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    • Nicolas Poussin artist of the 17th century, the founder of painting. Nicolas Poussin

    21.02.2019




    Jean Ingres Portrait of Nicolas Poussin. Detail of the painting "Apotheosis" 1827



    Biography

    Delacroix begins his historical essay about the artist in this way: “Poussin's life is reflected in his creations and is as beautiful and noble as they are. This is a great example for all who have decided to devote themselves to art.”

    “My nature leads me to look for and love things that are perfectly organized, avoiding disorder, which is as disgusting to me as darkness is to light,” Poussin himself said.

    Nicolas Poussin was born in the village of Villiers, between the Greater and the Lesser Andely, on June 15, 1594.

    A passion for art manifested itself in his childhood. It is known that Nikola, in his free time from school, did not part with the album and pencil, making amazing progress in drawing.

    He was well aware that, remaining in the provinces, he would at best become a self-taught artist. Therefore, secretly from his parents, eighteen-year-old Poussin goes to Paris.

    Without a penny in his pocket, having no noble patrons in the capital, or even just acquaintances, he could find himself in a hopeless situation. However, the capricious fate itself came to his aid. In Paris, Poussin met a certain young chevalier from Poitou, who had a passion for art, who sheltered the traveler. At this time, Nicola "looked everywhere for opportunities to learn something, but did not find in Paris either teachers or a system that could help him improve in art."

    For a long time he did not see a teacher whom he would like to follow. Desperate to find a mentor among contemporary artists, he devoted himself with all the greater zeal to the study of the great masters of antiquity and the Renaissance: classical art "was his mother's milk in those years." Naturally, he had the idea of ​​​​a trip to Italy.

    In 1624, Poussin, after several unsuccessful attempts, finally managed to reach Rome, where he devoted years to carefully studying and copying the old masters. Until the end of his life, he considered ancient sculptors and Raphael to be his teachers. Poussin studies geometry, optics, anatomy, makes measurements of ancient monuments. He gets acquainted with the works on the theory of art by Dürer, illustrates the manuscripts of Leonardo da Vinci. Poussin studies constantly and independently. He comprehends Latin and philosophy, is reputed to be an educated person.

    A few years after he settled in Rome, Poussin began to work on orders from Cardinal Barberini, his secretary Cavalier Cassiano del Pozzo, and soon other Roman aristocrats.

    At the end of the twenties, Poussin painted the painting "The Death of Germanicus", where he chose as the hero a Roman commander who was dying at the hands of envious people.

    A curious document has been preserved, testifying to the admiration that Barberini's paintings of Poussin aroused - “The Capture of Jerusalem”, “The Death of Germanicus”. This is a letter from a certain Jacques Martin, a French physician. It tells that once, when in the cardinal's office they were admiring a painting by Poussin, who had already won fame for himself, one young artist, "impatiently rushing to the temple of Glory, but following, however, in the footsteps of others, for he knew very well how long and difficult the path discoveries and an easy way to imitate, he asked permission to copy such a perfect original ... Then contemplating both pictures and making sure of their perfect likeness, he became proud, rejoicing at the happy result of the work. But suddenly he was seized with fear, as if he were not accused of stealing the original ... or of wanting to forge the latter so well that the cardinal, not being able to identify his property, would leave it in his hands. Embarrassed, he took both things to the cardinal's palace. He was surprised and called Poussin himself, so that he, stretching out the thread of Ariadne to the audience, would lead them out of the labyrinth where they got lost ... Poussin, examining the paintings, did not become like most artists who imagine that they acquire fame by taking it away from others ... He pretended that cannot recognize where his own creation is…”

    Those present expected that the cardinal, like some kind of oracle, would resolve their doubts. “Both pictures should be kept! exclaimed his Eminence. “And pay tribute to the painter who managed to rediscover the secret of reproduction of gold and precious stones!”

    But there is another, much stronger proof of the recognition that Poussin had already achieved in Rome by this time. At the beginning of 1628, he was commissioned to paint an altarpiece for one of the side aisles of the Cathedral of St. Peter, where it was required to present the torment of St. Erasmus. That was a big order of public importance.

    “Saint Erasmus is presented with his hands tied, thrown on a bench. The executioner, bending over the martyr, rips open his stomach and pulls out the insides, winding them on a wooden shaft.

    The naked body of St. Erasmus is nothing like the classically beautiful bodies of the heroes of other paintings by Poussin. The artist, who until now strived to create ideal images, was forced to sacrifice them for the sake of life's credibility and expression. He paints the naked body of the saint with almost naturalistic thoroughness, working out in detail the folds of the skin, swollen veins, stretched tendons ”(A.S. Glikman).

    Although the work on the "Torment of St. Erasmus" required a huge investment of time and effort, the artist managed to paint a number of paintings between 1627 and 1629: "Parnassus", "Inspiration of the poet", "Saving Moses", "Moses purifying the waters of Merra", "Madonna, who is St. . James the Elder".

    In 1629, Poussin fell seriously ill and was forced to stop working for several months. He was helped by a compatriot, a pie-maker to Jean Duguet, who kept a tavern. Duguet and his family took care of the patient. Having recovered, the artist got married to Duguet's eldest daughter, Marie-Anne. They married on September 1, 1630. Marie-Anne brought her husband a small dowry she had received from the church parish administration. From now on, "he could get rid of a rented apartment, settle in his own house and, having found peace of mind, establish himself on the chosen path."

    In the early thirties, Poussin creates a kind of painting "The Kingdom of Flora", where they are connected in complex composition figures and groups illustrating episodes from Ovid's Metamorphoses. The painting “Tancred and Erminia” (Hermitage) dates back to the mid-thirties.

    Here is what N.A. says about these paintings. Livshits: “The Kingdom of Flora and Tancred and Erminia are among the paintings of Poussin, distinguished by their subtle and rich development of color. But even this group of works completely fits into the framework of a certain pictorial system, which had already been developed by the artist by the beginning of the 1930s. The drawing (that is, the outlines of figures and objects) is always minted in him, as in ancient relief. Coloring is usually based on pure local colors, among which the main role is played by indecomposable simple colors - blue, red, yellow. Poussin's light is always diffused, even. The nuances of tone are given sparingly and accurately. It is in this coloristic system that Poussin achieves the greatest expressiveness.

    In 1632, Poussin was elected a member of the Academy of St. Luke. He leads a solitary life. Being a closed, unsociable person, he could not stand empty talk. He usually devoted his leisure hours to reading or viewing the collections of Urban VIII, Cardinal Barberini, Casciano del Pozzo and other major collectors.

    Discarding specific and personality traits in the appearance and character of a person, Poussin develops canons of beauty, more and more close to the antique. But Delacroix rightly noted that in the work of ancient masters, “Poussin studies man first of all, and instead of being content with the revival of chlamys and peplum, he resurrects the courageous genius of the ancients in the image human forms and passions."

    “As one of the best and most characteristic works of Poussin of the late thirties on a mythological subject, one can name Bacchanalia. The strict organization of the composition, subject to a clear, balanced rhythm, does not exclude in it the feeling of a clear, restrained in its manifestations, the joy of being. Other problems are solved by Poussin in the multi-figure composition "Collection of Manna" (1637-1639). Depicting exhausted, desperate people, suddenly delivered from starvation by divine providence, he seeks to find an expression of the feelings that gripped them in the plasticity of figures, in various movements and gestures. In this picture, a system of correspondence of plastic characteristics and gestures to the emotional content of the images, so characteristic of classicism, is formed. Like any system, it was fraught with the danger of schematism and normativity, which affected the work of some artists who considered themselves followers of Poussin and replaced the expression of direct feeling with a ready-made conditional device ”(V.I. Razdolskaya).

    By the end of the thirties, the artist's fame is growing. He is not forgotten in France, where he works on orders from French friends and admirers. At the beginning of 1639, his fame reaches Louis XIII, who, on the advice of Richelieu, calls Poussin to court.

    However, no one at court had an accurate idea of ​​​​the style and creative possibilities of Poussin. Apparently, they saw him as just a famous master who could be entrusted with the official orders of the court. Poussin did not want to go and delayed the trip for a long time, but at the end of 1640 he left for Paris, leaving his house and wife in Rome and hoping to return there as soon as possible.

    A few months later (September 20, 1641), the artist writes to Rome: "... If I stay in this country for a long time, I will have to turn into a mess, like others who are here." And here are fragments of another letter from April 1642: “I never knew what the king wanted from me, his most humble servant, and I don’t think anyone told him what I was good for ... It’s impossible for me to take on frontispieces for books, and for the Mother of God, and for a picture for the congregation of St. Louis, for all the drawings for the gallery and at the same time to make paintings for the royal tapestry workshops ... "

    At the end of 1642, Poussin left for Rome, promising to return, although he had no intention of doing so. The death of Louis XIII soon released him from these obligations.

    One of the master's most famous landscapes is "Landscape with Polyphemus" (1649). Everything is grandiose in this landscape: the trees, the rocks, and Polyphemus himself. The combination of colors that prevail in the picture - green, blue, blue - gives the landscape great solemnity. In this picture, the artist's admiration for the power, eternity and greatness of nature. The figures of people serve only as a scale that makes you feel the grandeur of the world. The image of nature is the main thing in this picture of Poussin, and the ancient myth suggested to the artist the plot of the work.

    At the moment of the highest rise of poetic inspiration, Poussin created the second version of the painting "The Arcadian Shepherds" (1650-1655). This time the artist managed to harmonize the depth of feeling with the purity of mathematical construction.

    “The picture is dedicated to a philosophical and at the same time elegiac reflection on death,” notes N.A. Livshits. - Poussin strives for a broad, general statement of the issue and therefore refuses to tell about someone's death, about the grief of people who have lost a loved one. It shows the feelings that arose at the sight of the lonely tomb of an unknown, forgotten person. This tomb rises among the free valleys of Arcadia - the legendary country of happy, honest, pure-hearted shepherds. They surround the forgotten tomb and read the words carved on it. "And I lived in Arcadia." This inscription, these words of the buried, addressed to the living, this reminder of their inevitable fate give rise to sadness and anxiety in the simple souls of the Arcadian shepherds. One of them reads, bowed down; the other, thoughtful and drooping, listens; the third, not taking his hands off the sad words of the inscription, raises a hazy, questioning look at his companion. The only female figure in this picture is, as it were, the embodiment of that spiritual peace, that philosophical balance, to which the whole rhythmic structure, all the sound of this picture brings the viewer ... "

    Poussin's creative path ends with the creation of a series of four landscapes (1660-1664), symbolizing the seasons and supplemented by biblical scenes. This is the pinnacle of the master's landscape art.

    “The inevitable movement of nature from life to death, from flowering to withering is inseparable in them from human destinies embodied in the episodes of the biblical legend,” writes V.I. Razdolskaya. - In "Spring" against the backdrop of luxurious paradise vegetation, the first people are depicted - Adam and Eve. "Summer" is resolved as a majestic harvest scene, and against the background of golden loaves, the meeting of Ruth and Boaz is depicted. "Autumn" is embodied in a harsh landscape scorched by the sun, against which the emissaries of the Jewish people carry a giant bunch of Canaan, as if absorbing the life-giving juices of nature.

    The last painting, "Winter," depicts the scene of the Flood. The element is blind and ruthless. "Winter" is written in a kind of cold, "icy" color, permeated with a nagging feeling of impending doom. “Terrible beauty,” Goethe said about this picture.

    Having finished Winter in 1665, he knew that he would write nothing more. He was not yet very old, but the titanic work undermined his health, and when his wife died, he realized that he would not survive this loss. A few months before his death (November 19, 1665), he wrote to his biographer Filibien in Paris, refusing to fulfill the order of one of the French princes of the blood: “Too late, he can no longer be well served. I am sick and the paralysis prevents me from moving. Some time ago I parted with the brush and think only about how to prepare for death. I feel it with all my being. It's over with me."

    Biography

    Nicolas Poussin (fr. Nicolas Poussin, 1594, Les Andelys, Normandy - November 19, 1665, Rome) - the founder of French classicism, the famous French historical painter and landscape painter.

    Born in Normandy, he received his initial art education in his homeland, and then studied in Paris, under the guidance of Quentin Varen and J. Lallemant.

    In 1624, already a fairly well-known artist, Poussin went to Italy and became close friends in Rome with the poet Marino, who instilled in him a love for the study of Italian poets, whose works gave Poussin abundant material for his compositions. After Marino's death, Poussin ended up in Rome without any support.

    His circumstances improved only after he found patrons in the person of Cardinal Francesco Barberini and Cavalier Cassiano del Pozzo, for whom he wrote the Seven Sacraments. Thanks to a series of these excellent paintings, Poussin was invited to Paris in 1639 by Cardinal Richelieu to decorate the Louvre Gallery.

    Louis XIII elevated him to the title of his first painter. In Paris, Poussin had many orders, but he formed a party of opponents, in the person of the artists Vue, Brekier and Mercier, who had previously worked on decorating the Louvre. The school of Vue, which enjoyed the patronage of the queen, was especially intriguing against him. Therefore, in 1642, Poussin left Paris and returned to Rome, where he lived until his death.

    Poussin was especially strong in the landscape. Taking advantage of the results achieved in this kind of painting by the Bologna school and the Netherlands living in Italy, he created the so-called "heroic landscape", which, being arranged according to the rules of a balanced distribution of masses, with its pleasant and majestic forms, served for him as a stage for depicting an idyllic golden age. .

    The landscapes of Poussin are imbued with a serious, melancholy mood. In the image of the figures, he kept to the antiques, through which he determined the further path, which went after him french school painting. As a history painter, Poussin had profound knowledge drawing and the gift of composition. In the drawing, he is distinguished by strict consistency of style and correctness.

    It is his merit that, thanks to the love for classicism, which he knew how to inspire in his compatriots, the taste for the pretentious and mannered that had developed among French artists was for some time suspended.

    To the best historical paintings of Poussin, of which most of kept in the Louvre Museum, in Paris, must be attributed to:

    * "Global flood",
    * "Death of Germanicus",
    * Capture of Jerusalem
    * The Last Supper
    *"Rebekah"
    * “Woman is a harlot”
    * “Moses baby”,
    * “Adoration of the golden calf”,
    * "John the Baptist baptizing in the wilderness" and
    * Arcadian shepherds.

    Imperial Hermitage owns 21 works by this master; of which the most interesting are:

    * "Moses cutting water from a stone" (No. 1394),
    * "Esther before Artaxerxes" (No. 1397),
    * "The Triumph of Neptune and Amphritrite" (No. 1400),
    * "The Magnanimity of Scipio" (No. 1406),
    * "Tancred and Erminia" (No. 1408)
    and two historical landscapes (No. 1413 and No. 1414).

    The Dresden Art Gallery exhibits:

    * "Sleeping Venus and Cupid",
    * "Kingdom of Flora".

    Engraved from Poussin's paintings: Chateau, Poailly, Audran, Peen and Claudine Stella.

    Biography

    The famous French historical painter and landscape painter Nicolas Poussin was born on June 5, 1594 in Normandy. In 1624, already a fairly well-known artist, Poussin went to Italy and became close friends in Rome with the poet Marini. Thanks to a series of excellent paintings, in 1639 he was invited by Cardinal Richelieu to Paris to decorate the Louvre Gallery. Louis XIII elevated him to the title of his first painter. In Paris, Poussin had many orders, but he formed a party of opponents, in the person of the artists Bye, Brekier and Mercier, who had previously worked on decorating the Louvre. Therefore, in 1642, Poussin left Paris and returned to Rome, where he lived until his death.

    The best historical paintings by Poussin, most of which are kept in the Louvre Museum in Paris, include: "The Flood", "Germanicus", "The Capture of Jerusalem", "The Last Supper", "Rebekah", "The Wife," "Moses the Baby" ", "Adoration of the Golden Calf", "John the Baptist Baptizing in the Wilderness" and "The Arcadian Shepherds".

    Exalted in figurative structure, deep in philosophical design, clear in composition and drawing, paintings on historical, mythological, religious themes, affirming the power of reason and social and ethical norms (“Tancred and Erminia”, 1630s, “Arcadian shepherds”, 1630s); majestic heroic landscapes (“Landscape with Polyphemus”, 1649; series “The Seasons”, 1660-64).

    Nicolas Poussin died in 1665.

    NICOLAS POUSSIN AND THE GRAIL

    British codebreakers Oliver and Sheila Lone, who during the Second World War were engaged in unraveling Nazi codes, set to work on unraveling the mystery of the "shepherd's monument". On this monument, located in the estate of Lord Lichfield "Shagborough", there is a bas-relief, which is a mirror image copy of the famous painting by Nicolas Poussin "The Shepherds of Arcadia". Under the bas-relief, letters are carved on the stone, which for many centuries have haunted scientists, among whom was Charles Darwin - D.O.U.O. S.V.A.V.V.M. The inability to decipher the message, as well as other signs, suggested that the letters indicate the place where the Holy Grail is located. The main mistake, according to the Lone couple, is that until now, researchers have focused on unraveling the inscription, while the information is encrypted in the entire composition, including the bas-relief. The fact is, on the bas-relief there are several strange differences from the work of Poussin. They, as well as the study of the life of the artist, are engaged in this moment decryptors. In particular, the bas-relief is related to the monument of the Knights Templar, which is associated with a parchment from the Reims Cathedral with a coded text. In this text, scientists managed to make out the words: "Poussin ... keeps the key."

    Baigent M. Sacred riddle. Excerpt from a book:

    "Just a few kilometers from Gisors is the small town of Lesandeli, where Nicolas Poussin was born in 1594. But very soon he settles in Rome, from where he will come only on rare occasions, as, for example, after 1640, when Cardinal Richelieu summoned him to carry out an important mission.

    Although the artist had little involvement in politics and did not leave his refuge in Rome, he was closely associated with the Fronde. Evidence of this is his correspondence, which reveals numerous friendly ties with participants in the anti-Mazarin movement and an unexpected familiarity with some of the “frondeurs”, whose convictions he seems to share.

    Since we have already met with the "underground river" Alfios, which flows from Arcadia to the feet of René of Anjou, we will now deal with the inscription, inseparable from Poussin's Arcadian shepherds: "Et in Arcadia ego" - "And here I am in Arcadia."

    This mysterious phrase appears for the first time on one of his previous paintings. The tombstone topped with a skull is not a simple tombstone, but is built into the rock; in the foreground - a water deity with a beard, thoughtfully contemplating the earth: this is the god Alfios, who, of course, decides the fate of the underground river ... This work dates from 1630-1635, that is, approximately five to ten years earlier than the famous version of "The Shepherds of Arcadia".

    The words "And here I am in Arcadia" appear in the History between 1618 and 1623, along with a painting by Giovanni Francesco Guercino, which may have inspired Poussin in his work. Two shepherds coming out of the forest approach a clearing and a tombstone, on which the famous inscription and a large skull laid on a stone are very clearly visible. If the symbolic meaning of this picture is not known, then it is known that Guercino was very versed in the field of esotericism; it even seems that the language of secret societies was close to him, for some of his works are devoted to specific Masonic themes. Recall that the lodges began to spread rapidly in England and Scotland twenty years earlier, and such a picture as "The Resurrection of the Master", painted almost a hundred years before this legend entered the Masonic tradition, clearly refers to the Masonic legend of Hiram Abiff, architect and builder of the Temple of Solomon.

    The basis of the theory of classicism was based on philosophical system Descartes, the object of art could only be beautiful and sublime, antiquity served as an ethical and aesthetic ideal. Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) became the creator of this trend in French painting of the 17th century.

    In the next period of Poussin's work, the theme of frailty and earthly vanity appears. This new mood is beautifully expressed in his Shepherds of Arcadia. Philosophical theme interpreted by Poussin as if very simply: the action takes place only in the foreground, as in relief, young men and a girl who accidentally came across a tombstone with the inscription "And I was in Arcadia" (i.e. "And I was young, handsome, happy and carefree - remember death.") are more like ancient statues. Carefully selected details, chased drawing, balance of figures in space, even diffused lighting - all this creates a certain sublime structure, alien to everything vain and transient. Stoic reconciliation with fate, or rather, the wise acceptance of death, makes classicism related to the ancient worldview.

    In the 1640s - 1650s, Poussin's color range, built on several local colors, becomes more and more stingy. The main emphasis is on drawing, sculptural forms, plastic completeness. The lyrical immediacy leaves the pictures. Landscapes remain the best of late Poussin. The artist is looking for harmony in nature. Man is treated primarily as part of nature. The master was the creator of a classic, ideal landscape in its heroic form. The heroic landscape (like any classic landscape) of Poussin is not real nature, but "improved" nature, composed by the artist, because only in this form is it worthy of being a subject of depiction in art. His landscape expresses a sense of belonging to eternity, reflection on being. IN last years Poussin's life created a cycle of paintings "The Seasons" (1660-1665), which has a symbolic meaning and personifies the periods of earthly human existence.

    Biography (F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron. Encyclopedic Dictionary)

    (Poussin, 1594 - 1665) - the famous French historical painter and landscape painter, was born in Normandy, received his initial art education in his homeland, and then studied in Paris, under the guidance of Quentin Varen and J. Lallemant. In 1624, already a fairly well-known artist, P. went to Italy and became close friends in Rome with the poet Marini, who instilled in him a love for the study of Italian poets, whose works gave P. abundant material for his compositions. After the death of Marini, P. ended up in Rome without any support. His circumstances improved only after he found patrons in the person of Cardinal Francesco Barberini and Cavalier Cassiano del Pozzo, for whom he wrote the Seven Sacraments. Thanks to a series of these excellent paintings, P. in 1639 was invited by Cardinal Richelieu to Paris to decorate the Louvre Gallery. Louis XIII elevated him to the title of his first painter.

    In Paris, P. had many orders, but he formed a party of opponents, in the person of the artists Vue, Brekier and Mercier, who had previously worked on decorating the Louvre. The school of Vue, which enjoyed the patronage of the queen, was especially intriguing against him. Therefore, in 1642, P. left Paris and returned to Rome, where he lived until his death.

    P. was especially strong in the landscape. Taking advantage of the results achieved in this kind of painting by the Bologna school and the Netherlands living in Italy, he created the so-called "heroic landscape", which, being arranged according to the rules of a balanced distribution of masses, with its pleasant and majestic forms, served for him as a stage for depicting an idyllic golden age. . The landscapes of Poussin are imbued with a serious, melancholy mood. In the depiction of figures, he kept to the antiques, through which he determined the further path that the French school of painting followed after him. As a historical painter, P. had a deep knowledge of drawing and the gift of composition. In the drawing, he is distinguished by strict consistency of style and correctness. It is his merit that, thanks to the love for classicism, which he knew how to inspire in his compatriots, the taste for the pretentious and mannered that had developed among French artists was for some time suspended.

    The best historical paintings of P., of which most are kept in the Louvre Museum, in Paris, should include: "The Flood", "Germanicus", "The Capture of Jerusalem", "The Last Supper", "Rebekah", "The Harlot Wife "," Baby Moses "," Adoration of the golden calf "," John the Baptist baptizing in the wilderness "and" Arcadian shepherds ". The Imperial Hermitage possesses the 21st work of this master; of these, the most curious are: "Moses Spouting Water from a Stone" (No. 1394), "Esther before Artaxerxes" (No. 1397), "The Triumph of Neptune and Amphritrite" (No. 1400), "Temperance of Scipio" (No. 1406), "Tankred and Erminia" (No. 1408) and two historical landscapes (Nos. 1413 and 1414). From the paintings of P. engraved: Chateau, Poilly, Audran, Peen and Claudine Stella.

    See Cambry, "Essai sur la vie et les ouvrages du Poussin" (P., VII); Gaul de St-Germain, "Vie de N. Poussin, consideré comme chef de l" cole française" (P., 1806); H. Bouchit, "N. Poussin sa vie et son oeuvre, suivi d notice sur la vie et les ouvrages de Ph. de Champagne et de Champagne le neveu" (P., 1858); Poillon, "Nicolas Poussin, tude biographique" (2nd ed., Lille, 1875).

    The work of Nicolas Poussin (French painting of the 17th century)

    Nicolas Poussin is considered the most famous French painter of the 17th century who worked in the classical style. The main stages of his work are: a stay in Rome from 1624 (which brought to life his first known works written under the influence of the style of Raphael), life in Paris in 1640 - 1642 (where his best paintings on church topics were painted) and the last Roman period that brought him fame as a master of historical landscape

    The real classic of French painting of the 17th century was Nicolas Poussin (1593-1665), the great Norman, the most decisive representative of the Gallo-Roman trend in French art, with a clear penchant for antiquity and the Renaissance of Raphael. He always subordinates the individuality of individual types to the acquired Roman sense of beauty, and yet gives all his works his own French imprint. The desire for internal unity, intelligible clarity and complete persuasiveness of the depicted episodes leads him not only to the extremely accurate execution of each gesture and mine, but also to the expression of the essence of each action, first experienced mentally, and then clearly expressed in visual forms. He hates side figures and superfluous additions. Each of his figures plays a necessary, calculated and thoughtful role in the rhythm of the lines and in expressing the meaning of his painting. The very character of their landscapes, mostly borrowed from Roman mountain nature and playing important role, sometimes even constituting the main thing in his paintings with small figures, he adapts to the nature of the depicted episodes. "I neglected nothing," he said himself. His art is above all the art of lines and drawing. His colors, fickle, at first variegated, then brought to a more general tone, sometimes dry and muddy. In the best pictures, however, truthful chiaroscuro, playing with warm light spots, reigns, and in the landscapes the noble outlines of the mountains, the luxurious deciduous trees are well distributed, and the magnificent buildings are in most cases shrouded in ideal light full of mood. As a landscape painter, Poussin combined the full force of his Netherlandish and Italian predecessors with a clearer sense of unity, and created a movement whose influence was felt through the ages. If we cannot admire the strict classicism of Poussin, then we must nevertheless admit that he was able to convincingly and with mood express everything he wanted to say.

    The history of Poussin's painting, outlined first by Bellori and Félibien, then by Bouchite, John Smith and Maria Gregham, and finally by Denio and Adviel, begins in Rome, where he appeared in 1624. What he learned in his homeland from Quentin Varin, in Paris, with the Dutch Ferdinand Elle and Georges Lalemand, we do not know. The engravings of the Raphael school undoubtedly influenced his direction already in Paris. The mere fact that he copied in Rome the antique wall painting "The Aldobrandine Wedding" characterizes his entire Roman development. The first known paintings, written by him around 1630 in Rome for Cardinal Barberini, "The Death of Germanicus" in the Barberini Gallery and "The Destruction of Jerusalem", copies of which are in the Vienna Gallery, are arranged more concisely and more perfectly than later works, but already reveal all its most secret qualities.

    At first glance, the vast area of ​​​​Poussin's plots is limited almost exclusively to ancient mythology and history, the Old Testament and Christian themes, written by him with the same inner enthusiasm as pagan ones. Scenes of martyrdom were not to his liking. Of course, the main work of his first Roman period (1624-1640) for the church of St. Peter, replaced here by a mosaic copy of a large picture of the Vatican Gallery quite expressively depicts the martyrdom of St. Erasmus. Poussin, however, tries here, as far as possible, to soften the terrible episode with a tender sense of beauty. His most famous paintings of this period are: "The Rape of the Sabine Women", "The Gathering of Manna" and the later "Finding of Moses" in the Louvre, an early image of the "Seven Holy Gifts" in the Belvoir Castle, "Parnassus", made in the Raphael spirit, in Madrid and after -Alexandrian-feeling "The Persecution of Syringa by Pan" in Dresden.

    Of the paintings painted by Poussin during his two-year stay in Paris already as "the first master of the king" (1640-1642), the "Miracle of St. Xavier" in the Louvre reveals him the best sides as a church painter. Sketches for decorating the Louvre Gallery have been preserved only in Penh's engravings.

    Of the numerous paintings of the last Roman period of Poussin (1642-1665), the second series of "Holy Gifts" (Bridgewater Gallery, London) made a noise with the image of the Last Supper in the form of a Roman triclinium with reclining guests. The latest landscape with Diogenes throwing the cup in the Louvre was painted in 1648. The shepherd's idyll "Et in Arcadia ego" in the Louvre and "The Testament of Eudamides" in the Moltke Gallery in Copenhagen are among his most stylish works. We cannot list here his many paintings in the Louvre, London, Dulwich, Madrid, St. Petersburg, Dresden, etc. The works that made him famous as the creator of the "historical" or "heroic" landscape, a magnificent and at the same time sincere picture with Orpheus and Eurydice of 1659 in the Louvre and four powerful landscapes of the same collection (1660-1664), with four seasons animated by episodes from the Old Testament, belong to the last decade of his life.

    Poussin personally educated only one student, his brother-in-law, who was born of French parents in Rome and died there, Gaspard Duguet (1613-1675), also called Gaspard Poussin. He developed the motifs of the Albanian and Sabine mountains into large, sharply stylized, ideal landscapes, already typical of the scheme of their "tree foliage", sometimes with thunderclouds and clouds, with figures like additions in which he disregarded the episode rather than antique costume or heroic nudity. He breathed new life mainly into the landscape wall painting, which had long been known in Italy. He decorated the palaces of the Roman magnates (Doria, Colonna) with extensive series of landscapes. In landscape frescoes with episodes from the story of the prophet Elijah in San Martino ai Monti, he brought to artistic perfection a special kind of church painting, studied by the author of this book, widespread in Rome by the Belgian Paul Bril. All more or less significant galleries have individual paintings by Duguet. Its landscapes with a storm and the "Tombstone of Cecilia Metella" of the Vienna Gallery are typical. He is also valued as an engraver.

    Biography (Great Soviet Encyclopedia)

    Poussin Nicolas (1594, June, Les Andelys, Normandy, - 11/19/1665, Rome), French painter. The largest and most consistent representative of classicism in the art of the 17th century. He studied ancient art, as well as the works of Raphael, Titian, the mannerist artists of the Fontainebleau school, the masters of the Bologna school, studied perspective, as well as anatomy and mathematics. In 1612 he came to Paris. Of P.'s early works, only drawings on subjects from Ovid, Virgil and Titus Livius, commissioned by J. Marina (bistre, pen, circa 1622-24, Royal Library, Windsor), are reliable. At the end of 1623 P. - in Venice, and in the spring of 1624 he settled in Rome.

    Trying to find his own compositional and coloristic structure for each plot, P. creates works that anticipate the harsh citizenship of late classicism (Death circa 1628, Institute of Arts, Minneapolis), baroque canvases (Martyrdom Above Erasmus, circa 1628-29, Vatican Pinakothek), enlightened and poetic paintings on mythological and literary themes, marked by a special activity of color system, close to the traditions of the Venetian school ("Sleeping Venus", Art Gallery, Dresden; "Narcissus and Echo", Louvre, Paris; "Rinaldo and Armida" , Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow; all three - about 1625-27; "The Kingdom of Flora", about 1631-1632, Art Gallery, Dresden; "Tancred and Erminia"). More clearly, the classicist principles of P. are revealed in the canvases of the 2nd half of the 30s ("The Rape of the Sabine Women", 2nd version, circa 1635; "Israelis Gathering Manna", circa 1637-39; both - in the Louvre, Paris).

    The chased compositional rhythm reigning in these works is perceived as a direct reflection of the rational principle, which moderates base impulses and gives greatness to the noble deeds of a person. In 1640-1642, P. worked in Paris at the court of Louis XIII ("Time saves the Truth from the encroachments of Envy and Discord", about 1641-42, Art Museum, Lille). The intrigues of court artists, led by S. Vue, prompt P. to return to Rome. The ethical and philosophical pathos of his work is enhanced in the works of the 2nd Roman period ("Moses cutting water from a rock", the Hermitage, Leningrad; "Eliazar and Rebecca", Louvre, Paris; both - around 1648; "Arcadian shepherds" or "Et in Arcadia ego", 2nd version, circa 1650, Louvre, Paris; "Rest on the Flight into Egypt", circa 1658, Hermitage Museum, Leningrad).

    Turning to ancient stories or likening biblical and gospel characters to the heroes of classical antiquity, P. strictly selects artistic means for convincing identification moral sense one situation or another. P.'s Roman self-portrait (1650, Louvre, Paris) is imbued with stoic calmness, faith in the high dignity of the artist's work. From the 1640s P. is increasingly fascinated by images of nature.

    Developing the principles of an ideal landscape, P. represents nature as the embodiment of perfection and expediency; he introduces mythological characters into the landscape, as if personifying various elements ("Landscape with Polyphemus", about 1649, the Hermitage, Leningrad; "Orion", about 1650-55, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York), uses biblical and gospel legends, expressing (in the spirit of Stoicism) the idea of ​​the highest necessity or destiny as the beginning that regulates the relationship between man and the world around him ("St. John on Patmos" (circa 1644-45, Art Institute, Chicago); a series of 4 paintings on the theme of the seasons ( circa 1660-65, Louvre, Paris); in the final painting of this series, "Winter, or the Flood," reflection on the frailty of life is raised to the height of a universal tragedy). P.'s classicist credo is also expressed in his thoughts about art (for example, in the doctrine of "Modes" associated with the musical aesthetics of the 16th century, which determine the structure and emotional orientation of works of art).

    Cit.: Correspondance, ., 1911; in Russian per. - Letters, M. - L., 1939.

    Lit .: Volskaya V. N., Poussin, M., 1946; Grautoff O., Nicolas Poussin, sein Werk und sein Leben, Bd 1-2, Munch. - Lpz., 1914; Friedlander ., Blunt A. (ed), The drawings of Nicolas Poussin. (Catalogue), v. 1-4, L., 1939-63; Nicolas Poussin, v. 1-2, ., 1960; Blunt A., Nicolas Poussin, (v. 1-2, . ., 1967); Badt, K., Die Kunst des Nicolas Poussin, Bd 1-2, (oln), 1969.

    Biography

    Nicolas Poussin was born in 1594 in Normandy, near the town of Les Andelys. His father, a veteran of the army of King Henry IV (1553-1610), gave his son a good education. From childhood, Poussin drew attention to himself with his penchant for drawing. At the age of 18 he goes to Paris to paint. Probably, his first teacher was the portrait painter Ferdinand Van Elle (1580-1649), the second - the historical painter Georges Lallement (1580-1636).

    Having met the valet of the Dowager Queen Marie de Medici, the keeper of the royal art collections and library, Poussin got the opportunity to visit the Louvre and copy paintings by Italian artists there.

    In 1622, Poussin received the first order in his life - to paint a series of paintings from the life of the newly canonized saints Ignatius Loyola and Francis Xavier. The paintings were commissioned by the Parisian Jesuit community. They say that Poussin created six large canvases included in the series in six days. Unfortunately, none of them has come down to us. Among those who drew attention to these works of Poussin was Giovanni Battista Marino, an Italian poet who lived in Paris from 1615. He liked the pictures of the young artist so much that he ordered Poussin a series of drawings on mythological subjects. Eleven of these drawings have survived and are now in the Royal Library.

    In 1624 Poussin went to Rome. There he studies the art of the ancient world, the works of the masters of the High Renaissance. In 1625-1626 he received an order to paint the painting "The Destruction of Jerusalem" (not preserved), but later he painted the second version of this painting (1636-1638, Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum).

    The 1630s brought the master everything he could hope for. The artist met many wealthy collectors who had not only money, but also fine taste. The circle of Poussin's clients was constantly expanding. Soon his fame reached his native France. In 1635, the artist had another admirer - he became Cardinal Richelieu himself. For him, he painted six paintings, united by the theme of bacchanalia (a somewhat strange choice for a clergyman).

    By the end of the 1630s, Poussin's fame was already such that Richelieu considered his life outside France indecent. He set out to bring the "emigrant" back to his native borders. Nicolas Poussin for quite some time rejected the offers of the cardinal - even the most tempting of them. But soon, in the messages of Richelieu, menacing notes sounded among the cordial and flattering roulades. The letter written to the master by Louis XIII himself finally decided the matter. Poussin was reminded that he was, after all, a French subject, and he should not upset his beloved king with his refusals. I had to submit. In December 1640 the artist arrived in Paris.

    The two years spent in Paris were the hardest of his life. He was immediately appointed superintendent of the decoration of the Long Gallery in the Louvre, which could not but arouse the envy of the court artists, who rolled like cheese in butter before the appearance of "this upstart". Gossip, sidelong glances, dirty denunciations and intrigues - that's what surrounded Poussin in the French capital. He felt that a noose was being tightened around his neck, and dreamed of being in the quiet of his workshop, away from court life.

    However, no one at court had an accurate idea of ​​​​the style and creative possibilities of Poussin. Apparently, they saw him as just a famous master who could be entrusted with the official orders of the court. A few months later (September 20, 1641), the artist writes to Rome: "... If I stay in this country for a long time, I will have to turn into a mess, like others who are here." And here are fragments of another letter from April 1642: “I never knew what the king wanted from me, his most humble servant, and I don’t think anyone told him what I was good for ... It’s impossible for me to take on frontispieces for books, and for the Mother of God, and for a picture for the congregation of St. Louis, for all the drawings for the gallery and at the same time to make paintings for the royal tapestry workshops ... "

    In September 1642, Poussin left Paris on the pretext of the illness of his wife, who remained in Rome. He ran without looking back, not thinking about the consequences of his act. Fortunately for him, both of his "high friends" - Cardinal Richelieu and Louis XIII - left our sinful world one after another. The artist was free again.

    However, Paris delivered to the master not only sorrows. There he met some wealthy art connoisseurs and continued to write on their orders after his "flight" to Rome.

    After returning to Italy, the artist increasingly paints landscapes. Now often the main content of the work is expressed through the image of distant expanses, the comparison of rectangular forms of architecture with the lush crowns of trees or the sloping outlines of hills. In this case, the figures are necessarily present. They reveal and emphasize the main meaning of the work.

    One of the master's most famous landscapes is "Landscape with Polyphemus" (1649). Everything is grandiose in this landscape: the trees, the rocks, and Polyphemus himself. The combination of colors that prevail in the picture - green, blue, blue - gives the landscape great solemnity. In this picture, the artist's admiration for the power, eternity and greatness of nature. The figures of people serve only as a scale that makes you feel the grandeur of the world. The image of nature is the main thing in this picture of Poussin, and the ancient myth suggested to the artist the plot of the work.

    Poussin led a calm and measured life. Contemporaries tell us that he worked and read a lot, liked walks with friends and good conversation over a glass of red wine. Time took its toll. The passionate young man, who went to Paris on foot, turned, in the words of the biographer, into "a wise old man with a majestic posture and gaze."

    The end of the master's life was sad. By the mid-1650s, he developed an illness that was accompanied by severe trembling in his hands (now called Parkinson's disease). Is it necessary to say how difficult such an illness is for an artist? In October 1664, Poussin's wife, Anna Maria, died. He never recovered from this blow. After spending a whole year "in sadness and anguish, having lost the ground under his feet," he followed his wife into the grave on November 19, 1665.

    His favorite authors were Homer and Ovid. It is not surprising that antique themes prevailed in Poussin's painting. He imagined Ancient Greece as ideal beautiful world inhabited by wise and perfect people. Even in the dramatic episodes of ancient history, he tried to see the triumph of love and supreme justice.

    One of the best works on antique theme“The Kingdom of Flora” (1b31), the artist collected the characters of Ovid’s epic “Metamorphoses”, who, after their death, gave life to various flowers that adorned the fragrant kingdom of the goddess Flora. The death of Ajax throwing himself at the sword, the doom of the mortally wounded Adonis and Hyacinth, the suffering of the lovers Smila and Krokon do not overshadow the reigning jubilant mood. The blood flowing from Hyacinth's head turns into falling petals of wonderful blue flowers, a red carnation grows from the blood of Ajax, Narcissus admires his reflection in a vase of water held by the nymph Echo. Like a colorful living wreath, the characters of the picture surround the dancing goddess. The canvas of Poussin embodies the idea of ​​the immortality of nature, which gives life eternal renewal. This life is brought to the heroes by the laughing goddess Flora, showering them with white flowers, and the radiant light of the god Helios, who makes his fiery run in golden clouds. Dancing Flora is in the center, and the rest of the figures are arranged in a circle, their postures and gestures are subject to a single rhythm - thanks to this, the whole composition is permeated with a circular motion. Soft in color and gentle in mood, the landscape is written rather conditionally and looks more like theatrical scenery. The connection of painting with theatrical art was natural for the artist of the 17th century. - Centuries of the heyday of the theater. The picture reveals an important idea for the master: the heroes who suffered and died untimely on earth found peace and joy in the magical garden of Flora.

    Poussin was fond of the teachings of the ancient Stoic philosophers, who called for courage and dignity in the face of death. Reflections on death occupied an important place in his work, the plot of the painting "The Arcadian Shepherds" (50s of the 17th century) is connected with them.

    The inhabitants of Arcadia (Arcadia is a region in southern Greece (on the Peloponnese peninsula). In ancient Greek poetry, it was glorified as a country of eternal prosperity, whose inhabitants did not know wars, illnesses and suffering), where joy and peace reign, they discover a tombstone with the inscription: “And I was in Arcadia. It is Death itself that speaks to the heroes and destroys their serene mood, forcing them to think about the inevitable future suffering. One of the women puts her hand on the shoulder of her neighbor, as if trying to help him come to terms with the thought of an inevitable end. However, despite the tragic content, the artist narrates about the collision of life and death calmly. The composition of the painting is simple and logical: the characters are grouped near the tombstone and linked by hand movements. The figures are painted using soft and expressive chiaroscuro, they are somewhat reminiscent of antique sculptures.

    Most of the plots of Poussin's paintings have a literary basis. Some of them are written based on the work of the Italian Renaissance poet Torquato Tasso "The Liberated Jerusalem", which tells about the campaigns of the crusader knights in Palestine.

    The artist was not interested in military, but in lyrical episodes: for example, the love story of Erminia for the knight Tancred. Tancred was wounded in battle, and Erminia cut off her hair with a sword in order to bandage the wounds of her lover. Harmony and light dominate the canvas. The figures of Tancred and Erminia bent over him form a kind of circle, which immediately brings balance and peace to the composition. The color of the work is built on a harmonious combination of pure colors of blue, red, yellow and orange. The action is concentrated in the depths of space, the foreground remains empty, due to which there is a feeling of spaciousness. The sublime, epic monumental work shows the love of the main characters (they belonged to the warring parties) as the greatest value, which is more important than all wars and religious conflicts.

    Nicolas Poussin had few students, but he actually created a contemporary school of painting. The work of this master became the pinnacle of French classicism and influenced many artists of subsequent centuries.

    The artist attached great importance to the rhythmic organization of the paintings, all of which are picturesque pantomimes, in which, with the help of gestures, turns of figures, as if descended from ancient reliefs, the state of mind of the heroes was conveyed. This creative method, called "plastic contemplation", was the result of Poussin's deep passion for the architecture of ancient Rome and ancient reliefs. In order to give the picture a certain emotional sound, depending on the idea underlying the plot, Poussin developed his own theory of modes for painting, taking Aristotle's system of musical modes as a basis.
    - The strict "Dorian mode" was used by him to embody the theme moral achievement and, as Poussin himself wrote, "for the depiction of subjects important, austere and full of wisdom."
    - The sad "Lydian mode" was used in the implementation of the theme of an idyll touched by sadness.
    - The gentle "Aeolian mode" conveyed the theme of tenderness, softness, lightness, "filling the souls of the audience with joy."
    - The joyful "Ionian mode" embodied the theme of unrestrained fun and violent emotions.
    - The stormy "Phrygian mode" reflected the theme of a dramatic nature, being "powerful frantic, leading people into amazement."

    Gradually, in the painting of classicism, a set of norms developed that artists had to strictly observe. These norms were based on the pictorial traditions of Poussin.

    It was required that the plot of the picture contain a serious spiritual moral idea capable of having a beneficial effect on the viewer. According to the theory of classicism, such a plot could only be found in history, mythology or biblical texts. Drawing and composition were recognized as the main artistic values, sharp color contrasts were not allowed. The composition of the picture was divided into clear plans. In everything, especially in choosing the volume and proportions of the figures, the artist had to focus on the ancient masters, primarily on the ancient Greek sculptors. The artist's education was to take place within the walls of the academy. Then he necessarily made a trip to Italy, where he studied antiquity and the works of Raphael.

    Thus, creative methods turned into a rigid system of rules, and the process of working on a picture into imitation. It is not surprising that the skill of the classicist painters began to decline, and in the second half of the 17th century there was no longer a single significant artist in France.

    Biography

    The head of classicism painting was Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665), the greatest French artist of the 17th century. Almost the entire life of the master was spent in Rome. In the atmosphere of the “eternal city”, he seemed to feel the living breath of antiquity, imbued with the heroic ideals of the past. Admiration for antiquity Poussin carried through all his work. Another source of inspiration for him was the art of the High Renaissance. In them he found that ideal of beauty and harmony, that clarity of spirit and significance of thought, to which he aspired. They remained a guiding thread in the quest of the master, who, however, came into contact with various artistic traditions before he finally took shape. own style.

    The works of Poussin in the museum's collection belong to different periods of creativity and allow us to trace the evolution of his art.

    “The Battle of Joshua with the Amorites” (mid-20s) is one of the earliest works of Poussin that have come down to us. The biblical legend tells how during the battle the Jewish commander Joshua called out to the sun and moon, conjuring them to remain motionless. The sun stopped, the darkness dissipated, and the fierce battle could continue. The Amorites were defeated.

    In the composition of the “Battle”, in particular, the influence of Roman reliefs is felt: the horizon line raised to the upper edge, the space almost completely filled with figures; dependence on sculptural samples is felt in the emphasized statuary poses. The impression of depth is created by gradations of volumes of the figures - from more convex in the foreground (while the artist strictly maintains the front plane) to less embossed in the distance. Black and white contrasts simulate the plasticity of bodies, accentuating the stormy rapid rhythm of movement.

    Poussin said: “The theme must be noble… the content and plot must be majestic…” Poussin was attracted by heroic deeds, “lofty passions”, something that could serve as a model of moral norms; he wanted to create an image of an ideally beautiful world, where a harmonious person reigns, perfect in body and spirit.

    The composition “Rinaldo and Armida” (early 1930s) belongs to the most remarkable works of the museum collection. Its plot is borrowed from the poem of the 16th century Italian poet Torquato Tasso “Jerusalem Delivered”. In one of its episodes, it tells how the sorceress Armida, in whose possession Rinaldo ended up, wanted to kill the knight, but, subdued by his beauty, fell in love with the young man and took him to her gardens. main topic- this is power, greatness of feeling; and the love that reveals best qualities of a person, as it were, is equated by Poussin with a heroic, noble deed.

    The picture takes us into the world of enchanting beauty and sublime poetry. The heroes are beautiful, whose strict beauty evokes images of ancient sculpture. In the figure of Armida, bent over the sleeping Rinaldo, there is a burst of admiration and tenderness, unknown to her before. They step lightly in the clouds, as if the servant girls soar in them; we admire the flexibility and harmony of their bodies, full of graceful movement. The sun sheds its light on Rinaldo and Armida, on lovely cupids merrily playing with the armor of a knight; majestically reclining the deity of the river by calmly flowing waters. Clear, orderly composition. The smooth musical rhythm unites all forms and lines (for example, the figures of Rinaldo and Armida are connected in a plastically completed group) and harmonize the various elements of the composition with each other, giving it harmonic harmony.

    The color scheme is dominated by three colors - red, golden yellow, contrasting blue; their chord sounds most strongly in the group of main characters and, as it were, muffled in the rest of the picture. The color seems to be filled with the jubilant happiness of the passionate feeling awakened in Armida. Rational clarity of artistic thought and lyrical inspiration merge into a single entity.

    The works of the late 20s - early 30s captivate with this unique combination of logic and poetic fantasy. During this period, Poussin often turned to the subjects of ancient mythology. The artist was then close to the feeling of happy harmony of being, which was revealed to him in the legends of antiquity. The painting “The Satyr and the Nymph” belongs to the works of the “Arcade cycle”. The existence of these forest divine “spirits” and children of nature is filled with unclouded joy. Sunbeams play on the foliage and on their swarthy bodies. In a beautiful naked nymph drinking the wine-drink of happy oblivion, in the merry mischief of a satyr admiring the nymph, in his frank attraction to her, in warm colorful tones, as if penetrated by the golden light of the sun, the pagan, sensual element of the Hellenic myth comes to life, but it is always fanned Poussin has a special chaste purity. The mind, as it were, introduces it into strict shores.

    The next stage of the master's work is represented by the painting “The Magnanimity of Scipio”, written in the 40s. It is devoted to one of the most important problems in the aesthetics of classicism - the problem of the relationship between personal feelings and duty. Among the prisoners that the Roman general Scipio Africanus captured after the victory over Carthage was the beautiful Lucretia. Scipio was captivated by the beauty of the girl, but renounced his rights to the captive and returned Lucretius to her fiancé Aloceus.

    Scipio is the image of a wise and just ruler; his actions are driven by a sense of duty, his will triumphs over passions. The ancient plot sounds modern in Poussin, touching on a topic relevant to the French reality of that time.

    In the works of Poussin of the 40s, the principles of classicism appear in the most distinct, extremely naked form. He strives to reveal the meaning of what is happening with maximum clarity, without distracting attention with unnecessary details, with something that only “lures” the eye. Each of the main characters in the picture is the bearer of one feeling, one virtue. Secondary characters are a kind of accompaniment to the main action: like antique choir, they comment, explain the event. Glory crowns Scipio with a laurel wreath, solemnly seated on the throne. The picturesque language of Poussin became more strict, dry, emotional expression - restrained, even stingy. The composition is designed to reveal the logic, the rationality of what is happening. The space is easily visible, the plans clearly follow one after another. The characters are lined up along the front plane of the picture. A monotonous rhythm connecting the figures (it is characteristic that their heads, as in ancient relief, are on the same level), even diffused lighting, in which all elements of the picture are visible with equal distinctness; the clarity of the linear drawing, the laconicism and generalization of forms, emphasized by smooth fused writing and local color, the strict regularity in its repetition - everything should give the scene majesty and solemnity, accentuate the significance of the hero's act.

    Biography (Nina Bayor)

    PUSSIN, NICOLAS (Poussin, Nicolas) (1594-1665) - famous French artist, founder of the classicism style. Turning to the themes of ancient mythology, ancient history, the Bible, Poussin revealed the themes of his contemporary era. With his works, he brought up a perfect personality, showing and singing examples of high morality, civic prowess.

    France 17th century was an advanced European state, which provided it with favorable conditions for the development of national culture, which became the successor to Italy of the Renaissance. The views of Descartes (1596–1650), which were widespread at that time, influenced the development of science, philosophy, literature, and art. Descartes - mathematician, naturalist, creator of philosophical rationalism - tore philosophy from religion and connected it with nature, arguing that the principles of philosophy are derived from nature. Descartes raised the principle of the supremacy of reason over feeling into a law. This idea formed the basis of classicism in art. The New Style theorists said that "classicism is a doctrine of reason." The condition of artistry proclaimed symmetry, harmony, unity. According to the doctrine of classicism, nature should not be shown as it is, but as beautiful and reasonable, the classics at the same time declared beautiful that which is true, calling for learning this truth from nature. Classicism established a strict hierarchy of genres, dividing them into "high", which included historical and mythological, and "low" - everyday.

    Nicolas Poussin was born in 1594 in Normandy, near the town of Les Andelys. His father, a veteran of the army of King Henry IV (1553-1610), gave his son a good education. From childhood, Poussin drew attention to himself with his penchant for drawing. At the age of 18 he goes to Paris to paint. Probably, his first teacher was the portrait painter Ferdinand Van Elle (1580-1649), the second - the historical painter Georges Lallement (1580-1636). Having met the valet of the Dowager Queen Marie de Medici, the keeper of the royal art collections and library, Poussin got the opportunity to visit the Louvre and copy paintings by Italian artists there. In 1622, Poussin and other artists were commissioned to paint six large paintings on subjects from their life of St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Francis Xavier (not preserved).

    In 1624 Poussin went to Rome. There he studies the art of the ancient world, the works of the masters of the High Renaissance. In 1625-1626 he was commissioned to paint the Destruction of Jerusalem (not preserved), but later he painted a second version of this painting (1636-1638, Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum).

    In 1627, Poussin painted the painting The Death of Germanicus (Rome, Palazzo Barberini) based on the plot of the ancient Roman historian Tacitus, who considers it a programmatic work of classicism; it shows the farewell of the legionnaires to the dying commander. The death of a hero is perceived as a tragedy of social significance. The theme is interpreted in the spirit of the calm and severe heroism of the ancient narrative. The idea of ​​the picture is service to duty. The artist arranged figures and objects in a shallow space, dividing it into a series of plans. In this work, the main features of classicism were revealed: clarity of action, architectonicity, harmony of composition, opposition of groupings. The ideal of beauty in the eyes of Poussin consisted in the proportionality of the parts of the whole, in external order, harmony, clarity of composition, which would become characteristic features of the master's mature style. One of the features of Poussin's creative method was rationalism, which was reflected not only in the plots, but also in the thoughtfulness of the composition.

    Poussin painted mostly medium-sized easel paintings. In 1627-1629 he completed a number of paintings: Parnassus (Madrid, Prado), Inspiration of the poet (Paris, Louvre), Salvation of Moses, Moses purifying the waters of Merra, Madonna, who is St. James the Elder (Madonna on a pillar) (1629, Paris, Louvre). In 1629–1630, Poussin created the remarkable power of expression and the most vitally truthful Descent from the Cross (St. Petersburg, the Hermitage).

    In the period 1629–1633, the themes of Poussin's paintings change: he rarely paints paintings on religious themes, turning to mythological and literary subjects. Narcissus and Echo (c. 1629, Paris, Louvre), Diana and Endymion (Detroit, Art Institute). Particularly noteworthy is a series of paintings based on Torquatto Tasso's poem Jerusalem Liberated: Rinaldo and Armida (c. 1634, Moscow, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts). The idea of ​​the frailty of man and the problems of life and death formed the basis of an early version of the painting The Arcadian Shepherds (1632-1635, England, Chesworth, private collection), to which he returned in the 50s (1650, Paris, Louvre). On the canvas Sleeping Venus (c. 1630, Dresden, Art Gallery), the goddess of love is represented by an earthly woman, while remaining an unattainable ideal. The painting The Kingdom of Flora (1631, Dresden, Art Gallery), based on the poems of Ovid, strikes with the beauty of the picturesque embodiment of ancient images. This is a poetic allegory of the origin of flowers, which depicts the heroes of ancient myths turned into flowers. Poussin soon wrote another version of this painting - the Triumph of Flora (1632, Paris, Louvre).

    In 1632 Poussin was elected a member of the Academy of St. Luke.

    The enormous popularity of Poussin in 1640 attracted the attention of Louis XIII (1601-1643) to his work, at whose invitation Poussin came to work in Paris. The artist received an order from the king to paint paintings for his chapels in Fontainebleau and Saint-Germain.

    In the autumn of 1642 Poussin leaves for Rome again. The themes of his paintings of this period were the virtues and valor of rulers, biblical or ancient heroes: Generosity of Scipio (1643, Moscow, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts). In his canvases, he showed perfect heroes, faithful to civic duty, selfless, generous, while demonstrating the absolute universal ideal of citizenship, patriotism, and spiritual greatness. By creating perfect images on the basis of reality, he consciously corrected nature, taking from it the beautiful and discarding the ugly.

    In the second half of the 40s, Poussin created the Seven Sacraments cycle, in which he revealed the deep philosophical significance of Christian dogmas: Landscape with the Apostle Matthew, Landscape with the Apostle John on the island of Patmos (Chicago, Institute of Arts).

    The end of the 40s - the beginning of the 50s is one of the fruitful periods in the work of Poussin: he painted Eliazar and Rebekah, Landscape with Diogenes, Landscape with the High Road, Solomon's Judgment, Ecstasy of St. Paul, Shepherds of Arcadia, second self-portrait.

    In the last period of creativity (1650-1665), Poussin increasingly turned to the landscape, his characters were associated with literary, mythological subjects: Landscape with Polyphemus (Moscow, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts). In the summer of 1660, he creates a series of landscapes "The Four Seasons" with biblical scenes symbolizing the history of the world and mankind: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter. Poussin's landscapes are multifaceted, the alternation of plans was emphasized by stripes of light and shadow, the illusion of space and depth gave them epic power and grandeur. As in historical paintings, the main characters are usually located in the foreground and are perceived as an inseparable part of the landscape. The last, unfinished canvas of the master is Apollo and Daphne (1664).

    The significance of Poussin's work for the history of painting is enormous. French artists before him were traditionally familiar with the art of Renaissance Italy. But they were inspired by the works of the masters of Italian mannerism, baroque, caravaggism. Poussin was the first French painter who adopted the tradition of the classical style of Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael. Clarity, consistency and order visual techniques Poussin, the ideological and moral orientation of his art later made his work a standard for the Academy of Painting and Sculpture of France, which took up the development of aesthetic norms, formal canons and generally binding rules artistic creativity.

    Biography (encyclopedic Dictionary)

    (Poussin) (1594-1665), French painter. The founder of classicism in European art. Sublime in figurative structure, deep in philosophical design, clear in composition and drawing, paintings on historical, mythological, religious themes, asserting the power of reason and social and ethical norms (“Tancred and Erminia”, 1630s; “Arcadian shepherds”, 1630s). He also painted majestic heroic landscapes (“Landscape with Polyphemus”, 1649; series “The Seasons”, 1660-64).

    First Parisian period (1612-1623)

    The son of a peasant. He went to school in Les Andelys, showing little interest in art. Poussin's first experiments in painting were assisted by Canten Varen, who painted churches in Andely. In 1612, the young Poussin arrived in Paris, where he entered the workshop of J. Lallement, and then F. Elle the Elder. He is fond of studying antiquity, he gets acquainted with the paintings of Raphael from engravings (see RAFAEL SANTI). A significant role in his fate is played by a meeting with the Italian poet G. Marino, (see MARINO Giambattista), whose interest in ancient and Renaissance culture influenced the young artist. The only surviving works of Poussin from the Parisian period are pen and brush drawings (Windsor Library) for Marino's poem; under his influence, the dream of a trip to Italy was born.

    First Roman period (1623-40)

    In 1623, Poussin arrived first in Venice, then in Rome (1624), where he remained until the end of his life. The artist's biographer A. Felibien notes that "all his days were days of learning." Poussin himself notes that he “did not neglect anything” in his desire to “comprehend the rational basis of beauty.” He was attracted by the painting of Caravaggio (see Michelangelo's CARAVAGGIO) and the Bolognese (see BOLOGNA SCHOOL), the sculpture of ancient and baroque Rome. A significant role in the formation of Poussin as an intellectual and erudite artist is played by his acquaintance with Cassiano del Pozzo, his future patron, a connoisseur of antiquity, the owner of a magnificent collection of drawings and engravings (“paper museum”), thanks to which Poussin began to visit the Barberini library, where he met works of philosophers, historians, ancient and renaissance literature. Evidence of this is Poussin's drawings for Leonardo da Vinci's treatise (see LEONARDO DA VINCI) on painting (Hermitage).

    The first work performed in Rome was the canvas "Echo and Narcissus" (1625-26, Louvre) based on the poem "Adonis" by Marino. This poetic work was the beginning of a series of paintings of the 1620s and 30s on mythological subjects, glorifying love, inspiration, and the harmony of nature. Landscape plays an important role in these paintings (“Nymph and Satyr”, 1625-1627, Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow; “Venus and Satyrs”, 1625-1627, National Gallery, London; “Sleeping Venus” , 1625-1626, Louvre). The refraction of the ancient heritage occurs with the artist through the prism of the images of Titian (see TITIAN), whose passion for painting is evidenced by the idyllic tranquility of the images, golden sonorous colors.

    The artist continues to develop the theme of Titian's "poetry" in the scenes of the "Bacchanalia" of the 1620-30s (Louvre; Hermitage; National Gallery, London), canvases "Triumph of Bacchus" (1636, Louvre) and "Triumph of Pan" (1636-1638 , National Gallery, London), looking for a form of embodiment that corresponds in his view to the ancient understanding of the joy of life as the unbridled elements of nature, the happy harmony of the spirit.

    For several years in Rome, Poussin gained recognition, as evidenced by the image ordered from him for the Cathedral of St. Peter "The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus" (1628-1629, Vatican Pinakothek, Rome). The artist invented an unconventional way, going not from the works of the baroque masters (see BAROQUE), emphasizing religious exaltation, and not from the canvases of the caravagists (see CARAVAGHISM): in the transfer of the stoic resistance of the saint, he found support in nature, and in a picturesque manner he followed the transfer of effects daylight outdoors.

    From the late 1620s and into the 1630s, Poussin was more attracted to historical theme. He is waiting in her for an answer to his moral problems (The Salvation of Pyrrhus, 1633-1635, Louvre; The Rape of the Sabine Women, 1633, private collection; The Death of Germanicus, 1627, Palazzo Barberini, Rome). The painting "The Death of Germanicus" based on a plot from the Roman history of Tacitus (see TACITUS), commissioned by Cardinal Barberini, is considered the programmatic work of European classicism. The scene of the stoic death of the famous commander, who was poisoned by order of the emperor Tiberius, embodies an example of valiant heroism. Calm and solemn are the poses of his warriors swearing revenge, a group of which forms a well-thought-out, easy-to-read composition. The figures are painted expressively and likened to a relief. The tragic act of death on a majestic ancient bed is embodied in a scene full of civic pathos. As in a classical tragedy with a large number of characters, the extended multifaceted narrative makes us think that Poussin used the so-called perspective box (this method was also known to other masters of the 16th-17th centuries), in which, arranging wax figures, he found a rhythmically clear construction of the composition. . This painting, written during the period of passion for Titian idylls, expressed Poussin's aesthetic credo - "not only our tastes should be judges, but also the mind."

    The artist continued to comprehend the moral lessons of history in the series "Seven Sacraments" (1639-1640, Louvre), commissioned by Cassian del Pozzo. By interpreting the sacraments (Baptism, Communion, Confession, Repentance, Confirmation, Marriage, Unction) in the form of gospel scenes, he seeks to give each multi-figured composition a certain emotional tone. The compositions of the canvases are characterized by rationalistic thoughtfulness, the coloring is rather dry and is based on combinations of few colors.

    Second Parisian period (1640-1642)

    At the end of 1640, under pressure from official circles in France, Poussin, who did not want to return to Paris, was forced to return to his homeland. By decree of the king, he is appointed the head of all artistic works, which restores against him a group of court painters headed by S. Vue (see VUE Simon). Poussin is entrusted with altar compositions, allegories for Richelieu's study, and the decoration of the Grand Gallery of the Louvre. For likening the heroes of Christian history to ancient ones, the altar image “The Miracle of St. Francis Xavier" (1642, Louvre). Without completing the work, surrounded by the hostility of the courtiers, he decides to return to Rome. High artistic ideals come into conflict with intrigues in the court environment. In the panel commissioned by Richelieu, “Time saves Truth from the encroachments of Envy and Discord” (Kunst Museum, Lille), Poussin expressed in allegorical form the story of his brief stay at court. It sounds not only semantic overtones - the composition of the panel in the form of a tondo (see TONDO) is built according to a strictly classic principle, which he did not consider it necessary to change for the sake of rocaille (see ROCAILLE) tastes.

    Back in Italy (1643-1665)

    Poussin again devotes a lot of time to drawing from life. The world embodied in his painting is rationalistic and calm, in the drawing it is full of movement and impulse. Emotional landscapes filled with pen and brush, sketches of architecture, compositional sketches are not subject to strict control of the mind. In the drawings - living impressions from observing nature, enjoying the magic of the play of light hidden in the foliage of trees, in the depths of the sky, in the distances melting in a haze.

    On the other hand, the artist creates a "theory of modes", inspired by ancient aesthetics. Each of the modes means for him a certain reasonable basis, which could be used by an artist striving for logical restraint, a certain “norm”. For example, for strict and full of wisdom plots, the "Doric mode" could be chosen, for cheerful and lyrical themes - "Ionic". But in the normative aesthetics of the artist was a huge thirst for beauty, faith in the ideals of morally beautiful.

    The program work of Poussin's late work was the second series of "The Seven Sacraments" (1646, National Gallery, Edinburgh). classically strict compositional solution combined with the internal emotional psychological richness of the images. The search for harmony between feeling and logic marked the canvases “Moses cutting water from a rock” (1648, Hermitage), “Generosity of Scipio” (1643, Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow), in which the dream of a heroic personality is expressed , with her will conquering disasters and morally instructing people.

    In the late 1640s, Poussin painted a series of landscapes (“Landscape with Polyphemus”, 1648, Hermitage; “Landscape with Diogenes”, Louvre), expressing in them admiration for the grandeur of the natural world. Figurines of ancient philosophers, saints, monks are barely visible in the landscape full of cosmic grandeur. The heroic image of Poussin's nature for several centuries will become an example of creating an ideal landscape in which nature and idealization coexist in harmony, full of majestic and solemn sound.

    The highest personification of this harmony was the cycle of four canvases "The Seasons" (1660-1665, Louvre), completed in the year of death. Each canvas (“Spring”, “Summer”, “Autumn”, “Winter”) expresses a certain mood of the artist in his individual vision of the ideal and nature, they contain a thirst for beauty and knowledge of its laws, reflection on human life and the universal. The canvas "Winter" was the last in the series. It expresses the idea of ​​death, which was present more than once in the works of Poussin, but here it acquires a dramatic sound. Life for the classicist artist was the triumph of reason, death was the personification of his death, and the result of this was the madness that gripped people during the Flood depicted by the artist. The biblical episode is correlated in its universal sound with a small cycle of human existence, broken by the Element.

    In a self-portrait (1650, Louvre), the artist portrayed himself as a thinker and creator. Next to him is the profile of the Muse, as if personifying the power of antiquity over him. And at the same time, this is an image of a bright personality, a man of his time. The portrait embodies the program of classicism with its commitment to nature and idealization, the desire to express the high civil ideals that Poussin's art served.

    Museums with works by the artist:

    * State museums
    * Budapest Museum of Fine Arts
    * National Gallery of Art
    * Picture gallery of old masters
    * Dublin. National Gallery of Ireland
    * Cambridge (Massachusetts). Fogg Art Museum
    * National Gallery
    * Prado Museum
    * Melbourne. National Gallery of Victoria
    * Minneapolis (Minnesota). Institute of Arts
    * Pushkin Museum im. A.S. Pushkin
    * Munich. Nymphenburg Castle
    * Munich Museums - Old and New Pinakothek, Glyptothek, etc.
    * Metropolitan Museum of Art
    * Oakley Park. Collection of the Earl of Plymouth
    * Louvre
    * Rome. Vatican Pinakothek
    * State Hermitage
    * Art Museum
    * Frankfurt am Main. Shtedelevsky art institute
    * Chatsworth (Derbyshire). Collection of the Duke of Devonshire
    * Chantilly. Condé Museum
    * Edinburgh. National Gallery of Scotland

    Nicolas Poussin as an exponent of the ideas of French classicism (Essay)

    Introduction …………………………………………………….. 3
    Chapter I. The life and work of the painter ………………….. 5
    1. Poussin’s early work …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
    2. Peak of genius: harmony between reason and feeling…….. 9
    3. The crisis of the artist's creativity ………………………… 11
    Chapter II. The influence of Poussin on the development of art ……… 16
    Conclusion ………………………………………………... 18
    Notes ………………………………………………... 21
    List of sources ……………………………………….. 22
    References ……………………………………….. 23

    INTRODUCTION

    From the second quarter of the 17th century, classicism acquires a leading role in French painting. His creativity the largest representative Nicolas Poussin is the pinnacle of French art of the 17th century. Therefore, in order to understand classicism as a whole, it is necessary to study the work of Poussin.

    Hence the purpose of the work is to explore the work of this artist.

    A) trace the development of Poussin's pictorial method in stages;
    b) study his biography;
    c) get acquainted with his works;
    d) find out what role he played in the history of art.

    The work is built according to the problem-chronological principle: one chapter is devoted to the study of the painter's work, the second - to his influence on the development of art. The first chapter is divided into three more paragraphs according to the chronology of the stages:

    1. until the 1635s: the period of the formation of the artistic method of Poussin;
    2. 1635 - 1640s: achieving harmony between reason and feeling;
    3. 1640s - 1665s: the crisis of the artist's creativity.

    Such books were used in the work.

    Yu. Zolotov's book "Poussin"1 contains not only a complete biography of the artist, but also an analysis of his works, examines the influence of certain masters on him, his place in the history of art. The figurative system of the painter, his plots are considered, a general description of classicism is given.

    The advantage of V. N. Volskaya's book "Poussin"2 is that the author analyzes the artist's work in an inseparable context with the general situation then in France and Italy, in close connection with other representatives of classicism - in literature, philosophy.

    In the book by A. S. Glikman "Nicolas Poussin"3 it is especially interesting that the author carefully analyzes the place of Poussin in the art of France and Europe, his influence on the development of art in the 17th - 18th centuries.

    Certain information can be gleaned from such a book as “The General Theory of Art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries.”4 The merit of this book is that it briefly outlines the main milestones in the life of the artist and quite clearly divides his art into periods.

    Chapter I. The life and work of the painter

    EARLY WORK OF THE PAINTER

    Poussin was born in 1594 near the city of Andely in Normandy in the family of a poor military man. Very little is known about Poussin's youthful years and his early work. Perhaps his first teacher was the wandering artist Kanten Varen, who visited the city at that time, meeting with whom was of decisive importance for determining the artistic recognition of the young man. Following Varen, Poussin secretly leaves Andely from his parents and leaves for Paris. But this trip does not bring him luck. Only a year later, he again enters the capital and spends several years there.5

    Already in youth Poussin reveals a great sense of purpose and an indefatigable thirst for knowledge. He studies mathematics, anatomy. Ancient literature, gets acquainted with the engravings of the works of Raphael and Giulio Romano.

    In Paris, Poussin meets the fashionable Italian poet Cavalier Marino and illustrates his poem Adonis.

    In 1624 the artist left for Italy and settled in Rome. Here Poussin sketched and measured ancient statues, continued his studies in science, literature, studied the treatises of Alberti, Leonardo da Vinci and Dürer. He illustrated one of the lists of Leonardo's treatise, which is currently in the Hermitage.

    Poussin's creative pursuits in the 1620s were very complex. The master went a long way to create his own artistic method. Ancient art and Renaissance artists were the highest examples for him. Among contemporary Bolognese masters, he appreciated the most strict of them - Domenichino. Having a negative attitude towards Caravaggio, Poussin nevertheless remained indifferent to his art.

    During the 1620s, Poussin, having already embarked on the path of classicism, often sharply went beyond it. His paintings such as "The Massacre of the Innocents" (Chantilly), "The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus ”(1628, Vatican Pinakothek) are marked by features of proximity to caravaggism and baroque. A well-known lowness of images, an exaggeratedly dramatic interpretation of the situation. The Hermitage Descent from the Cross (c. 1630) is unusual for Poussin in its heightened expression in conveying a feeling of heartbreaking grief. The drama of the situation here is enhanced by the emotional interpretation of the landscape: the action unfolds against a stormy sky with reflections of a red, ominous dawn. 6

    A different approach characterizes his works, made in the spirit of classicism.

    The cult of reason is one of the main qualities of classicism, and therefore, in none of the great masters of the 17th century, the rational principle plays such a significant role as in Poussin. The master himself said that the perception of a work of art requires concentrated deliberation and hard work of thought. rationalism is reflected not only in Poussin's purposeful adherence to the ethical and artistic ideal, but also in the visual system he created.

    He built a theory of so-called modes, which he tried to follow in his work.

    By modus, Poussin meant a kind of figurative key, the sum of devices of figurative-emotional characteristics and compositional-pictorial solutions that most corresponded to the expression of a particular theme.

    Poussin gave names to these modes, coming from the Greek names for the various modes of the musical system. So, for example, the theme of a moral feat is embodied by the artist in strict severe forms, united by Poussin in the concept of "Dorian mode", the themes of a dramatic nature - in the corresponding forms of the "Phrygian mode", joyful and idyllic themes - in the forms of "Ionian" and "Lydian" frets.

    The strength of Poussin's works are the results achieved as a result of these artistic techniques a clearly expressed idea, a clear logic, a high degree of completeness of the idea. But at the same time, the subordination of art to certain stable norms, the introduction of rationalistic elements into it, also posed a great danger, since this could lead to the predominance of unshakable dogma, the mortification of the living creative process. All academicians came to this at the same time, following only the outward methods of Poussin. Subsequently, this danger arose before Poussin himself.7

    One of the characteristic examples of the ideological and artistic program of classicism is Poussin's composition "The Death of Germanicus" (1626 - 1627, Minneapolis, Institute of Arts), depicting a courageous and noble Roman commander on his deathbed, poisoned by order of the suspicious and envious emperor Tiberius.

    Very fruitful for Poussin's work was the passion for the art of Titian in the second half of the 1620s. The appeal to the Titian tradition contributed to the disclosure of the most vital aspects of Poussin's talent. The role of Titian's colorism was also great in the development of Poussin's pictorial talent.

    In 1625 - 1627, Poussin painted the painting "Rinaldo and Armina" based on the plot of Tasso's poem "Jerusalem Liberated", where the episode from the legend of medieval chivalry is interpreted rather as a motif of ancient mythology. Poussin also resurrects the world of ancient myths in other canvases of the 1620s-1630s: Apollo and Daphne (Munich, Pinakothek, Bacchanalia in the Louvre and the London National Gallery, The Kingdom of Flora (Dresden, Gallery). Here he depicts his ideal - a person living a single happy life with nature.

    Never later in the work of Poussin did such serene scenes appear, such lovely female images. It was in the 1620s that one of the most captivating images of Poussin was created - “Sleeping Venus” - the image of the goddess is full of naturalness and some special intimacy of feeling, it seems snatched straight from life.

    The painting “Tancred and Erminia” (1630s) is devoted to the dramatic theme of the love of the Amazonian Erminia for the crusader knight Tancred, showing the spiritual elation of the image of the heroine.8

    So, in the first, early period of creativity, the main features of the creative method of Nicolas Poussin were already clearly defined. But these classic features are still very much alive, full of idealistic harmony. Poussin is still young and he produces joyful, utopian canvases, captivating female images. Pictures of this period are less connected with the mind than subsequent ones, they give more space to feeling.

    Peak of genius: harmony between reason and feeling

    In the future, the emotional moment in Poussin's work turns out to be more connected with the organizing principle of the mind. in the works of the mid-1630s, the artist achieves a harmonious balance between reason and feeling. Leading value acquires the image of a heroic, perfect man as the embodiment of moral greatness and spiritual strength.

    An example of a deeply philosophical disclosure of the theme in the work of Poussin is given by two versions of the composition "The Arcadian Shepherds" (between 1632 and 1635, Chesworth, the collection of the Duke of Devonshire and 1650, the Louvre). Poussin in an idyllic plot - a myth about Arcadia, a country of serene happiness - expressed a deep idea of ​​the transience of life and the inevitability of death. In the earlier version, the confusion of the shepherds is more pronounced, who, suddenly seeing the tomb in the inscription: “And I was in Arcadia ...”, as if suddenly faced with death, in the later version they are calm, perceiving death as a natural pattern.

    The Louvre painting “Inspiration of a Poet” is an example of how an abstract idea is embodied by Poussin in deep, powerful images. Unlike the allegorical compositions common in the 17th century, the images of which are united externally and rhetorically, this canvas is characterized by an internal unification of images by a common system of feelings, the idea of ​​the sublime beauty of creativity.9

    In the process of the formation of the artistic and compositional concept of Poussin's paintings, his wonderful drawings were of great importance. These sepia sketches, made with exceptional breadth and boldness, based on the juxtaposition of spots of light and shadow, play a preparatory role in turning the idea of ​​​​the work into a complete pictorial whole. Lively and dynamic, they seem to reflect all the richness of the artist's creative imagination in his search for a compositional rhythm and an emotional key that correspond to the ideological concept.10

    This is a relatively small period of creativity of Poussin, his peak. During these years, he creates brilliant masterpieces in which reason and feeling, between which there is always a struggle in classicism, are in harmony. This harmonic balance allows the artist to show a person as the embodiment of moral greatness and spiritual strength.

    The crisis of the artist's creativity

    In subsequent years, the harmonic unity of the best works of the 1630s is gradually lost. In Poussin's painting, the features of abstractness and rationality are growing. The brewing crisis of creativity sharply intensifies during his trip to France.

    The glory of Poussin reaches the French court. Having received an invitation to return to France, Poussin in every possible way delays the trip. Only a coldly imperative personal letter from King Louis XIII makes him submit. In the autumn of 1640, Poussin left for Paris. A trip to France brings the artist a lot of bitter disappointment.

    His art met with fierce resistance from the representatives of the decorative Baroque trend, headed by Simon Vouet, who worked at the court. A network of dirty intrigues and denunciations of "these animals" (as the artist called them in his letters) entangles Poussin, a man of impeccable reputation. The whole atmosphere of court life inspires him with squeamish disgust. The artist, according to him, needs to break out of the noose that he put on his neck in order to again engage in real art in the silence of his studio, because "if I stay in this country," he writes, I will have to turn into a mess, like others located here." The royal court fails to attract a great artist. In the autumn of 1642, under the pretext of his wife's illness, Poussin leaves back for Italy, this time forever.11

    The work of Poussin in the 1640s is marked by features of a deep crisis. This crisis is explained not so much by the indicated facts of the artist's biography as, first of all, by the internal inconsistency of classicism itself. The living reality of that time was far from consistent with the ideals of rationality and civic virtue. The positive ethical program of classicism began to lose its ground.

    Working in Paris, Poussin could not completely abandon the tasks assigned to him as a court painter. The works of the Parisian period are of a cold, official character, they tangibly express the features of baroque art aimed at achieving an external effect (“Time saves Truth from Envy and Discord”, 1642, Lille, Museum; “The Miracle of St. Francis Xavier”, 1642, Louvre) . It was this kind of work that was subsequently perceived as a model by the artists of the academic camp, headed by Charles Lebrun.12

    But even in those works in which the master adhered to the classicist artistic doctrine, he no longer reached the former depth and vitality of the images. Rationalism, normativity, the predominance of an abstract idea over feeling, the striving for ideality, characteristic of this system, receive a one-sidedly exaggerated expression in him.

    An example is Scipio's Generosity (1643). Depicting the Roman commander Scipio of Africa, who renounced his rights to the captive Carthaginian princess and returned her to her fiancé, the artist glorifies the virtue of the wise commander. But in this case, the theme of the triumph of moral duty has received a cold, rhetorical incarnation, the images have lost their vitality and spirituality, the gestures are conditional, the depth of thought has been replaced by far-fetchedness. The figures seem to be frozen, the coloring is motley, with a predominance of cold local colors, the painting style is distinguished by an unpleasant slickness. Paintings from the second cycle of the Seven Sacraments created in 1644-1648 are characterized by similar features.13

    The crisis of the classical method affected primarily plot compositions Poussin. Already from the end of the 1640s, the highest achievements of the artist are manifested in other genres - in portrait and landscape.

    By 1650, one of the most remarkable works of Poussin belongs - his famous Louvre "Self-portrait", far superior to the works of French portrait painters and belongs to the best portraits of European art of the 17th century. An artist for Poussin is first of all a thinker. In an era when the features of external representativeness were emphasized in the portrait, when the significance of the image was determined by the social distance separating the model from mere mortals, Poussin sees the value of a person in the strength of his intellect, in creative power.

    Poussin's fascination with landscape is associated with a change in his worldview. Undoubtedly, Poussin lost that integral idea of ​​a person, which was characteristic of his works of 1620-1630. Attempts to embody this idea in the plot compositions of the 1640s led to failures. The figurative system of Poussin since the end of the 1640s has been built on other principles. In the works of this time, the focus of the artist's attention is the image of nature. For Poussin, nature is the personification of the highest harmony of being. Man has lost his dominant position in it. He is perceived only as one of the many products of nature, the laws of which he is forced to obey.14

    Walking in the vicinity of Rome, the artist, with his usual inquisitiveness, studied the landscapes of the Roman Campagna. His immediate impressions are conveyed in wonderful landscape drawings from nature, which are distinguished by an extraordinary freshness of perception and subtle lyricism.

    The picturesque landscapes of Poussin do not have the same sense of immediacy that is inherent in his drawings. In his paintings the ideal, generalizing principle is more pronounced, and nature appears in them as the bearer of perfect beauty and grandeur. Poussin's landscapes are imbued with a sense of the grandeur and grandeur of the world.

    Saturated with great ideological and emotional content, Poussin's landscapes belong to the highest achievements of the so-called heroic landscape common in the 17th century.

    These are such works as "Landscape with Polyphemus" (1649; Hermitage), "Landscape with Hercules" (1649), etc.15

    In later years, Poussin even embodies thematic paintings in landscape forms. Such is his painting "Focion's Funeral" (after 1648, Louvre). The beautiful landscape with particular poignancy makes one feel the tragic idea of ​​this work - the theme of man's loneliness, his powerlessness and frailty in the face of eternal nature. Even the death of a hero cannot overshadow her indifferent beauty. If the previous landscapes affirmed the unity of nature and man, then in this canvas the idea of ​​opposing the hero and the world around him appears, which personifies the conflict between man and reality, characteristic of this era.

    The perception of the world in its tragic inconsistency was reflected in Poussin's famous landscape cycle "The Four Seasons", executed in the last years of his life (1660 - 1664, Louvre). The artist poses and solves in these works the problem of life and death, nature and humanity.

    The tragic "Winter" was the last work of the artist. In the autumn of 1665, Poussin dies.16

    This long period of Poussin's work is characterized by a general crisis in his artistic method. Thematic paintings are becoming more and more rational and cold every year. Reason dominates, but here the danger was hidden: Poussin himself drove himself into the framework of the canons, he himself tightened them. His talent therefore found an outlet in portraits and landscapes. Poussin's landscapes show the grandeur and harmony of nature, its ideal. But gradually he begins to show not the harmony of man and nature, but the conflict of man and reality.

    We see how the work of Nicolas Poussin has changed over the years. Every year the mind occupies an increasingly strong position in his paintings, suppressing the feeling. At first, the process goes on an ascending line, and the artist's creativity reaches its peak where the mind and feeling are in harmony. But Poussin does not stop there, and continues to tighten his artistic method, giving more and more space to the mind. This leads to a creative crisis. Thematic paintings freeze in cold rationality. True, the talent of the master finds an outlet in brilliant portraits and landscapes.

    Chapter II. The influence of Poussin on the development of art.

    The significance of Poussin's art for his time and subsequent eras is enormous. His true heirs were not the French academicians of the second half of the 17th century, but the representatives of classicism of the 18th century, who managed to express the great ideas of their time in the forms of this art.

    “His creations served as examples for the noblest minds to follow in order to rise to the heights reached by the few,” Bellori said of Poussin.

    The validity of this assessment is confirmed by the influence of Poussin on artists, both French and foreign, both of his time and subsequent generations, as well as the interest that has survived the centuries in the artistic heritage of this remarkable master.

    In France, the works of Poussin at first aroused surprise and curiosity. His first paintings, which fell into the hands of Parisian collectors, were perceived as "curiosities, rarities." But soon connoisseurs and connoisseurs of art, and then artists, realized what great wealth, what power lies in his harsh art.

    Poussin made up for the lack of lessons of the high Italian Renaissance in Russian painting. French masters who turned to the experience of Italian artistic culture were not inspired by the truly classical style of Leonardo and Raphael. The artists of the French Renaissance borrowed the fashionable forms of Italian mannerism - the "mannerful" style of the Fontainebleau school, in essence, was the antithesis classical art.

    Traveling to Rome to complete an art education, which became a custom among young French artists of the 17th century, changed little in this sense. Of these, only Poussin and, to some extent, Jacques Stella were imbued with the spirit of classical art. Most of the rest either adopted the principles of decorative baroque or paid tribute to caravaggism. As for those who never left the borders of France, they worked mainly in the traditions of the Second School of Fontainebleau, and after returning to their homeland, Voue adopted his eclectic style, combining elements of Bolognese academicism and decorative baroque with a Venetian manner of writing.17

    So, if not for Poussin, the French school of painting would have passed in its development past the high classics of the Renaissance.

    CONCLUSION

    Nicolas Poussin is the greatest representative of French classicism of the 17th century. He laid the foundations of the classicist method; without Poussin, France would not have known classicism.

    Reason and will is a cult whose ministers were representatives of French classicism. For Poussin's work, love plays a secondary role. It gives way to more "lofty" feelings, born as a result of subordinating one's immediate experiences to the voice of reason.

    No matter how deep and strong the feelings depicted by the artist are, Poussin's characters are characterized by calmness and restraint. Their actions are always subordinated either to the voice of their own intellect, or to the command of a higher guiding will. All even Bacchic and erotic emotions depicted by him never cross the border of the human, the border drawn by the mind. The relationship between mind and feeling is the main problem posed in Poussin's work.

    The organizing principle of the mind always triumphs over the blind instinct, over the chaos of feelings, actions and artistic techniques of the master. In his works, he ranges from an unexpected and never completely defeated predominance of an emotional moment to a dry, almost repulsive rationality.

    But at the heights of his art, Poussin finds a stable spiritual balance, a perfect harmony of the spirit, which is always based on the victory of reason. However, the mind wins, but does not drive out the feeling. The significance of the underlying idea, the firmness of the organizing principle combines the best works of Poussin with great emotional richness, depth and seriousness of feeling. The exciting thing that never dies in them is that in the works of a true artist it turns not to the mind, but to the heart of a person.

    To Poussin, his ideal world is dear to the extent that it, as it were, compensates for the woeful imperfection of reality (remember his exclamation: “I am afraid of the cruelty of the century ...”). The art of the French master is a reminder of humanity, which eventually turns into a demand for humanity.

    Poussin is so stubborn in his pursuit of a harmonious ideal, so uncompromising in asserting the unity of aesthetic and ethical principles, that over the years his ideal style becomes more and more rigid. Behind the stability and calmness of his expressive system lies an internal tension.

    This striving for a harmonious ideal first elevates Poussin's work to its maximum height, where the triumph of the harmony of reason and feeling allows the artist to create majestic images of a beautiful spiritual person.

    But the artist could not stay at the achieved height, because in the pursuit of a harmonious ideal he began to tighten his artistic system, to set limits for himself. He could not stay on the golden mean.

    But during the crisis, the other side of his talent manifests itself and develops: he begins to paint beautiful portraits and brilliant landscapes, where nature acts as a majestic ideal.

    As a result, Poussin's work had a huge impact on the development of French classicism and European art in general.

    In addition, millions of visitors to dozens of world-famous museums - the Hermitage, the Louvre, the Dresden and London National Galleries and others - still admire his canvases.

    NOTES

    1 1 Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    2 2 Volskaya V. N. Poussin. M., 1946.
    3 3 Glikman A. S. Nicolas Poussin. L. - M., 1964.
    4 General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963.
    5 Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988. S. 24 - 53.
    6 General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963. S. 193 - 194.
    7 Ibid. pp. 196 - 198.
    8 Glickman A. S. Nicolas Poussin. L. - M., 1964. S. 14 - 18.
    9 Ibid. S. 32.
    10 General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963. S. 197.
    11 Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988. S. 230 - 232.
    12 General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963. S. 195.
    13 Ibid. S. 193.
    14 Ibid. S. 196.
    15 Volskaya V. N. Poussin. M., 1946. S. 44 - 60.
    16 General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963. S. 199 - 200.
    17 Glikman A. S. Nicolas Poussin. L. - M., 1964. S. 91.

    LIST OF SOURCES

    Poussin N. Poet's inspiration. // Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    Poussin N. Generosity of Scipio. // Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    Poussin N. Rinaldo and Armida. // Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    Poussin N. Judgment of Solomon. // Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    Poussin N. Tancred and Erminia. // Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.
    Poussin N. Kingdom of Flora. // General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963. S. 201.

    BIBLIOGRAPHY

    General theory of art. T. 4. Art of the 17th – 18th centuries. M., 1963.
    Volskaya V. N. Poussin. M., 1946.
    Glikman A. S. Nicolas Poussin.
    Zolotov Y. Poussin. M., 1988.

    Nicolas Poussin "The Kingdom of Flora"

    The interests of Nicolas Poussin, a famous painter, were not limited to fine arts, he also studied anatomy and mathematics. This knowledge, coupled with great talent and power, created the indescribable style of Poussin. He came to great painting during the heyday of French court art, which amazed contemporaries with its brilliance and splendor. Along with the artists of the so-called. court style in the 17th century. in France, peintres de la realite worked - “painters of reality”, who spoke on the topics of war, fires, poverty, and the difficulties of peasant life rejected by official art.

    Nicolas Poussin did not fully relate to any of them. these directions. Experienced in his time by the influence of Raphael and Titian, Poussin was the most consistent classicist in French painting. Poussin portrayed antiquity as he imagined it. On his canvases, the heroes of antiquity came to life again to perform feats, go against the will of the gods, or simply sing and have fun. But the bacchanalia of Poussin is far from the orgies that the ancients organized in honor of Dionysus. They are quieter and cleaner. Poussin would never have allowed himself to write something ugly, trivial.

    "The Kingdom of Flora" (1631-1632) is the best of all the "Lydian" and "Ionian" paintings of Poussin. Poussin showed a man returned to the bosom of innocence, to the bosom of nature, devoid of the features of primitive rudeness; On the contrary, he acquires an amazing delicacy of feelings and almost ballet grace. It is enough just to see the faces of the characters in the picture once to say with confidence: these people enjoy life, even the warrior rejected by his beloved throwing himself at the sword.

    It is known that many of Poussin's paintings are associated with literary subjects, and some even amaze researchers with their exact adherence to the text. Even in those cases where the main thing in the work is the landscape, Poussin introduces small figures into his composition to create a certain mood. Among these works is the "Landscape with Polyphemus" - a captured moment of the legend, the love song of a giant on top of a rock, transformed by the language of painting into bright praise of the serene joys of the earth.

    Poussin chose Ovid's poetic adaptation of the myth of Polyphemus as the subject of the painting, in which the one-eyed giant personifies the destructive forces of nature. In Poussin, the mighty figure of Polyphemus dominates the canvas. High cliffs cut by ledges are surrounded by dense shrubs and mighty trees, behind whose spreading branches the expanse of the sea spreads. On the rock, as if emerging from it and at the same time merging with it, the mighty figure of Polyphemus grows; through the jets of the stream flowing at the feet of the river god and the nymphs, stones on the sandy bottom are clearly visible. A single smooth line covers mighty rocks and trees; the space is conveyed by clear, easily visible plans, leading the viewer's gaze to the sea itself. The coloring of the picture is built on a strict combination of green and blue tones of greenery and air, prevailing in Nature. Skillfully combining them with the warm brown color of the rocks and the pink color of naked bodies, Poussin achieves a special expressiveness (colorful solution of the entire canvas.

    A Norman by birth, Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) was born in Les Andelys, a small town on the banks of the Seine. Young Poussin was provided a good education and the opportunity to explore the initial stages of the artist's art. He learned a more detailed acquaintance with the secrets of craftsmanship after moving to Paris, where he studied with the masters.

    The portrait painter Ferdinand Van Elle became the young painter's first mentor, and later Poussin studied with the master painter of churches - Quentin Varen, and the court painter Georges Lallemant, who adhered to the relatively new style of mannerism at that time. Copying paintings by recognized masters of painting also helped him to "fill his hand", he could freely do this at the Louvre.

    The first period of creativity in Italy

    In 1624, the name of Poussin was already known among connoisseurs of painting, and he himself was increasingly fascinated by the work of Italian masters. Deciding that he learned everything he could from the French mentors, Poussin moved to Rome. Apart from Italian painting Poussin also highly appreciated poetry, largely due to his acquaintance with Giambattista Marino, a representative of gallant poetry. They became friends in Paris, and Nicola illustrated his friend's poem "Adonis". From the early Parisian period of the artist's work, only illustrations have survived to this day.

    Poussin studied mathematics and anatomy, the sculptures of antiquity served him as models for sketches, and scientific works Dürer and da Vinci helped in understanding how the proportions of the human body should be transferred to art. He acquired theoretical knowledge in geometry, optics, and the laws of perspective.

    Carracci, Titian, Raphael and Michelangelo - the work of these masters deeply impressed the French painter. The first years of his life in Rome were a time of searching for his own style, and his work then was characterized by sharp angles, gloomy tones and an abundance of shadows. Later, his artistic style changed, the color scheme became warmer, and the elements of the paintings obeyed a single center. The theme of creativity of that time was the heroic plots and actions of ancient mythology.

    By order of one of Poussin's Roman patrons, Cassiano del Pozzo, the artist created a series of paintings "The Seven Sacraments", and "The Destruction of Jerusalem" and "The Rape of the Sabine Women" brought him wider fame. To the mythological themes of his paintings, he added modern trends, streamlining the composition and transferring the action to the foreground of the picture. Poussin sought to achieve the naturalness of the positions of the characters and give their gestures and facial expressions a clear meaning. Harmony and unity with nature, characteristic of ancient myths, inspired the artist, this can be seen in the paintings "Venus and satyrs", "Diana and Endymion", "Education of Jupiter".

    Ovid's "Metamorphoses" served as the basis for the "Kingdom of Flora", the picture became a kind of hymn to the rebirth and spring renewal of nature. The theoretical knowledge acquired earlier allowed him to strictly follow the accepted laws of composition, and warm, clear colors made the paintings truly alive (“Tancred and Erminia”, “Venus and the Shepherds”). Added additional accuracy to the images preliminary preparation: he made models of figures from wax, and before starting work on the picture, he experimented with the play of light and the position of these figures.

    Parisian intrigues and return to Rome

    The most successful years in Poussin's career were the years he spent working on the decoration of the Louvre Gallery at the invitation of Cardinal Richelieu (second half of the 30s). Having received the title of the first royal painter, he worked on the gallery, and on many other orders. Such success did not add to his popularity among fellow painters, and those who also applied for work in the Louvre were especially dissatisfied.

    The intrigues of ill-wishers forced the artist to leave Paris and in 1642 again move to Rome. During this period of creativity (until the 50s), the Bible and the Gospel became the source of themes for Poussin's paintings. If natural harmony reigned in the early works, now the heroes of the paintings are biblical and mythological characters who have defeated their passions and have willpower (Coriolanus, Diogenes). The iconic painting of that period is The Arcadian Shepherds, which speaks compositionally about the inevitability of death and the peaceful acceptance of this awareness. This painting became an example of classicism, the artist's manner acquired a more restrained character, not as emotionally lyrical as in the works of the first Roman period. In the color scheme, the contrast of several colors became predominant.

    The artist did not have time to complete his last work, "Apollo and Daphne", but it was in his paintings that French classicism was formed.

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    Masters of historical painting Lyakhova Kristina Aleksandrovna

    Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665)

    Nicolas Poussin

    Despite the fact that Poussin was very popular in Italy and regularly received orders, in his homeland, in France, court artists spoke negatively about his work. And Poussin himself, forced to live at the French court, yearned for sunny Italy and wrote eloquent letters to his wife, in which he reproached himself for putting a noose around his neck and wanting to escape from the power of “these animals”, return to his studio and do real art.

    French painter Nicolas Poussin was born in Normandy, near Les Andelys. His father was a military man, the family did not live well. Little information has been preserved about Nicola's childhood and youth. It is believed that Quentin Varen, a wandering artist who came to the area where Poussin lived, became his first teacher.

    Varen did not live long in the same place - he soon went to Paris. Nikola, interested in drawing, at the age of eighteen secretly left his home and went after his teacher. In Paris, he did not succeed and soon left it. Only a few years later the artist returned and lived in the capital for some time.

    Poussin was interested not only in painting: he studied mathematics and anatomy, read the works of ancient writers, and also admired the works of Renaissance masters. Since Nicola did not have the opportunity to go to Italy, he got acquainted with the works of Raphael, Titian and other engraving artists.

    While living in Paris, Poussin studied painting in the workshops of J. Lallemand and F. Ellet. The young man turned out to be a talented student and quickly learned all the lessons. Pretty soon, Nikola began to paint his paintings, which already characterized him as an established master. Poussin's popularity increased every year, and at the end of the 10s of the 17th century (Nikola was not even twenty-five years old), he was already fulfilling orders for the Luxembourg Palace in Paris. Soon the artist received an order to create a large altar image of the Assumption of the Mother of God.

    Around the same time, Poussin met the Italian poet, Cavalier Marino, whose poems were very popular at the time. At the request of Marino, the artist completed illustrations for Ovid's Metamorphoses, and then for his own poem Adonis.

    Thanks to successful orders, Poussin was soon able to save up money to fulfill his dream - a trip to Italy. In 1624 he left Paris, where he had already become famous, and went to Rome.

    Arriving in the capital of Italy, Poussin had the opportunity to get acquainted with the works of famous artists, whom he already knew from engravings. However, he did not just walk around cathedrals and galleries, admiring and sketching what he saw. He used his time in Rome to supplement his education. Poussin carefully examined and measured the statues, carefully read the works of Alberti, Leonardo da Vinci, Dürer (the artist's illustrations for one of the lists of da Vinci's works have been preserved).

    In his spare time, Poussin was interested in science and read a lot. Thanks to his comprehensive education, he gained the fame of an erudite and an artist-philosopher. A strong influence on the formation of Poussin's personality was exerted by his friend and customer Cassiano del Pozzo.

    N. Poussin. "Rinaldo and Armida", 1625-1627, Pushkin Museum, Moscow

    Poussin often took subjects for his paintings from literature. For example, the motive for the creation of the painting "Rinaldo and Armida" (1625-1627, Pushkin Museum, Moscow) was the poem "Liberated Jerusalem" by Torquato Tasso.

    In the foreground is the sleeping Rinaldo, the leader of the crusaders. The evil sorceress Armida bent over him with the intention of killing him. However, Rinaldo is so handsome that Armida cannot fulfill his plan.

    This work was painted in the traditions of the baroque style popular at that time: additional characters were introduced, for example, on the right side of the canvas, the master depicted a river god who put Rinaldo to sleep with the sound of water, and on the left - cupids playing with armor.

    In 1626-1627, the artist created the historical canvas "The Death of Germanicus" (Institute of Arts, Minneapolis). Poussin perfectly conveyed the image of a courageous commander, the hope of the Romans, poisoned by order of the envious emperor Tiberius, who did not trust anyone.

    Germanicus lies in bed, around which the soldiers crowded. One can feel their confusion because of what happened and at the same time determination, a desire to punish those responsible for the death of the commander.

    The works brought success to Poussin, and soon he received an honorary order to make an altarpiece for St. Peter's Cathedral. In 1628, the artist completed the painting “The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus ”(Vatican Pinakothek, Rome), and soon after that -“ Descent from the Cross ”(c. 1630, Hermitage, St. Petersburg). Both of these canvases are closest to the Baroque traditions.

    Then the master returned to the work of Tasso and painted the painting “Tancred and Erminia” (1630s, the Hermitage, St. Petersburg). A wounded Tancred appears before the viewer, lying on the ground. His friend, Vafrin, tries to support him, Erminia hurries to them.

    She has just dismounted from her horse and with a quick movement of her hand she cuts off a lock of her hair with a sword in order to bandage the wound of her beloved.

    In the 30s, Poussin wrote other works, the most famous of which is the work "The Arcadian Shepherds" (between 1632 and 1635, collection of the Duke of Devonshire, Chesworth; version 1650, Louvre, Paris). At the same time, the artist completed the order of Cardinal Richelieu and created a series of bacchanalia to decorate his palace. Of these paintings, only one has survived - "The Triumph of Neptune and Amphitrite" (Museum of Art, Philadelphia).

    The popularity of the artist grew rapidly, soon it was already known in France. The master received an invitation to return to his homeland, but he delayed the trip as much as he could. Finally, he was handed a letter from King Louis XIII, who ordered him to immediately obey the order.

    In the autumn of 1640, Poussin arrived in France and was appointed, by royal decree, to be in charge of all artistic work carried out in the royal palaces. In Paris, he was met rather coldly - the court artists did not like his paintings, they envied his success and began to weave intrigues against Nicola. Poussin himself, in turn, tried to find an opportunity to return to Italy. In one of his letters, he said: "... if I stay in this country, I will have to turn into a mess, like others who are here."

    Two years later, Poussin claims that he allegedly received a letter from which he learned that his wife was seriously ill. Under this pretext, he returns to Italy and remains in this country until the end of his life, where he has always been so warmly received.

    Among the paintings painted in France, the most successful are “Time saves the Truth from Envy and Discord” (1642, Museum, Lille) and “The Miracle of St. Francis Xavier" (1642, Louvre, Paris).

    Subsequent compositions by Poussin have already been made in the style of classicism. One of the most interesting works is Scipio's Generosity (1643, Pushkin Museum, Moscow). It was based on the legend of the Roman commander, the conqueror of Carthage, Scipio Africanus, who, by right of the winner, received the captive girl Lucretia as his property. However, he does Noble act, which strikes not only his close associates, but also the defeated Carthaginians - the Roman, although he loves the beautiful captive, returns her to the groom.

    The master placed the figures on the canvas in one row, as in an antique relief. Thanks to this, you can see the posture, gesture and facial expression of each participant in this event - Scipio, sitting on the throne, the groom, bowing respectfully before him, Lucretia standing between them, etc.

    At the end of his life, Poussin became interested in new genres - landscape and portrait ("Landscape with Polyphemus", 1649, Hermitage, St. Petersburg; "Landscape with Hercules", 1649, Pushkin Museum, Moscow; "Self-Portrait", 1650, Louvre, Paris).

    The landscape so captivated the artist that he introduced its elements into another historical picture- "Focion's Funeral", 1648, Louvre, Paris). The hero Phocion was unjustly executed by his fellow citizens. His remains were forbidden to be buried at home.

    N. Poussin. "The generosity of Scipio", 1643, Pushkin Museum, Moscow

    In the painting, Poussin depicted servants carrying the body of Focion out of the city on a stretcher.

    In this work, for the first time, the opposition of the hero to the nature around him appears - despite his death, life goes on, a cart drawn by oxen slowly moves along the road, a horseman gallops, a shepherd tends his flock.

    The last work of the artist was a series of landscapes under the general name "Seasons". The most interesting paintings are "Spring" and "Winter". On the first, Poussin depicted Adam and Eve in a blooming paradise, on the second - the Flood.

    The painting "Winter" became his latest work. Nicolas Poussin died in the autumn. His work had a significant influence on Italian and French artists of the second half of the 17th and 18th centuries.

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    Nicolas Poussin (fr. Nicolas Poussin, 1594, Les Andelys, Normandy - November 19, 1665, Rome) was a French artist who stood at the origins of classicism painting. For a long time he lived and worked in Rome. Almost all of his paintings are based on historical and mythological subjects. Master of chased, rhythmic composition. One of the first to appreciate the monumentality of the local color.

    BIOGRAPHY OF THE ARTIST

    Nicolas Poussin was born in 1594 in the Normandy town of Les Andelys. Already in his youth he received a good general education and at the same time began to study painting. At the age of 18 he went to Paris, where he continued his studies under the guidance of the famous portrait painter Van Elle at that time, and then with other masters. They helped him greatly to hone his technique - visiting the Louvre, where he copied the paintings of the Italians of the Renaissance.

    During this period, Poussin gains some recognition. To further improve his skills, he went to Rome, which at that time was a Mecca for painters of all countries. Here he continued to hone his knowledge, studying treatises and, studying in detail and measuring the proportions ancient sculptures by interacting with other artists. It was during this period that his work acquires the features of classicism, one of the pillars of which Nicolas Poussin is still considered to be.

    The artist drew inspiration from the works of classical and modern poets, theatrical performances, philosophical treatises, and biblical themes. But even the canonical plots allowed him to depict the reality around him, filling the canvases with impeccably executed characteristic images, landscapes and plans. The mastery and the already established style of his own brought the artist recognition in Rome, they began to invite him to paint cathedrals, commissioned paintings on classical and historical subjects. It is to this period that the program canvas “Death of Germanicus” belongs, which brought together all the features inherent in European classicism.

    In 1639, at the invitation of Cardinal Richelieu, Poussin came to Paris again to decorate the Louvre Gallery. A year later, Louis XIII, impressed by the talent of the artist, appoints him as his first painter. Poussin was recognized at court, they began to vying with him to order paintings for their castles and galleries.

    But the intrigues of the envious local artistic elite forced him to leave Paris again in 1642 and go to Rome. Here he lived until the end of his days, and the last years of his life, of course, became the most fruitful stage in ego creativity. Poussin at this time began to pay more attention to the image of the surrounding nature, spending a lot of time drawing from nature. Undoubtedly, one of the best embodiments of this trend in his work was the cycle "The Seasons", completed shortly before his death.


    Like other paintings by the painter, these canvases harmoniously combined naturalism and idealism, which throughout the entire creative life of Nicolas Poussin did not leave his works.

    The artist died in the autumn of 1665 in Rome.

    CREATION

    Creativity Poussin for the history of painting is difficult to overestimate.

    He is the founder of such a style of painting as classicism.

    French artists before him were traditionally familiar with art Italian Renaissance. But they were inspired by the works of the masters of Italian mannerism, baroque, caravaggism. Poussin was the first French painter who adopted the tradition of the classical style and. Turning to the themes of ancient mythology, ancient history, the Bible, Poussin revealed the themes of his contemporary era. With his works, he brought up a perfect personality, showing and singing examples of high morality, civic prowess. The clarity, constancy and orderliness of Poussin's visual techniques, the ideological and moral orientation of his art later made his work a standard for the Academy of Painting and Sculpture of France, which took up the development of aesthetic norms, formal canons and obligatory rules of artistic creativity (the so-called "academism").

    Poussin's quest has come a long way.

    Already in one of early paintings"The Death of Germanicus" (1626-1628, Minneapolis, Institute of Art), he refers to the techniques of classicism and anticipates many of his later works in the field of historical painting. Germanicus - a courageous and valiant commander, the hope of the Romans - was poisoned by order of the suspicious and envious emperor Tiberius. The painting depicts Germanicus on his deathbed, surrounded by his family and loyal warriors. But not personal grief, but civic pathos - serving the motherland and duty - is the figurative meaning of this canvas. Germanicus, who is dying, takes an oath of allegiance and revenge from the Roman legionnaires, harsh, strong and full of dignity people. All characters arranged like a relief.

    Having embarked on the path of classicism, Poussin sometimes went beyond its borders. His paintings of the 1620s The Massacre of the Innocents (Chantilly, Condé Museum) and The Martyrdom of St. Erasmus (1628-1629, Vatican, Pinacoteca) are close to caravagism and baroque in their exaggeratedly dramatic interpretation of the situation and images, devoid of ideality. The tension of facial expressions and the swiftness of movement are distinguished by the expressive “Descent from the Cross” in the Hermitage (c. 1630) and “Lamentation” in the Munich Pinakothek (c. 1627). At the same time, the construction of both paintings, in which plastically tangible figures are included in the overall rhythm of the composition, is flawless. The color scheme is subject to a well-thought-out ratio of colorful spots. The Munich canvas is dominated by various shades of gray, with which blue-blue and bright red tones are exquisitely contrasted.


    Poussin rarely portrayed the suffering of Christ. The bulk of his works are connected with biblical, mythological and literary subjects.

    The antique theme of his early works, in which the passion for color has affected, affirms the bright joy of life.

    The figures of swarthy satyrs, charming nymphs, cheerful cupids are full of that soft and smooth movement, which the master called "body language". The painting “The Kingdom of Flora” (1631, Dresden, Art Gallery), inspired by the motives of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, depicts the heroes of ancient myths who, after their death, gave life to various flowers that adorned the fragrant kingdom of the goddess Flora. The death of Ajax throwing himself at the sword, the doom of the mortally wounded Adonis and Hyacinth, the suffering of the lovers Smila and Krokon do not overshadow the reigning jubilant mood. The blood flowing from Hyacinth's head turns into falling petals of wonderful blue flowers, a red carnation grows from the blood of Ajax, Narcissus admires his reflection in a vase of water held by the nymph Echo.

    Like a colorful living wreath, the characters of the picture surround the dancing goddess. The canvas of Poussin embodies the idea of ​​the immortality of nature, which gives life eternal renewal.

    This life is brought to the heroes by the laughing goddess Flora, showering them with white flowers, and the radiant light of the god Helios, who makes his fiery run in golden clouds.

    The theme of life and death runs through all of Poussin's work.

    In the Kingdom of Flora, it acquired the character of a poetic allegory; in The Death of Germanicus, it was associated with ethical, heroic issues. In the paintings of the 1640s and later, this theme was saturated with philosophical depth. The myth of Arcadia, a country of serene happiness, was often embodied in art. But Poussin expressed in this idyllic plot the idea of ​​the transience of life and the inevitability of death. The artist depicted shepherds who unexpectedly discovered a tomb with the inscription "And I was in Arcadia ..." - a reminder of the fragility of life, of the coming end. In an early version (1628-1629, Chatsworth, the meeting of the Dukes of Devonshire), more emotional, full of movement and drama, the confusion of young shepherds is strongly expressed, who seemed to face death invading their bright world.

    The image of nature as the personification of the highest harmony of being runs through all of Poussin's work. Walking in the vicinity of Rome, he studied the landscapes of the Roman Campagna with his usual inquisitiveness. His lively impressions are conveyed in wonderful landscape drawings from nature, full of freshness of perception and subtle lyricism. The picturesque landscapes of Poussin are devoid of this sense of immediacy, the ideal beginning is more pronounced in them.

    Poussin's landscapes are imbued with a sense of the grandeur and grandeur of the world.

    Heaping rocks, lush trees, crystal-clear lakes, cool springs flowing among stones and shady bushes, are combined in a plastic whole, integral composition based on alternation spatial plans, each of which is parallel to the plane of the canvas. The restrained range of colors is usually based on a combination of cold blue and bluish tones of the sky, water and warm brownish tones of soil and rocks.

    The works of Poussin, saturated with deep thought, first of all conquer with the vital fullness of images. He was attracted by the beauty of human feelings, reflections on the fate of man, the theme of poetic creativity. Of particular importance for the philosophical and artistic conception of Poussin was the theme of nature as the highest embodiment of reasonable and natural harmony.

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