, nevertheless, his strokes are transparent, the color of his canvases is not inferior to I. Levitan, therefore, like Levitan's, his landscapes are also called landscapes of mood. Despite the number of his wonderful works, Stepanov, relative to his many colleagues, is very rarely mentioned in the history of Russian painting as a talented painter who deserves correspondingly more attention.
The Wanderers made a huge contribution to the development of Russian and world art, creating a completely new aesthetic scale and expanding the plot circle of easel painting. Boldly experimenting in technique and composition, these creators of the new formation turned to social issues, broadcasting their point of view through art, as well as the mood of society. A considerable merit of the Wanderers lies in the mainstream of artistic and educational work.
But why are these painters called "wanderers" and where did they move? Let's try to figure it out.
From rebellion to riot
The history of the Wanderers or the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions began with a bold riot on November 9, 1863. 14 of the most outstanding students of the Imperial Academy of Arts refused to participate in the competition for a large gold medal, which included a pensioner's trip to Europe. The painters did not want to fulfill the task for the proposed plot (Feast in Valhalla), demanding creative freedom in choosing a theme, in accordance with "the personal inclinations of the artist."
14 rebels
All 14 painters left the Academy, creating for the first time in the history of Russia an independent art society - the St. Petersburg Artel of Artists. In 1870 the Artel was renamed the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. The goal of the new association was to organize mobile traveling exhibitions that could travel around the provinces of Russia, introducing art to residents.
Principles and Objectives
He headed the partnership, together with other members of the association, he prepared a charter, which was approved by the Minister of Internal Affairs A. Timashev. According to the charter, the goals of the Wanderers (as they began to be called in a simplified way in a very short time) were good, aimed at the benefit of society, and to themselves:
- organize exhibitions throughout Russia, including introducing the art of the province;
- to develop love for art and aesthetic tastes among the people;
- make it easier for artists to market their paintings.
The leading direction was realism, and in many respects this realism was accusatory and dramatized. The authors in their works sought to raise acute social problems - class inequality, injustice, poverty, etc.
Ultimately, freedom, once proclaimed by 14 rebels, slowly began to fade away again - not everyone wanted to shout about problems. The Association did not welcome those who were fond of European impressionism, lightweight plots, and those who wanted to conquer the foreign public by offering their work to competitions or exhibitions abroad. It is enough to recall the negative reaction of the Wanderers to work or to those written for foreign salons.
At one time, I. Kramskoy, I. Repin, A. Arkhipov, and many others visited the ranks of the Wanderers.
Someone left the ranks of the association quickly enough, like Makovsky, choosing other landmarks for himself, someone devoted his whole life to the Partnership, like Kramskoy.
Over the years of its existence, the independent art association has organized 47 exhibitions. In addition to the main exhibitions, there was always the organization of parallel exhibitions for cities that could not get into the main list. Thus, the geography covered by the Wanderers was more than impressive.
Moving from one city to another, these exhibitions brought culture to the masses in the truest sense of the word, which affected the education of society, was a powerful impetus for the development of philanthropy, and also often became a platform for the education of new creators-painters who raised them to the highest level .
The Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions is a key milestone in the development of Russian art. The Wanderers became, in a way, a symbol of Russian art of the 19th century. Emerged as a reaction to the dead lifeless art of the Academy of Arts, the Association of the Wanderers became the most massive and influential art association in the history of Russia. Never before or since has the art of Russian artists been so close and understandable to the masses.
Undoubtedly, the emergence of the TPES society occurred at the very time when it was especially necessary for Russia - both from the point of view of pure art and from the point of view of its social coloring. By the end of the 60s, the leading artists of Moscow and St. Petersburg came wiser with some experience in social activities. By this time, they have a firm conviction that the time has come to find a form of association that could ensure the personal independence of the artist from official, government-protected institutions and patrons, to make closer and more direct links between art and the viewer, with the people. The idea of creating the Association of Traveling Exhibitions promised a lot. The opportunity to acquire an immense popular audience became real. The dream of several generations of artists came true with their own eyes. But for none of the previous generations it was not so infinitely attractive as for the generation shaped by the general democratic upsurge of the late 50s and early 60s.
Creativity of the Wanderers
Russian Wanderers sought to show in their works the ideological side of fine art, which was valued much higher than aesthetic, setting themselves the task of broadly promoting fine art, the purpose of which was the social and aesthetic education of the masses, bringing them closer to the life of democratic art. To reveal in his paintings the true living life of the oppressed peasantry, suffering from the power of the landowners and the rich - this was the main task. Many of the works of the Wanderers were painted from nature in the style of genre painting, while other works were painted under the imagination from real life. Russian Wanderers demonstrated with great persuasiveness the existence of a new creative movement at the first exhibition that opened, gradually emerging from the 60s. At this exhibition, the painting of the Wanderers was demonstrated - paintings by many famous artists of all popular genres: portrait, landscape and historical genre. In total, 47 exhibits were exhibited that turned academic ideas about painting upside down, this was the first step in the success of the Wanderers who showed their paintings in a different dimension. By this time, the academy had undergone some changes. as the old settings gradually receded into the past.
Famous Wandering Artists
Kramskoy Ivan Nikolaevich (1837 - 1887)
A well-known painter, one of the main reformers in art, known for his anti-academic activities, advocating for the free development of young artists. Kramskoy is the main founder and founder of the TPHV. Without Kramskoy, it is impossible to imagine all those undertakings of artistic culture with its latest transformations, which revealed to the masses the whole truth of life in art. Ivan Kramskoy is a wonderful master of the portrait genre. His famous painting "Christ in the Wilderness" caused a storm of emotions and controversy that did not subside for a long time. In this picture, Kramskoy wanted to show the dramatic situation of a moral choice, in which there is no deviation from the chosen path.
Vasily Grigorievich Perov (1834-1882)
Perov's paintings are imbued with genuine tragedy: "Old parents at the grave of their son", "Troika". His famous paintings "Tea drinking in Mytishchi", "Arrival of the police officer for the investigation", "The last tavern at the outpost". Many of the master's early works are imbued with a critical, accusatory perception, representing pictorial caricatures, in which the clergy are also involved. Perov, like no one else, revealed in his works the spirit of ideology and freedom of creative choice.
Alexei Kondratievich Savrasov (1830-1897)
Master of the lyrical Russian landscape. His famous painting "The Rooks Have Arrived", in which he managed to reveal all the subtle beauty of the Russian landscape, inspired by extraordinary lyricism. This turned any ideas of contemporaries about native Russian nature upside down. His other paintings are no less popular - "Forest Road", "At the Gates of the Monastery", "Spring Day".
Ge Nikolai Nikolaevich (1831-1894)
One of the leaders and organizers of the Association of the Wanderers, who broke his work with the monopoly of academicism. Ge is an adherent of national history, his painting “Peter I interrogates Tsarevich Alexei in Peterhof” brought him tangible success and popularity of his contemporaries. Some of his works were not so successful: "Catherine II at the coffin of Elizabeth", "A. Pushkin in the village of Mikhailovsky." Ge was often dissatisfied with many works, he did not complete all of them to the end. He simply destroyed the picture "Mercy", hardly experiencing his failures. The painting “Exit from the Last Supper” brought him fame, which became one of the best works, exciting with its expressiveness. Such paintings as "What is Truth?", "Christ and Pilate" were criticized by the clergy, for which they were removed from the exhibition.
Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich (1848-1926)
The master is a painter, portrait and landscape painter, theater artist. Member of the Wanderers since 1878. The artist's work was drawn to Russian folklore, he created many canvases on the theme of Russian history, folk tales and epics. For some time, Vasnetsov also worked for the theater, creating various scenery and costumes for plays and fairy tales, which had a huge impact on the development of theatrical and decorative art in Russia. In his famous works, he sought to convey the epic character of Rus', inspired by sincere poetry. His famous works in this genre: “After the battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsy”, “Alyonushka and Ivan Tsarevich on a gray wolf”, “Bogatyrs”, “Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible” and many others.
Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin (1832-1898)
A famous artist, a unique master of forest landscapes. His paintings are known to a very wide public. Shishkin, like no one else, loved the nature of the forest with its colorful shades of tree trunks, bright glades, lit by the sun and airiness. Famous paintings by Shishkin: "Morning in a Pine Forest", "Rye", "Stream in the Forest". Many of his paintings have gained immense popularity, these paintings are known today. Before Shishkin, no one with such stunning frankness told the viewer about his love for his native Russian nature.
Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi (1841-1910)
These are canvases with a picturesque coloring of flowers and light. Rays of light breaking through the fog, playing in puddles on muddy roads - they noticeably emphasize the skill of the artist. The famous painting "Night" attracts with the calm grandeur of nature. The painting “Dnepr in the Morning” describes the plot of an early steppe morning. "Birch Grove" - in this picture, the artist showed Russian nature in a hitherto unseen method of writing. He reveals the sublime image of the landscape, sparkling with unusual color and contrast of pure colors. Kuindzhi found his own unique, independent path in the art of landscape.
Isaac Ilyich Levitan (1860-1900)
A magnificent master of quiet and calm landscapes. Levitan was very fond of his native nature, he often retired with her, finding an understanding of her beauty, which was reflected in his landscapes. Singing the nature of the Upper Volga, he showed the world wonderful masterpieces: “Gloomy Day”, “After the Rain”, “Above Eternal Peace”, masterfully painted evening landscapes: “Golden Autumn”, “Evening on the Volga”, “Golden Reach”, “Evening ”, “Quiet abode”, “Evening ringing”. Levitan's paintings require attentiveness and thoughtfulness, they cannot be quickly examined.
Ilya Efimovich Repin (1844-1930)
The paintings by the famous artist Ilya Repin are distinguished by their versatility. Repin painted a number of monumental genre paintings that gained immense popularity among his contemporaries, which made a strong impression on the public. Traveling along the Volga, he painted many sketches, which he later used to paint his famous painting “Barge haulers on the Volga”. After this work, stunning fame came to Repin. Also, the painting “The Religious Procession in the Kursk Province”, based on the common people, church priests, and the police, made no small impression. Repin also wrote a number of works on a historical theme: "Letter of the Cossacks to the Turkish Sultan", "Ivan the Terrible kills his son", "They did not wait" and others. He worked very fruitfully on portraits. The most significant of them are portraits of writers L. N. Tolstoy, A. F. Pisemsky, Turgenev, Garshin, scientists Sechenov and Pirogov, military engineer A. I. Delvig, composers Mussorgsky and Glinka, artists Surikov and Kramskoy and others. Ilya Repin left a significant mark on the history of Russian painting.
Valentin Alexandrovich Serov (1865-1911)
A very fashionable artist of his time, his portraits brought him fame, although he also painted landscapes and paintings based on historical subjects. Sometimes, he worked as a theater artist. Serov, like no one else, knew what a portrait was and how to draw a portrait. Serov masterfully drew with a pencil from life, famous patrons, artists and writers posed for him a lot. Most of all, his portraits were noticeable: “Girl with Peaches”, “Girl Illuminated by the Sun”, a portrait of M. N. Akimova and many others.
The 19th century is the golden age of Russian fine arts, which gave birth to a large number of famous Russian artists who left a rich legacy to their descendants. Its value is simply immeasurable. Thanks to the Wanderers, the most famous artists of that time, the paintings of Russian art help all mankind to comprehend the ideas about the life of those years.
Material prepared with: tphv, art-portrets
Photo: feldgrau
