Paintings famous artists keep the secrets of the people depicted on them. We invite you to take a walk through the virtual art gallery and explore the stories of the women in the paintings. These stories can be romantic, mystical or just funny.
This work of art is one of the most famous paintings the painter - was first presented to the audience in Italy, where it was favorably received by critics. Karl Bryullov was the first Russian artist to become famous in prim Europe. For a long time it was assumed that this painting was a portrait of the young Countess Yulia Samoilova, whom the artist loved very much and often depicted on his canvases. For example, in the film “The Last Day of Pompeii” three characters at once have the facial features of Yulia Samoilova. However, when comparing the painting “Horsewoman” with the portraits of the Countess that Bryullov painted later, it becomes clear that the painting is not Yulia Samoilova. But who? In one of his paintings, Karl Bryullov depicted Countess Samoilova with his pupil Giovannina, in another painting he painted the same countess with adopted daughter Amazilia. Researchers of Bryullov’s work have come to the conclusion that the painting depicts precisely these girls, who were raised by the countess. But paintings by famous artists usually carry some kind of mystery. To solve the riddle from this painting, you need to take a closer look at the dog in a collar, which the artist depicted next to the little girl. The name of its owner, Samoilova, is written on the collar.
It seems that how the painting “Alyonushka” was created has long been known to everyone. It is believed that Vasnetsov, in the image of the sad heroine of Russian epics, portrayed the girl with whom fate brought him together in the village of Akhtyrka. Speaking about this painting, many cite a quote from Vasnetsov himself, where he admits that the image of Alyonushka has long settled in his head, but final version The portrait was formed when in the village of Okhtyrka he met a simple girl. But is it? In one of the artist's notes you can read true story painting a picture. Vasnetsov admits that, although he already had a sketch of a painting based on this simple girl, it is not a life-based genre piece. The artist was actually inspired by the eyes of Verusha Mamontova. He admitted that the eyes of this particular girl seemed to him everywhere and settled in his soul. Who is Verusha Mamontova? Of course, her image is familiar to art lovers, because she is the one depicted in Serov’s painting “Girl with Peaches.” Now, knowing the artist’s revelations, in Alyonushka you can easily find the facial features of Verusha Mamontova.
Sometimes paintings by famous artists surprise you with where such a plot comes from, sometimes the sources of inspiration are unexpected. This can be said about the history of painting the canvas " Unequal marriage" One aristocrat from Moscow decided to write down his memoirs, where he talked about all his relatives, including his uncle Sergei Varentsov. In 1862, this uncle, as a young man, suddenly fell in love with the pretty daughter of the merchant Rybnikov, Sofia. And he fell in love so much that he even proposed marriage, but he was refused. The girl’s prudent father did not want to give his daughter in marriage to a young and frivolous rake, but preferred to give her hand to the elderly and not poor merchant Korzinkin (interestingly, the “elderly” groom was then 38 years old). By an unfortunate coincidence, young Varentsov had to play the role of best man at this wedding. The artist Vasily Pukirev was so imbued with this story and torment loving heart who created this painting. Thanks to this painting, Vasily Pukirev received the title of professor, as well as good money: the canvas was immediately bought by the art collector Borisovsky, and Tretyakov bought it from him. True, Pukirev had to redo the canvas a little, because Varentsov recognized himself in the best man in this picture. The artist portrayed Varentsov so accurately in his work that, thanks to the popularity of the painting, his unhappy love began to be discussed throughout Moscow. As a result, Pukirev had to rewrite the best man’s face and now, looking at the picture, the public sees in the background an image of Pukirev’s own face.
Painting “Portrait of M. I. Lopukhina” by Vladimir Borovikovsky
This painting was created in 1797 and is a romantic female image. It has been captivating the public for centuries, and art connoisseurs consider it an ode to sentimentalism. Paintings by famous artists are often accompanied by mystical fables. Such a fable is connected with this picture. The image of an 18-year-old beauty is the first painting in the history of Russia, steeped in mysticism. The girl depicted in the portrait was the daughter of Count Ivan Tolstoy. In the year the portrait was painted, she married Stepan Lopukhin, who served in the administration of Paul I. Immediately after the wedding, her husband ordered Borovikovsky portrait his beloved wife. The marriage did not last long, because 3 years after the wedding the young princess died of an illness - consumption. The inconsolable father bought the painting with a portrait of his daughter from his son-in-law and hung it in his house. It must be said that Count Tolstoy was a master Masonic lodge and was interested in mysticism. There were rumors that the count, using magic, was able to summon the spirit of his deceased daughter and breathe it into Borovikovsky’s painting. There is a fable - any girl who looks at the portrait will definitely die. They even cited “very reliable facts” that the portrait killed at least a dozen young girls. Fortunately for posterity, Tretyakov did not believe in mysticism and a century later he bought the painting, which millions of viewers can now see in the gallery named after him.
The paintings of famous artists are distinguished by the fact that in their works they glorify the female ideal. Even when depicting the Madonna, artists of all times without a twinge of conscience painted portraits of their lovers, many of whom were women of different ages. noble birth. For example, researchers of Raphael’s work say that the artist met the daughter of a poor baker, Fornarina, on one of the streets of Rome. The artist fell in love with her. Raphael, who was then already widely known and occupied a high level on the social ladder, bought the girl from her father and rented for her luxury home. The artist really considered her the ideal of beauty and lived with her until his death for 12 years. But they say that the beauty herself was not loyal to her benefactor and cuckolded him both with the artist’s students and with those who ordered the paintings. After the death of Raphael, because of the reputation of this woman, the Pope did not even want to perform the funeral service for him, because Fornarina was standing nearby. Despite all this, it is Fornarina’s face that we see in the painting “ Sistine Madonna" Raphael also gave her the face of many other Madonnas painted by his hand.
Portrait in painting is a genre visual arts, in which artists strive not so much for external resemblance as they try to reflect the inner character of the person depicted. A portrait can be individual or collective; the master artist creates an image typical of a certain era.
History of the genre
How did it turn out during the ancient art. On the island of Crete, during excavations, many frescoes with images of women were found. Other art monuments date back to Egypt, where wooden boards were discovered with portraits depicted on them using the encaustic technique (these are wax-based paints). During the Middle Ages, portraits in painting existed only to depict donors and were part of the general artistic composition on religious themes.
The heyday of painting fell on the Renaissance. Renaissance artists preached humanistic ideas and took the world as a basis individual person, landscapes and interiors were given a modest role as background. The masterpiece of that time was La Gioconda, and its author Leonardo da Vinci became famous for centuries.
Titian made a huge contribution to the development of the genre; he created a whole gallery of portraits of his contemporaries. Self-portraits of artists such as Jan van Eyck and Albrecht Durer are examples for many portrait artists.
Portrait of a woman in painting
The eternal theme of art is the depiction of the image of a woman. Each era painted its own ideal of a woman, and her character attracted the special attention of many artists. Looking at the portrait of those times, we can see how the appearance and inner world influenced by certain events public life, art, literature, fashion.
The art of Russia in general, and portraiture in painting in particular, show how the ideal has changed over the centuries female beauty. This is due to a change in worldview, habits, customs, with a change in systems of government and generations.
Images of women
By the end of the 18th century, Russian portraiture in painting reached its peak. And one of the most important and popular topics is the depiction of female charm. On the canvases we see flirtatious and seductive women. And in the portraits of foreign artists, Russian ladies and young ladies look like dolls, they coyly and playfully smile, and this makes one look like the other.
Russian artists I.P. Argunov, D.G.Levitsky, V.L. Borovikovsky sees a woman differently. They bring psychological revitalization and concrete character to a woman’s portrait. In painting they try to convey the living and real picture morals, tastes and fashion of the era of female omnipotence. We see the whole spectrum of female characters: arrogant cold beauty and tender soft dreaminess, coquetry and modesty, spiritual charm and severe secrecy with isolation. But to dominate the hearts of men is the main thing.
New ideals
The era of romanticism of the 19th century was designed to show a woman’s special sensitivity and subtle movements of the soul. The work of Karamzin and Zhukovsky had a huge influence on artists of the beginning of the century, for example, O.A. Kiprensky. Their canvases reflected all the features of romanticism in the portrait genre. In painting and music, as well as poetry of this time, motifs of personal lyrical experiences and mysterious colors were in demand native antiquity(was especially popular romantic opera A.N.Verstovsky “Askold’s grave” 1835).
But by the middle of the century, the sublimity and dreaminess of female images disappeared without a trace. From the paintings of this period one can study fashion trends. Feathers on hats, jewelry, and lace are carefully painted; getting carried away by the details, artists often forget about the character himself. Arrogance reigns in the images of secular beauties, and that warmth and simplicity is no longer there.
But some artists of the beginning of the century, in particular Venetsianov and Tropinin, in search of “living” images turn to to the common people. The "common people" movement emerged portrait of a woman, an idealized image of a working woman is created.
Paintings by K.S. Petrova-Vodkina
The new century is characterized by the search for new forms in the portrait genre. In painting (the 6th grade of the school in art lessons studies in detail the topic “ Women's images") artists turn to the past and future in search of the female ideal. The theme of motherhood and femininity occupies great place in the works of V. Petrov-Vodkin. In the work “Mother” the artist achieved a full disclosure of the theme. His painting is a hymn to family happiness and the sanctity of love. In the image of the mother, we feel moral strength, purity and sublimity; hugging the child to herself, she resembles the Madonna.
Painting “Our Lady. Tenderness of Evil Hearts” was written by him during the First World War; it is the artist’s emotional response to the bloody events of those times. He created a sublime and reverent image, which in terms of the depth of its impact is one of the most powerful in his work.
The image of a woman has changed from era to era, but has retained the main enduring features: beauty, tenderness, motherhood.
In terms of its changeability, fashion is second only to the weather, although this is a controversial issue. Moreover, fashion is changing not only in clothes, styles or accessories, but also in women's beauty. A recognized beauty of one era, half a century later can be considered ugly (but you and I know that not beautiful women can not be). At all times, artists responded very sensitively to the whims of fashion, since they always strived to depict the most beautiful women of their era.
Ancient Greece and Rome
Unfortunately, the female ideals of Antiquity have to be judged by frescoes and sculptures, full-fledged paintings not preserved. IN Ancient Greece the goddess Aphrodite, lady curvaceous with long thick red hair. This is exactly how she is depicted in the painting “The Birth of Venus” by Sandro Botticelli, although created already in 1485. IN Ancient Rome valued beauty most of all female face, and the splendor of forms was in second place. For example, the painting “Proserpina” (1874) by Dante Rossetti was created with this in mind.
Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, one could be sent to the stake for praising female beauty, so there is no artistic evidence left. Showing off a woman's figure was strictly prohibited. Clothes had to completely hide the body, and hair was hidden under hats. The standard of female beauty were holy women who devoted themselves to serving God.
Renaissance
The Renaissance is so named due to the revival of interest in the ideals of Antiquity, including in matters of female beauty. Wide hips, full body, elongated face, healthy complexion - this is how the first beauty of the 15th-16th centuries should have looked. This is exactly how women are depicted in the paintings of Sandro Botticelli, Raphael Santi and Michelangelo. The ideal of beauty of the Renaissance can be called the Italian Simonetta Vespucci, who is depicted in several paintings by Botticelli “Spring” (1478), “Birth of Venus” (1485), “Portrait of a Young Woman” (1485). During the Renaissance it was fashionable high forehead, and to achieve this effect, fashionistas shaved their eyebrows and hairline. This is clearly visible on famous painting"Mona Lisa" by Leonardo Da Vinci.
Baroque era
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the ideal of female beauty was white-skinned women (tanning was considered the lot of peasant women) with small breasts, tiny legs, a pale face, but with curvy hips. In addition, any aristocrat had to have a high, complex hairstyle. These fashion trends clearly visible in the portrait of the favorite Louis XIV Madame de Montespan (1670) by Pierre Mignard. It is from this period that Jan Vermeer’s famous work “Woman with a Pearl Earring” (1665) dates back.
Rococo era
If in the picture the woman looks more like a porcelain doll, surrounded by fans, umbrellas, muffs and gloves, then we can safely say that we're talking about about the Rococo era. At the beginning of the 18th century, “mild anorexia” came into fashion: female beauty became fragile, with narrow hips, small breasts, and sunken cheeks. There is evidence that to achieve the effect of “sunken cheeks”, some ladies removed their side teeth, leaving only the front ones - beauty requires sacrifice. The canons of beauty of the Rococo era are perfectly illustrated by the portraits of Francois Boucher, for example, “Portrait of the Marquise de Pompadour” (1756).
Romantic era
Only in the second half of the 19th century did natural blush, healthy freshness and roundness of shape once again become the standards of female beauty. And the most attractive part female body The shoulders become rounded, revealing which was simply necessary for any beauty. It is precisely such women that are found in the paintings of Adolphe Bouguereau; such women were depicted by the first impressionists (“The Birth of Venus” by Bouguereau, “ Large bathers"Renoir, " Blue dancers" Degas).
Early 20th century
“Russian Venus”, “Merchant's Wife at Tea”, “Girl on the Volga” by Boris Kustodiev perfectly illustrate the canons of beauty of the early 20th century. Everything that romanticism admired in a woman became even more magnificent and weighty. 20-40 years of the twentieth century
Mid-20th century
Marilyn Monroe became the ideal of female beauty in the middle of the last century. A short blonde, without any excesses in the direction of thinness or plumpness. The founder of pop art, Andy Warhol, willingly used her image in his works.
Talk about further development ideals of female beauty, especially in their connection with painting, are not yet worthwhile. It is only necessary to note that history is developing in a circle, and thinness and sickness are coming back into fashion.
How often do we admire works of art without thinking about who is depicted in them? Only the names of the royals remain in memory, and the identity of the girl, whose foggy silhouette is visible in the corner of the picture, remains unknown. Today he will tell about the women who posed for artists’ famous paintingsAmateur. media.
Dutch Mona Lisa
The famous “Dutch Mona Lisa”, “Girl with a Pearl Earring” by Jan Vermeer was painted around 1665. For a long time the painting was simply called “Girl in a Turban”, its modern name she received it only in the 20th century. The depiction of turbans in paintings has become popular since the 15th century, and Vermeer often uses this detail of the toilet in portraits. The whole picture is written in special genre“troni”, which denoted the image of a person’s head.
« Dutch Mona Lisa" has long been called "The Girl in the Turban"
True to its name, the viewer's eye is drawn to a large pearl earring.
According to the most common version, it is believed that his young daughter Maria posed for Vermeer’s portrait, although some researchers still suggest that it could be the daughter of the artist’s patron, philanthropist Ruyven. Maria was one of Vermeer's 15 children - his marriage was truly happy. The artist loved his wife, and she often posed for him for paintings.
Mystical portrait of young Lopukhina
The portrait of Maria Ivanovna Lopukhina, one of the representatives of the Tolstoy count family, is one of the most famous works Russian artist Borovikovsky. It was painted in 1797 and is now kept in the Tretyakov Gallery.
The portrait of M. I. Lopukhina is one of the most famous works Borovikovsky
The poet Yakov Polonsky dedicated his poems to the girl depicted in the portrait: “She passed away a long time ago, and those eyes are no longer there, and that smile is gone that silently expressed suffering - the shadow of love, and thoughts - the shadow of sadness, but Borovikovsky saved her beauty.” The artist uses traditional portrait painting technique - surrounding the character with objects that help characterize him. These are the features of the Russian landscape, and a delicate shawl, and drooping rosebuds.
The portrait of Lopukhina is considered the most poetic in Borovikovsky’s work
Interestingly, the portrait of Maria Lopukhina for a long time scared young girls. The fact is that soon after painting the picture, a young woman at the age of 21 died of consumption. Many believed that the portrait seemed to take her life, and if the girls looked at the painting, they would also soon die.
Girl with an umbrella from Monet's paintings
Claude Monet's famous painting "Field of Poppies at Argenteuil" was painted in 1873. This painting appeared at an exhibition of the Impressionists in 1874, when they first declared themselves as separate group. The two figures in the foreground are Monet's wife Camila and their son Jean.
Claude Monet's painting "Field of Poppies at Argenteuil" was painted in 1873
Monet painted, as was his custom, en plein air, trying to capture the atmosphere of airiness and movement. Interesting fact, which few people pay attention to: in the left corner of the picture there is another similar couple, a woman with a child. A barely noticeable path winds between the two couples.
The painting depicts two couples, one of which is Monet's wife and son
The love story of Monet and Camila was tragic: Monet’s father more than once threatened to deprive his son of his maintenance if he did not part with his beloved. They lived apart for a long time, but Monet could not last long without his family. However, the artist often asked his wife to pose for his paintings. We can see Camila both on the canvas “Lady in Green” and among “Women in the Garden”. There are also several separate portraits of Camila and their son. And when Camila died, he painted her posthumous portrait, which differs from the rest of the artist’s works.
Monet painted a posthumous portrait of his wife under the impression of her death
Impressed by the death of his beloved wife, Monet painted her posthumous portrait
The actress who charmed Renoir
Auguste Renoir, one of the most famous impressionist artists, loved and knew how to depict female beauty. Actress Jeanne Samary was his favorite model. Renoir painted 4 portraits from her, but the most famous was “Portrait of the Actress Jeanne Samary.” It was written in 1877 and is now kept in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow.
The main shades used in the portrait are pink and green.
Zhanna was from a theatrical family and did not choose her field for long. She made her theater debut in the role of Dorina in Moliere's Tartuffe, and her fame grew rapidly. Before her marriage, the girl often went to Renoir’s studio and posed for him. True, she attended sessions irregularly, and this angered the artist. But he was completely fascinated by the grace of the actress, so over and over again he invited her to become his model. But her fame and happiness did not last long: she died at 33 from typhus.
Dancer with the flexibility of a snake
The famous author of “Girl with Peaches” Valentin Serov, having met Ida Rubinstein in Paris in 1910, asked her to become a model for the new painting. Before that, she posed for many artists - Kees van Dongen, Antonio de la Gandara, Andre de Segonzac, Leon Bakst, and later for Romaine Brooks.
The portrait of Ida Rubenstein was almost immediately purchased from Serov
But it was the portrait of the Russian artist that became the most famous. The painting was almost immediately purchased from the author and placed in the collection of the Russian Museum.
Serov's daughter Olga wrote that in reality Ida was not so thin at all, and the artist deliberately stylized her
Ida Rubinstein was a famous Russian dancer and actress. From 1909 to 1911 she performed as part of Sergei Diaghilev's troupe. Rubinstein was tall, but her grace amazed the audience, and she was described as a dancer “with the flexibility of a snake and the plasticity of a woman.” The roles of Cleoparta and Zobeide became her star roles. After leaving Diaghilev, she created her own troupe, in which she performed for a long time. And in 1921 she even starred in the Italian film “The Ship”.
