Today we will find out a list of the best artists in the world that every self-respecting person should know. Get ready to be surprised and delighted by how many wonderful and talented people in the world create a real fairy tale around them! We will list the most prominent artists and very briefly look at some of them. Forward!
Great Artists of the World
Let's start with the fact that we will get acquainted with the ten most outstanding artists:
- Henri Matisse.
- Vincent Van Gogh.
- Pablo Picasso.
- Ivan Aivazovsky.
- Isaac Levitan.
- Jackson Pollock.
- Nikas Safronov.
- Claude Monet.
- Francis Bacon.
- Andy Warhole.
The first is Henri Matisse, who discovered his talent in a completely random way. His story is not like many typical stories, but is something very special. He began to draw at a conscious age. This happened after he, as a 20-year-old young man, underwent an appendectomy. A caring mother, in order to brighten up her son's everyday life, decided to give him paints. That's when it all started. Henri was so carried away by art that he decided to master professional skills.
The second famous artist is Claude Monet, who also had an interesting story, which will be discussed below. In no case should we forget about the genius of Pablo Picasso, who is known all over the world. The whimsical paintings of Vincent van Gogh are also loved by many. We must also not forget about domestic artists - Ivan Aivazovsky deserves a place of honor in our list.
We will consider these creators below in more detail. In the meantime, you need to get acquainted with the remaining five of the best! The great artists of the world, the list of which is simply impossible without the following geniuses, will begin with the name of Isaac Levitan. He is rightly called the discoverer of the beauty of Russian nature, which he portrayed divinely. It was his works that showed the whole world that Russia is a real pearl. Jackson Pollock completely revolutionized the public's views on the art world. Do you want to know what his secret was? And the fact that his work looked a little like paintings! More like paper, stained with paint during careless movement. And only the most observant viewer could see the whole world in Pollock's paintings.
Our top also includes contemporary artist Nikas Safronov, who is famous for painting many portraits of famous personalities. We must not forget about the cult person of pop art Andy Warhol, who drew his inspiration from everyday things and created masterpieces. And the list is completed by the expressionist artist Francis Bacon, who painted the human body. It is impossible to take your eyes off his work, it is impossible to remain indifferent.
Ivan Aivazovsky
The great artists of the world, the list of which is above, are associated with the name of Ivan Aivazovsky. Interestingly, he was of Armenian origin, and his real name was Hovhannes. Creativity has been everything for Ivan since childhood. Even then, he showed great interest and ability. In addition to drawing, he played the violin very well. Sea motifs are very noticeable in his work, and for good reason, because he was a famous lover and connoisseur of the sea. He depicted a calm and turbulent sea, shipwrecks, calm, breeze, etc. What are his paintings “Ice Mountains”, “Black Sea” and “Wave” worth.
Vincent Van Gogh
The great artists of the world and their paintings are a real treasure for all mankind. What a joy that anyone can admire the creations of the great! Our next hero is Vincent Van Gogh, an artist from the Netherlands. He created a huge number of paintings that can be enjoyed forever. His works are full of secrets, riddles and parallels. He began painting as an adult. In his youth, he was rather reserved and modest, often silent and flying in his thoughts. When he went to work, a thirst for drawing woke up in him. It so happened that every day he could observe the best works of art. Such a pastime left an imprint on his future work. After a painful failure in love, he decided to test himself, and it turned out that he really draws very well! After some hesitation, he left his former place of work in order to devote himself entirely to his beloved work.
Pablo Picasso
As already mentioned earlier, the great artists of the world and their paintings are a gift that people should cherish and pass on from generation to generation. The next great artist is Pablo Picasso. Everyone knows his name, only rare creators have achieved such popularity. Interestingly, his most famous painting "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust" is the most expensive painting in the world! He was not only a talented artist, but also an excellent designer, ceramist and graphic artist. Moreover, it is simply impossible to imagine the art of the last century without this genius. You will not believe it, but during his life he wrote 20 thousand works, each of which is a unique and charming world. This artist created from an early age, and his father taught him the skill. Pablo Picasso looked for inspiration in fairy tales that his mother composed for him.
Henri Matisse
We talked a little about this artist at the very beginning. I would like to add that the boy's father was categorically against such a "career". The greatest artists of the world have always gone to success through thorns. Despite the prohibitions, the young man still continued to gain experience. It is rather difficult to define his style, most of all it is similar to impressionism. It is worth admitting that at first Henri Matisse only copied famous paintings, but then he began to create masterpieces himself. His most famous paintings are Joy of Life, Conversation and Parisian Dance.
Claude Monet
The great artists of the world very often had difficult childhoods. Maybe after the hardships experienced, a “second wind” opens up? The famous artist Claude Monet was a difficult boy whom few people understood. In the classroom, he was engaged in painting the margins of notebooks with caricatures of teachers and classmates. He quickly became recognizable. At first they came to him in order to laugh, and then he began to take money for work. Claude Monet became a popular person who gave joy and laughter. Despite this, money was not an end in itself, and he earned pennies on this. After some time, he met a landscape painter who decided to take on the training of a guy. Only after this fateful meeting did his life change. Claude Monet truly fell in love with nature and skillfully portrayed it.
Now we know the names of the great artists of the world. They should always be remembered, because these are the "pillars" of art, on which modern culture rests. The great artists of the world gave us unforgettable masterpieces, for which we should say many thanks!
Artists are people who are able to speak publicly with society in the language of visual images and forms. However, their popularity and demand, it seems, does not depend on talent at all. Who was the most famous artist in history?
Edouard Manet (1832-1883)
Edouard Manet was one of the founders of Impressionism. His creative path, as befits the path of a real artist, was not the easiest - the paintings caused controversy and scandals, in the 1860s he exhibited in the so-called "Salon of the Rejected". It was an alternative exhibition for artists who were not accepted at the official Paris Salon.Such was the fate of the Olympia painting, which shocked the public. They wrote that the heroine of the canvas looks at the viewer with such a challenge and holds her left hand in such a way, as if there is a wallet in this hand, and the heroine herself does not care what they think of her. The picture was considered too flat, its plot was vulgar, and the heroine was compared even with ... a female gorilla. Who would have thought that after one and a half hundred years this painting would become one of the most recognizable in the world!
Kazimir Malevich (1879-1935)
Oddly enough, the most famous Russian artist can be called Kazimir Malevich. Despite the fact that the Russian school of painting gave dozens of names to art - Repin, Aivazovsky, Vereshchagin and many others - a man remained in the memory of the mass audience who was more likely a deconstructor of classical painting than a successor to its traditions. 
Kazimir Malevich was the founder of Suprematism - and therefore, in some way, the father of all modern art. His textbook work "Black Square" was exhibited in 1915 and became a program. But Malevich is not the only one famous for Black Square: he worked as a production designer in Meyerhold's grotesque performances, led an art studio in Vitebsk, where another great artist, Marc Chagall, began to work.
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890)
The world knows the post-impressionist Vincent van Gogh as a mad and deeply unhappy person, who at the same time left a rich cultural heritage. He worked actively for just over 10 years, but during this time he managed to paint more than two thousand canvases. The long-term struggle with depression was interrupted by bright periods, in the second half of the 1880s, Van Gogh moved to Paris and found there the only social circle he needed - among like-minded artists. 
The public, however, was not enthusiastic about Van Gogh's paintings, the paintings were not sold. The artist spent the last years of his life in Arles in the south of France, where he hoped to create a commune of artists. The plan, alas, remained unfulfilled. Mental disorder progressed, and one day, after a quarrel, Van Gogh attacked a friend who had come to visit with a razor. A friend, the artist Paul Gauguin, handed over a friend to an insane asylum. There Van Gogh ended his days - he shot himself a year after imprisonment.
It is noteworthy that during this period, perhaps the most famous works of Van Gogh were written - “Wheat field with crows”, “Starry night” and others. But real fame came to the artist after his death - in the late 1890s. Now his work is considered one of the most expensive in the world.
Edvard Munch (1863-1944)
The Norwegian expressionist Edvard Munch could paint only one painting, but even then he would go down in the history of painting. His most recognizable work is the terrible "Scream", written between 1893 and 1910. Interestingly, there are four different author's versions of The Scream. In 2012, the painting was sold at auction for a then-record $120 million. 
"The Scream" was written after Munch was walking home along the road one evening and turned around - the red sunset that he saw amazed him. The path that Munch returned to ran past a slaughterhouse and a hospital for the mentally ill, where the artist's sister was kept.
Contemporaries wrote that the groans of patients and the cries of animals being killed were unbearable. It is believed that The Scream became a kind of prophecy for the art of the 20th century, riddled with motifs of loneliness, despair and existential nightmare.
Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516)
One of the main artists of the Renaissance in Northern Europe is Hieronymus Bosch. The manner of his writing is certainly recognizable, despite the fact that only a dozen of the entire body of paintings remain. It was a real art of the Renaissance, multifaceted and filled with symbols and allusions. To Bosch's contemporaries, his paintings spoke much more than to people of the 21st century, as he abundantly used medieval biblical and folklore motifs. 
You don't need to be an art critic to understand that you have a Bosch painting in front of you. For example, Bosch's most famous work, the Garden of Earthly Delights triptych, contains many details: it depicts the seven deadly sins reproduced several times, tells in great detail about the hellish torments that await sinners (on the right side), and on the left The leaf shows the fall of Adam and Eve. The quirkiness of the figures, a large number of small details and the specific imagination of the artist leave no doubt as to who the author of the canvas is.
Andy Warhol (1928-1987)
Everyone deserves their 15 minutes of fame - said the joker and postmodernist Andy Warhol. His own fame, however, proved more durable. Perhaps this versatile person has become a symbol of the direction of pop art. It is his authorship that belongs to the most recognizable works of the second half of the 20th century (not counting, of course, "real" artists). 
Andy Warhol created dozens of works and was one of the main culture-tragers of the sixties. However, in the mass consciousness, he will almost certainly remain as the author of paintings with reproduced identical objects - in one case, such an object was a can of canned tomato soup, and in the other, a sex symbol of the 50s and a symbol of the sexist era of Hollywood Marilyn Monroe.
Salvador Dali (1904-1989)
Surrealist Salvador Dali was also a brilliant manager and PR man. He promoted what is now called a "personal brand" long before the term was coined. Everyone remembers his outstanding mustache, crazy look and numerous outrageous antics - which are worth at least walking with an anteater on a leash. 
At the same time, Salvador Dali remains one of the main artists of his era. Choosing between two Spaniards in our rating (Dali and Pablo Picasso), the editors of the site nevertheless settled on the first one - the paintings of Salvador Dali play a much greater role in popular culture; to the average person, the names "Persistence of Memory" or "Premonition of Civil War" say more than "Guernica" or "Portrait of Dora Maar."
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564)
Michelangelo was a painter, sculptor and architect. His personality fully reflected what is commonly called "the nature of the Renaissance." One of his most famous sculptural works - the statue of David - is often used as an illustration of the very word "Renaissance" as a reflection of the views and achievements of skill and thought of that time. 
The Creation of Adam fresco is one of the most recognizable paintings of all time. In addition to the obvious cultural significance, this image played a role in the popular culture of the 21st century: what only Internet pranksters put into Adam's outstretched hand: from a remote control to a Jedi lightsaber.
Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519)
Undoubtedly, the most famous artist in the world is the Italian Leonardo da Vinci. At the same time, he himself did not give preference to any one field of activity and considered himself a scientist, engineer, sculptor ... - in a word, a Renaissance man, like his contemporary and colleague Michelangelo. 
It is known that Leonardo worked on paintings for a long time, often putting them off “for later” and, in general, apparently, he treated painting as another type of creativity, not distinguishing it too much from others. Therefore, a relatively small number of his paintings have come down to us. It is impossible not to recall the textbook "La Gioconda", as well as "Lady with an Ermine", "Madonna Litta" - and, of course, the fresco "The Last Supper" in the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.
Not surprisingly, famous artists often attract imitators - both those who want to touch the glory of geniuses and those who want to make money on it. We invite you to read about the most famous forgers of paintings in history.
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Painting is an art that can be called eternal. At all times, the paintings made by the geniuses of the brush are sold at auctions for fabulous money, admire the talent of the author, become the decoration of houses, and are also a historical treasure as part of architectural structures (frescoes in the Sistine Chapel or stanzas decorating the Vatican palace complex). And the most famous artists deserve to be talked about and known, regardless of the direction in which they moved: impressionism, baroque, surrealism, renaissance and so on.
Top 12 Artists of All Time
He worked a little as a broker, but devoted all his free time to painting. He created his best creations during his stay in Tahiti, where he went after the global sale of his paintings.
Painting by Paul Gauguin "Bathers" The artist suffered from terrible diseases, including syphilis and leprosy, but it was in such difficult times that he managed to create his best works. His Bathers (1902) sold for $55 million in 2005.
. Years of life: 1878–1935. He became the founder of Suprematism.
The most famous creation of the Russian genius is the Black Square.
Painting by Kazimir Malevich "Black Square" And the “Suprematist composition”, created by Malevich in 1916, was sold for $60 million in 2008.
. Years of life: 1840–1926. The French genius is called the founder of impressionism. He loved nature, was engaged in gardening.
He had a special love for water lilies, to which he devoted a whole series of works - 60 canvases. In the paintings, Monet tried to show how beautiful a certain moment in nature is.
It was he who tried to capture in each of his creations. The Water Lily Pond, written in 1919, sold for $80.5 million in 2008.
. Years of life: 1881–1973. His work is associated with cubism. According to sources, Picasso began to work in this direction after receiving a response letter from the talented artist Paul Cezanne.
In it, the Frenchman advised Pablo to consider nature from the point of view of geometric figures: as a set of cones, spheres, cylinders. And although Cezanne recommended drawing the basic prototypes of future masterpieces in this way, Picasso took this too literally and began to create in a new style.
Painting by Pablo Picasso "Landscape on the Mediterranean Sea" But the name of this direction was given by Henri Matisse, when he saw one of the creations of Picasso's colleague J. Braque and asked: “What are these cubes?”
Years of life: 1912–1956. For a long time he was looking for himself, until he created a completely new technique for creating paintings - by spraying paint on a canvas on the floor.
It was then that he received real recognition, presenting abstract expressionism in a new perspective. The artist lived for a long time with the less recognized artist Lee Krasner, who devoted herself to her husband.
She helped him, found buyers and experienced difficult moments of his life with him. Pollock's most famous painting, Number 5 (1948), sold at auction for $140 million in 2006.
Years of life: 1839–1906. The French genius created in the spirit of impressionism. His paintings are real and understandable, imbued with the spirit of romanticism and classicism.
They simply convey life, without the embellishments or symbolic touches found in other styles.
Painting by Paul Cezanne "Card Players" The painting "The Card Players", which was sold in 2012 at an auction for a quarter of a billion dollars, was painted by Cezanne in 1895.
Years of life: 1452–1519. Even those who are completely far from art know this genius.
His most outstanding painting - "Mona Lisa", aka "La Gioconda", is in the Louvre and is not put up for auction.
Painting by Leonardo da Vinci "Mona Lisa" Some sources claim that in every creation of da Vinci lies an encrypted message. For example, on the canvas "The Last Supper" the melody is clearly guessed if you draw a stave at the location of the hands of the apostles.
Years of life: 1475–1564.
The best creation of a genius is called the famous frescoes created on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
It is noteworthy that Michelangelo was the first among those who worked in Western European art, whose biography was written during his lifetime.
. Years of life: 1606–1669. He skillfully worked with the play of shadows and light.
He conveyed the world of human feelings and experiences in a special way.
Rembrandt's painting "The Night Watch" He was fond of portrait painting. On his account - about 600 brilliant paintings.
. Years of life: 1483–1520. He worked during the Renaissance.
By genius, he is put on a par with Michelangelo and da Vinci. The world-famous stanzas of Raphael are located in the Vatican, in the Apostolic Palace.
The artist's best work, The School of Athens, also found its home here.
There are many talented individuals among Russian artists. Their work is highly valued all over the world and competes with such world masters as Rubens, Michelangelo, Van Gogh and Picasso. In this article, we have collected 10 of the most famous Russian artists.
1. Ivan Aivazovsky
Ivan Aivazovsky is one of the most famous Russian artists. He was born in Feodosia. From childhood, Aivazovsky showed his incredible creative abilities: he loved to draw and taught himself to play the violin.
At the age of 12, the young talent began to study in Simferopol at the Academy of Painting. Here he learned to copy engravings and paint from nature. A year later, he managed to enter the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy, although he had not yet reached the age of 14 years.
For a long time the artist traveled around Europe and lived in Italy, where his paintings were also recognized for their true worth. So the young artist from Feodosia became a fairly famous and rich man.
Later, Aivazovsky returned to his homeland, where he received the uniform of the Naval Ministry and the title of academician. The artist also visited Egypt and was present at the opening of the new Suez Canal. The artist described all his impressions in pictures. By this time, he had already developed his own unique style and the ability to write from memory. Aivazovsky briefly sketched complex elements in a notebook in order to later transfer them to the canvas. The paintings "Odessa", "The Ninth Wave" and "The Black Sea" brought him worldwide fame.
The artist spent the last years of his life in Feodosia, where he built himself a house in the Italian style. A little later, Aivazovsky added a small gallery to it, so that everyone could freely enjoy his amazing paintings and drown in the ocean of colors. Today, this mansion still serves as a museum and many visitors come here every day to see with their own eyes the skill of the marine painter, who lived a long and happy life.
2. Viktor Vasnetsov
Viktor Vasnetsov continues the list of the most famous Russian artists. He was born in the spring of 1848 in the family of a priest in the small village of Lopyal. The craving for painting woke up in him at a very early age, but his parents could not give him a proper education due to lack of money. Therefore, at the age of 10, Victor began to study at a free theological seminary.
In 1866, with virtually no money, he left for St. Petersburg. Vasnetsov easily passed the entrance exam and entered the Academy of Arts. Here began his friendship with the famous artist Repin, with whom he later went to Paris. After returning to St. Petersburg, Vasnetsov begins to paint his most famous paintings: "Three heroes", "Snow Maiden" and "God Sabaoth".
The artist was able to fully reveal his talent only after moving to Moscow. Here he is cozy and comfortable, and each subsequent picture is better than the previous one. It was in Moscow that Vasnetsov painted such paintings as Alyonushka, Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf and Nestor the Chronicler.
3. Karl Bryullov
This famous Russian artist was born in 1799. Karl's father was a famous painter and professor at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. Therefore, the fate of the boy was a foregone conclusion. Fortunately, Karl Bryullov managed to inherit the artist's talent from his father.
Studying was given to the young artist very easily. He was many times superior to the rest of the students in his class and graduated from the Academy of Arts with honors. After that, Karl went to travel around Europe, stopping for a long time only in Italy. It was here that he created his masterpiece - "The Last Day of Pompeii", having spent about six years writing it.
Upon his return to St. Petersburg, Karl Bryullov was awaited by fame and glory. They were glad to see him everywhere and certainly admired his new paintings. During this period, the artist creates several of his immortal paintings: Horsewoman, Siege of Pskov, Narcissus and others.
4. Ivan Shishkin
Ivan Shishkin is one of the most famous Russian landscape painters, who in his paintings could present any inconspicuous landscape in the most favorable light. It seems that nature itself plays on the canvases of this artist with living colors.
Ivan Shishkin was born in 1832 in Yelabuga, which today belongs to Tatarstan. The father wanted his son to eventually take the post of city official, but Ivan gravitated towards drawing. At the age of 20, he left for Moscow to study painting. After successfully graduating from the Moscow School of Arts, Shishkin entered the Imperial Academy in St. Petersburg.
Later, he traveled a long time in Europe, sketching amazing landscapes. At this time, he created the painting "View in the vicinity of Düsseldorf", which brought him great fame. After returning to Russia, Shishkin continues to create with redoubled energy. According to him, Russian nature is several hundred times superior to European landscapes.
Ivan Shishkin painted many amazing paintings in his life: “Morning in a Pine Forest”, “First Snow”, “Pine Forest” and others. Even death overtook this painter right behind the easel.
5. Isaac Levitan
This great Russian master of landscapes was born in Lithuania, but lived all his life in Russia. Repeatedly, his Jewish origin caused him many humiliations, but did not force him to leave this country, which he idolized and praised in his paintings.
Already the first landscapes of Levitan received high marks from Perov and Savrasov, and Tretyakov himself even bought his painting “Autumn Day in Sokolniki”. But in 1879, Isaac Levitan, along with all the Jews, was expelled from Moscow. Only with the great efforts of friends and teachers he manages to return to the city.
In the 1880s, the artist painted many amazing paintings that made him very famous. These were "Pines", "Autumn" and "First Snow". But yet another humiliation forced the author to leave Moscow again and go to the Crimea. On the peninsula, the artist writes a number of amazing works and significantly improves his financial condition. This allows him to travel around Europe and get acquainted with the work of world masters. The pinnacle of Levitan's work was his painting "Above Eternal Peace".
6. Vasily Tropinin
The great Russian portrait painter Vasily Tropinin had an amazing fate. He was born into the family of serfs Count Markov in 1780 and only at the age of 47 received the right to be a free man. Even as a child, little Vasily had a penchant for drawing, but the count sent him to study as a confectioner. Later, he is nevertheless sent to the Imperial Academy, where he shows his talent in all its beauty. For his portraits "The Lacemaker" and "The Beggar Old Man" Vasily Tropinin was awarded the title of academician.
7. Petrov-Vodkin Kuzma
The famous Russian artist Petrov-Vodkin managed to leave behind a rich heritage in world painting. He was born in 1878 in Khvalynsk, and in his youth he was going to become a railway worker. However, fate made him a painter of world renown.
8. Alexey Savrasov
The paintings of this Russian artist were already selling well, as soon as he was 12 years old. A little later, he entered the Moscow School of Painting and instantly became one of the best students. A trip to Ukraine helped Savrasov finish college ahead of schedule and receive the title of artist.
The paintings "Stone in the Forest" and "Moscow Kremlin" made this painter an academician at the age of 24! The royal family is interested in young talent, and Tretyakov himself buys many of his works for international exhibitions. Among them were "Winter", "Rooks have arrived", "Thaw" and others.
The death of two daughters and the subsequent divorce take a toll on Savrasov. He drinks heavily and soon dies in a hospital for the poor.
9. Andrey Rublev
Andrei Rublev is the most famous Russian icon painter. He was born in the 15th century and left behind a great legacy in the form of the icons "Trinity", "Annunciation", "Baptism of the Lord". Andrei Rublev, together with Daniil Cherny, decorated many churches with frescoes, and also painted icons for iconostases.
10. Mikhail Vrubel
Our list of the most famous Russian artists is completed by Mikhail Vrubel, who during his life created many masterpieces in various subjects. He was engaged in painting the Kyiv temple, and later in Moscow he set about creating his famous series of "demonic" paintings. The creative throwing of this artist did not find proper understanding among his contemporaries. Only a few decades after the death of Mikhail Vrubel, art critics gave him his due, and the Church agreed with his interpretations of biblical events.
Unfortunately, the artist's personal life caused him to develop a severe form of mental disorders. The title of academician overtook him in a lunatic asylum, from which he was no longer destined to leave. Nevertheless, Mikhail Vrubel managed to create many amazing works of art that are worthy of genuine admiration. Among them, it is especially worth highlighting the paintings "Seated Demon", "The Swan Princess" and "Faust".
The mysterious world of art may seem confusing to an inexperienced person, but there are masterpieces that everyone should know. Talent, inspiration and painstaking work on every stroke give rise to works that are admired centuries later.
It is impossible to collect all the outstanding creations in one selection, but we have tried to select the most famous paintings that collect gigantic queues in front of museums around the world.
The most famous paintings by Russian artists
"Morning in a pine forest", Ivan Shishkin and Konstantin Savitsky
Year of creation: 1889Museum
Shishkin was an excellent landscape painter, but he rarely had to draw animals, so Savitsky, an excellent animal painter, painted the figures of the cubs. At the end of the work, Tretyakov ordered Savitsky's signature to be erased, believing that Shishkin had done much more extensive work.
"Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan on November 16, 1581" by Ilya Repin
Years of creation: 1883–1885Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
To create a masterpiece, better known as "Ivan the Terrible kills his son", Repin was inspired by the symphony "Antar" by Rimsky-Korsakov, namely, its second movement called "The Sweetness of Revenge". Under the influence of the sounds of music, the artist depicted a bloody scene of murder and subsequent repentance, observed in the eyes of the sovereign.
Seated Demon, Mikhail Vrubel
Year of creation: 1890Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
The painting was one of thirty illustrations drawn by Vrubel for the anniversary edition of the works of M.Yu. Lermontov. The "seated demon" personifies the doubts inherent in the human spirit, the subtle, elusive "mood of the soul." According to experts, the artist was to some extent obsessed with the image of a demon: this painting was followed by "Demon flying" and "Demon defeated".
"Boyar Morozova", Vasily Surikov
Years of creation: 1884–1887Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
The plot of the Old Believer life "The Tale of the Boyar Morozova" formed the basis of the picture. The understanding of the key image came to the artist when he saw a crow spreading its black wings like a spot on a snowy canvas. Later, Surikov searched for a prototype for the noblewoman’s face for a long time, but could not find anything suitable, until one day he met an Old Believer woman with a pale, frantic face in the cemetery. The portrait sketch was completed in two hours.
"Bogatyrs", Viktor Vasnetsov
Years of creation: 1881–1898Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
The future epic masterpiece was born as a small pencil sketch in 1881; for further work on the canvas, Vasnetsov painstakingly collected information about the heroes from myths, legends and traditions for many years, and also studied authentic ancient Russian ammunition in museums.
Analysis of Vasnetsov's painting "Three Heroes"
"Bathing the Red Horse", Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin
Year of creation: 1912Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
Initially, the painting was conceived as an everyday sketch from the life of a Russian village, but during the work the artist’s canvas acquired a huge number of symbols. By the red horse, Petrov-Vodkin meant "The Fate of Russia"; after the country's entry into the First World War, he exclaimed: "So that's why I painted this picture!". However, after the revolution, pro-Soviet art critics interpreted the key figure of the canvas as a "harbinger of revolutionary fires."
"Trinity", Andrey Rublev
Year of creation: 1411Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
The icon that laid the foundation for the tradition of Russian icon painting of the 15th-16th centuries. The canvas depicting the Old Testament trinity of angels who appeared to Abraham is a symbol of the unity of the Holy Trinity.
The Ninth Wave, Ivan Aivazovsky
Year of creation: 1850Museum
A pearl in the "cartography" of the legendary domestic marine painter, who can be without hesitation classified as one of the most famous artists in the world. We can see how miraculously surviving sailors after the storm cling to the mast in anticipation of a meeting with the "ninth wave", the mythical apogee of all storms. But the warm shades that dominate the canvas give hope for the salvation of the victims.
"The Last Day of Pompeii", Karl Bryullov
Years of creation: 1830–1833Museum: Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
Completed in 1833, Bryullov's painting was originally exhibited in the largest cities of Italy, where it caused a real sensation - the painter was compared with Michelangelo, Titian, Raphael ... At home, the masterpiece was greeted with no less enthusiasm, securing Bryullov's nickname "Charles the Great". The canvas is truly great: its dimensions are 4.6 by 6.5 meters, which makes it one of the largest paintings among the creations of Russian artists.
The most famous paintings by Leonardo da Vinci
"Mona Lisa"
Years of creation: 1503–1505Museum: Louvre, Paris
A masterpiece of Florentine genius that needs no introduction. It is noteworthy that the painting received cult status after the incident with the abduction from the Louvre in 1911. Two years later, the kidnapper, who turned out to be a museum employee, tried to sell the painting to the Uffizi Gallery. The events of the high-profile case were covered in detail in the world press, after which hundreds of thousands of reproductions went on sale, and the mysterious Mona Lisa became an object of worship.
Years of creation: 1495–1498Museum: Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan
Five centuries later, a fresco with a classical story on the wall of the refectory of a Dominican monastery in Milan is recognized as one of the most mysterious paintings in history. As conceived by Da Vinci, the picture depicts the moment of the Easter meal, when Christ notifies the disciples of the imminent betrayal. The sheer quantity of hidden symbols has given rise to an equally vast array of studies, allusions, borrowings, and parodies.
"Madonna Litta"
Year of creation: 1491Museum: Hermitage, St. Petersburg
The painting, also known as the Madonna and Child, was kept in the collection of the Dukes of Litta for a long time, and in 1864 it was bought by the St. Petersburg Hermitage. Many experts agree that the figure of the baby was not painted personally by da Vinci, but by one of his students - a pose that is too uncharacteristic for a painter.
The most famous paintings of Salvador Dali
Year of creation: 1931Museum: Museum of Modern Art, New York
Paradoxically, the most famous work of the surrealist genius was born from the thought of Camembert cheese. One evening, after a friendly dinner that ended with appetizers with cheese, the artist immersed himself in thoughts about the “spreading pulp”, and his imagination painted a picture like a melting clock with an olive branch in the foreground.
Year of creation: 1955Museum: National Gallery of Art, Washington
A traditional plot that received a surreal canvas using arithmetic principles studied by Leonardo da Vinci. The artist put the original magic of the number "12" at the forefront, moving away from the hermeneutical method of interpreting the biblical story.
The most famous paintings by Pablo Picasso
Year of creation: 1905Museum: Pushkin Museum, Moscow
The painting became the first signs of the so-called "pink" period in the work of Picasso. A rough texture and a simplified style are combined with a sensitive play of lines and colors, a contrast between the massive figure of an athlete and a fragile gymnast. The canvas was sold along with 29 other works for 2 thousand francs (in total) to the Parisian collector Vollard, changed several collections, and in 1913 it was acquired by the Russian philanthropist Ivan Morozov, already for 13 thousand francs.
Year of creation: 1937Museum: Reina Sofia Museum, Madrid
Guernica is the name of a city in the Basque country that was bombed by the Germans in April 1937. Picasso had never been to Guernica, but was stunned by the scale of the catastrophe, like a "blow of a bull's horn." The artist conveyed the horrors of war in an abstract form and showed the real face of fascism, veiling it with bizarre geometric shapes.
The most famous paintings of the Renaissance
"Sistine Madonna", Raphael Santi
Years of creation: 1512–1513Museum: Old Masters Gallery, Dresden
If you look closely at the background, which at first glance consists of clouds, you will notice that in fact Raphael depicted the heads of angels there. The two angels located at the bottom of the picture are known almost more than the masterpiece itself, due to the wide circulation in mass art.
The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli
Year of creation: 1486Museum: Uffizi Gallery, Florence
The painting is based on the ancient Greek myth about the birth of Aphrodite from sea foam. Unlike many masterpieces of the Renaissance, the canvas has survived to this day in excellent condition thanks to the protective layer of egg yolk with which Botticelli prudently covered the work.
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo Buonarotti
Year of creation: 1511Museum: Sistine Chapel, Vatican
One of the nine frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, illustrating the chapter from Genesis: "And God created man in his own image." It was Michelangelo who first portrayed God as a wise-haired old man, after which this image became archetypal. Modern scientists believe that the contours of the figure of God and angels represent the human brain.
"Night Watch", Rembrandt
Year of creation: 1642Museum: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
The full title of the painting is "Speech of the Rifle Company of Captain Frans Banning Cock and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenbürg." The painting received its modern name in the 19th century, when it was found by art historians, who, because of the layer of dirt covering the work, decided that the action in the painting takes place under the cover of night darkness.
The Garden of Earthly Delights Hieronymus Bosch
Years of creation: 1500–1510Museum: Prado Museum, Madrid
Perhaps the most famous Bosch triptych, named after the central part of the composition: the figures depicted on it selflessly indulge in the sin of voluptuousness. In contrast to the full of small, "bustling" details of the middle part, depicting a true paradise, the left wing of the picture conveys an atmosphere of peace and tranquility, and the right wing, full of diabolical mechanisms, on the contrary, recalls hellish torments.
The most famous paintings of the XX century
"Black Square", Kazimir Malevich
Year of creation: 1915Museum: Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
Malevich wrote Black Square for several months; the legend says that a painting is hidden under a layer of black paint - the artist did not have time to finish the work on time and, in a fit of anger, covered up the image. There are at least seven copies of the "Black Square" made by Malevich, as well as a kind of "continuation" of the Suprematist squares - "Red Square" (1915) and "White Square" (1918).
"Scream", Edvard Munch
Year of creation: 1893Museum: National Gallery, Oslo
Due to the inexplicable mystical effect on the viewer, the painting was stolen in 1994 and 2004. There is an opinion that the picture created at the turn of the 20th century anticipated numerous catastrophes of the coming century. The deep symbolism of The Scream has inspired many artists, including Andy Warhol, directors, musicians, and even animators.
Walk, Marc Chagall
Year of creation: 1918Museum: Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
If you were also tormented by the question: “Why do people in the painting by Marc Chagall soar in the air?”, Here is the answer from the artist himself - the power that can give a person the opportunity to fly is nothing more than love. It is believed that the man and woman on the canvas are Marc Chagall and his wife.
No. 5, 1948, Jackson Pollock
Year of creation: 1948Museum: Private collection, New York
This painting still causes a lot of controversy. Some art historians believe that the hype around the painting, painted in the proprietary spatter technique, was artificially created. The canvas was not sold until all the other works of the artist were bought, respectively, the price for a non-objective masterpiece skyrocketed. Number Five was sold for $140 million, making it the most expensive painting in history.
Diptych Marilyn, Andy Warhol
Year of creation: 1962Museum: Tate Gallery, London
A week after the death of Marilyn Monroe, the scandalous artist began work on the canvas. 50 stencil portraits of the actress were applied to the canvas, stylized in the pop art genre based on a 1953 photograph.
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