A detailed description of the painting Kuindzhi birch grove 1901. The painting "Birch Grove", Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi - description

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RUSSIAN ARTISTS Kuindzhi Arkhip Ivanovich (1842-1910)

“For Russian painting, it was necessary for the appearance of its own Monet - such an artist who would understand the relationship of colors so clearly, would so accurately delve into their shades, would so fervently and passionately wish to convey them that other Russian artists would believe him, would cease to relate to the palette as to some hardly necessary appendage ... "
Alexander Benois - article about Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi, 1903

Portrait by V. M. Vasnetsov, 1869

Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi was born in 1842 on the outskirts of Mariupol in the family of a Greek shoemaker. The surname Kuindzhi comes from the nickname of the grandfather, which in Tatar means “goldsmith”. In 1845, his father, Ivan Khristoforovich, suddenly died, soon after his mother. Three-year-old Arkhip is brought up alternately by the brother and sister of the deceased Ivan Khristoforovich. Arkhip Ivanovich began learning to read and write with a Greek teacher, then at a city school. At the age of ten, Kuindzhi stops studying: he is assigned to a building contractor. From a building contractor, Kuindzhi goes to the baker Amoretti as a room boy.

Passion for drawing led him to Feodosia to I.K. Aivazovsky. Apparently, Kuindzhi received his initial lessons in painting not from Aivazovsky, but from Fessler, a young painter who worked and at the same time studied with Aivazovsky. But soon Arkhip Ivanovich returns to Mariupol, where he goes to work as a retoucher in his older brother's photographic studio.

In 1866, Kuindzhi went to St. Petersburg to enter the Academy of Arts. He twice passed the exams at the Academy of Arts and both times to no avail: artistic training turned out to be weak. In 1868, Kuindzhi presented the painting “Tatar saklya” to an academic exhibition, for which he received the title of a non-class artist. In the same year he was accepted as a volunteer at the Academy. At the Academy, Kuindzhi made friends with I. E. Repin and V. M. Vasnetsov, met I. N. Kramskoy, M. M. Antokolsky, V. E. Makovsky. Future Wanderers largely determined his artistic interests.

"Autumn thaw"
1872
Oil on canvas 110 x 70
St. Petersburg

Kuindzhi not only conveyed a cold autumn day, a washed-out road with dull gleaming puddles - he introduced into the landscape a lonely figure of a woman with a child, who is hardly walking through the mud. In the 1890s, the artist repeated the “Autumn Thaw” in a mirror image. The painting, titled “Autumn. Fog”, remained unfinished.

"Autumn. Fog"
1899
Oil on paper on canvas 54.9 x 36.5
State Russian Museum
St. Petersburg

In 1870 - 1873, Kuindzhi often visited the island of Valaam. As a result, the paintings “Lake Ladoga” (1870) and “On the Island of Valaam” (1873) appeared. In "Lake Ladoga" Kuindzhi overcame the overstrain in the transmission of the state of the weather, characteristic of the works of the late romantics. The landscape is executed gracefully: subtle shades of light, picturesque wholeness of tone writing remove light contrasts, which usually convey a dramatic feeling.

"After the Storm"
1879
Canvas, oil
Sumy Art Museum

But the painting "Birch Grove" had the greatest success at the exhibition. Working on this picture, Kuindzhi was looking, first of all, for the most expressive composition. The foreground is immersed in shadow - this is how the saturation of the green meadow with the sun is emphasized. A sunny day is captured in the picture with pure, sonorous colors, the brilliance of which is achieved by contrast, by juxtaposing colors, refined to whiteness. An extraordinary harmony of color is given by the green color, penetrating into the blue color of the sky, into the whiteness of birch trunks, into the blue of the stream on a flat meadow. The effect of light-color contrast, in which the color is not soundless, but forced, creates the impression of clarity of the world. Nature seems immovable, as if enchanted by an unknown force. The landscape is removed from everydayism, which gives it a certain purity.

"Birch Grove 2"

In the Birch Grove, the artist contemplates beauty. Therefore, the real riches of nature, its many-sided charms are given as a general plan. The image is summarized in color: the meadow is presented as a flat plane, like a table, the sky is an equally colored backdrop, the grove is almost a silhouette, the birch trunks in the foreground seem to be flat scenery. In the absence of distracting details, petty particulars, a whole impression of the face of nature, perfect beauty, is born. Nature in Kuindzhi's "Birch Grove" is real and conditional. “Birch Grove” did not fully fit into the plasticity of developed realism: decorative elements interfered. At the same time, the picture weakly foreshadowed romantic transformations. The optimism of the picture seemed to express that thirst for “pleasant”, which after some time was clearly formulated by V. A. Serov and other artists of the Mammoth circle.

In the artist's work, color is freed from dark tonality. In nature, Kuindzhi captures the finest gradations of color. In painting, the artist freely varies lighting, halftones, brightness. He deliberately activates, loudly juxtaposes complementary colors. Kuindzhi comprehended to perfection the subtle knowledge of the harmony of colors, color, tone. This ability of his was fully manifested in the paintings of 1879 and the works that followed them.

"After the rain"
1879
Oil on canvas 102 x 159
State Tretyakov Gallery
Moscow

In the late 1870s, Kuindzhi's relations with the Wanderers deteriorated sharply. In March 1880, he left the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions.

In 1880, Kuindzhi arranges an exhibition of one of his paintings at the Society for the Encouragement of Arts: “Moonlight Night on the Dnieper”, this exhibition was a huge success.

Original entry and comments on

(1841/1842-1910) is a great Russian artist of Greek origin. He became known for his unique style of landscape painting. One of the most remarkable works of Kuindzhi is the painting "Birch Grove".

Painting " Birch Grove"was painted in 1879, Oil on canvas. 97 × 181 cm. Currently in the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. After the work was completed, the landscape was presented at the 7th exhibition of the Wanderers or the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions. The picture shows a birch grove on a bright sunny day. Even then, at the first exhibition where the painting was presented, many viewers immediately drew attention to the unusual nature of the landscape painting. Kuindzhi not only created a very sharp contrast between light and shadow, thereby emphasizing the dazzle of sunlight, but also depicted unusual colors and shades that made the picture very realistic and fabulous at the same time.

The picture is visually divided into two parts by a stream flowing through the center. The stream not only divides the picture into two parts, making it more harmonious, but also carries the viewer's eye away, almost to the very horizon. Another quality that the stream has is freshness and coolness. It is, in a way, shading the general appearance of a hot day with a scorching sun.

The trees in the background act as a backdrop. Arkhip Kuindzhi deliberately does not give them drawing and detail, as if showing the viewer that the most important thing is in the foreground. Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi has always been in awe of Russian nature and Russian landscapes, and this picture, in particular, perfectly shows all the love of man for nature and the crazy inspiration that he drew in the forests, meadows and fields of the Russian hinterland.

Painting "Birch Grove". Kuindzhi

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Memories of Kuindzhi:

The powerful, original character of Arkhip Ivanovich, illuminated by the halo of artistic genius, left indelible marks in the memory of everyone he met on his life path. Among the many curious manifestations of his multifaceted life, two characteristic cases that depict Kuindzhi as an artist-teacher and Kuindzhi as the keeper of his artistic treasure are particularly deeply embedded in my memory. In January 1898, my friend and I were preparing our paintings for the Spring Exhibition at the Academy of Arts. Having met with Arkhip Ivanovich at the Academy, I asked him to come to our apartment to see our work. The next day, around noon, familiar measured steps were heard in the corridor leading to our room. I rushed to the door. Before us stood Arkhip Ivanovich in his black greatcoat with a beaver collar and a fur hat...

"Moonlit night on the Dnieper":

In the summer and autumn of 1880, during a break with the Wanderers, A.I. Kuindzhi worked on a new painting. Rumors about the enchanting beauty of the "Moonlight Night on the Dnieper" spread throughout the Russian capital. For two hours on Sundays, the artist opened the doors of his studio to those who wished, and the St. Petersburg public began to besiege her long before the completion of the work. This picture has gained a truly legendary fame. I.S. Turgenev and Y. Polonsky, I. Kramskoy and P. Chistyakov, D. I. Mendelev came to the workshop of A. I. Kuindzhi, the well-known publisher and collector K. T. Soldatenkov asked the price of the painting. Directly from the workshop, even before the exhibition, “Moonlight Night on the Dnieper” was bought for a huge amount of money by the Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich ...

Kuindzhi's mission in Russian art:

For Russian painting, the appearance of its own Monet was necessary - such an artist who would understand the relationships of colors so clearly, would so accurately delve into their shades, would so ardently and passionately wish to convey them that other Russian artists would believe him, would cease to relate to palette as to some hardly necessary appendage. Since the time of Kiprensky and Venetsianov, colors in Russian painting have ceased to play an independent, significant role. The artists themselves treated them as a kind of official costume, without which, only out of prejudice, it is indecent to appear before the public.

Days of free visits at the museum

Every Wednesday you can visit the permanent exhibition "The Art of the 20th Century" in the New Tretyakov Gallery for free, as well as the temporary exhibitions "The Gift of Oleg Yakhont" and "Konstantin Istomin. Color in the Window”, held in the Engineering Corps.

The right to free access to expositions in the Main Building in Lavrushinsky Lane, the Engineering Building, the New Tretyakov Gallery, the house-museum of V.M. Vasnetsov, museum-apartment of A.M. Vasnetsov is provided on the following days for certain categories of citizens in general order:

First and second Sunday of every month:

for students of higher educational institutions of the Russian Federation, regardless of the form of education (including foreign citizens-students of Russian universities, graduate students, adjuncts, residents, assistant trainees) upon presentation of a student card (does not apply to persons presenting student trainee cards) );

for students of secondary and secondary specialized educational institutions (from 18 years old) (citizens of Russia and the CIS countries). On the first and second Sundays of each month, students holding ISIC cards have the right to visit the exhibition “Art of the 20th Century” at the New Tretyakov Gallery free of charge.

every Saturday - for members of large families (citizens of Russia and CIS countries).

Please note that conditions for free access to temporary exhibitions may vary. Check the exhibition pages for details.

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Visiting the museum on public holidays

On National Unity Day - November 4 - the Tretyakov Gallery is open from 10:00 to 18:00 (entry until 17:00). Paid entrance.

• Tretyakov Gallery in Lavrushinsky Lane, Engineering Building and New Tretyakov Gallery - from 10:00 to 18:00 (ticket office and entrance until 17:00)
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Right of preferential visit The Gallery, except as provided for by a separate order of the Gallery's management, is provided upon presentation of documents confirming the right to preferential visits:

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Please note that conditions for preferential admission to temporary exhibitions may vary. Check the exhibition pages for details.

Birch Grove - Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi. 1879. Oil on canvas. 97x181 cm

The painting was created specifically for the 7th exhibition of the Artistic Traveling Society, and immediately aroused the surprise of the public and viewers - the color scheme of the canvas was so unusual for everyone.

Although many people liked the joyful, bright mood of the work, it was this picture that was the impulse that divorced the artist from. Shortly after the exhibition, an anonymous article under the pseudonym "Amateur" appeared in the newspaper "Molva", which accused Kuindzhi of bad taste - the author de "re-greens" his paintings too much. Also in the article there were doubts about Kuindzhi's talent in principle, and it was also said that lighting effects are not the result of a filigree possession of technology, but the use of lighting devices that are hidden behind the canvases of paintings. The name of the mysterious "Amateur" was very soon revealed, it turned out to be a colleague "in the shop" Kuindzhi, a member of the traveling society M. Klodt.

Kuindzhi demanded the exclusion of the offender from the Wanderers, however, no one responded to this request, and Arkhip Ivanovich left himself. However, biographers agree that the conflict between Kuindzhi and Klodt was just a pretext - the painter has long stepped over the socially accusatory framework of art promoted by society, and "Birch Grove" is a vivid confirmation of this.

Having conceived a plot that was used in his work by a great many Russian artists (,), the master searched for the ideal composition for a long time - this is evidenced by the preserved sketches and sketches. From these artifacts, one can trace how the author chose the height of the trees, the area of ​​​​the clearing, thought how much space to give under the forest. That is, there is nothing spontaneous in this picture, it is the fruit of a well-thought-out artistic thought and by no means an open-air work.

What is the decorativeness of the picture? If you pay attention to the groups of birch trees, which are placed on the canvas with verified accuracy, or rather on the bases of the trunks, you can see how they are deliberately flattened, which creates some convention. Also, decorativeness is manifested in static nature - the foliage on the trees seems to be frozen, and the air is so transparent that it is obvious: there is not a single breath of breeze in the clearing. The thicket in the depths of the picture is devoid of detail - it is a dark green wall, designed to set off color contrasts.

But all the beauty lies in the piercing greenery and sunlight. The artist deliberately "lowered" the shadow to the foreground, further emphasizing the contrast in relation to the sunlit meadow.

You do not immediately notice a stream with greenish water, although it flows in the very center - it seems that the sun breaking through the crown of trees has thus transformed the path. However, the gleaming mirror surface confirms that it is the stream that conditionally divides the canvas into two halves.

The author used pure bright colors, and if you look fragmentarily, it seems that they are simply sometimes simply unrealistic, but as soon as you take a wide look at the canvas, you feel this sunny bright day almost physically.

Kuindzhi, with his decorativeness, simplification, and innovative use of the power of color, was in many ways ahead of his time, and therefore not everyone immediately accepted the work, although it was the Birch Grove that was destined to become the artist's "calling card".

And rightly so - the "birch" theme did not let the painter go all his life. In addition to the most famous work, there are five more with the same name, of which only two are considered completed. The third picture has caused the most controversy - in addition to the vertical format, there is a search in the field of symbolism in it ... but that's a completely different story.