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Sirin and Alkonost. Song of Joy and Sorrow

Oleg's farewell to the horse. Illustration for “Songs about prophetic Oleg” A.S. Pushkin

Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich (Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov, 1848-1926), a great Russian artist, one of the founders of Russian Art Nouveau in its national romantic version.
Born in the village of Lopyal (Vyatka province) on May 3 (15), 1848 in the family of a priest. He studied at the seminary in Vyatka (1862-1867), then at the drawing school at the Society for the Encouragement of Arts in St. Petersburg (where Vasnetsov's mentor was Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy) and at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts (1868-1875).

Vasnetsov is the founder of a special "Russian style" within the pan-European symbolism and modernity. The painter Vasnetsov transformed Russian historical genre, combining the motifs of the Middle Ages with the exciting atmosphere of a poetic legend or fairy tale; however, the tales themselves often become the themes of his large canvases. Among these picturesque epics and fairy tales by Vasnetsov are the paintings "The Knight at the Crossroads" (1878, Russian Museum, St. Petersburg), "After the Battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsy" (based on the legend "The Tale of Igor's Campaign", 1880), "Alyonushka" (1881), "Three Heroes" (1898), "Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible" (1897; all paintings are in the Tretyakov Gallery). Some of these works ("Three princesses underworld", 1881, ibid.) present decorative panel paintings already typical of Art Nouveau, taking the viewer into the world of dreams. For his painting "Alyonushka" the artist could not find a model for a long time. None of the girls, according to the artist, resembled that fairy-tale sister Ivanushka, whom he so clearly imagined. But one day the artist realized that his heroine should have the eyes of Verochka Mamontova (the one with whom Serov wrote his "Girl with Peaches"). And he immediately rewrote the face again, asking the girl to sit motionless in front of him for at least half an hour.

Master decorative painting Vasnetsov showed himself in the panel "Stone Age" (1883-85), written for the Moscow Historical Museum, depicting on it the ancient ancestors of the Slavs. But his biggest accomplishment in the field monumental art murals of the Kyiv Vladimir Cathedral (1885-96) appeared; striving to update the Byzantine canons as much as possible, the artist introduces a lyrical, personal beginning into religious images, framing them with folklore ornaments.

Vasnetsov's contribution to the history of architecture and design is also original. In the Russian style, he saw not just a pretext for imitating antiquity, but also the basis for reproducing such properties of ancient Russian architecture as organic, "vegetative" integrity and decorative richness of forms. According to his sketches, a church was built in Abramtsevo in the spirit of the medieval Pskov-Novgorod tradition (1881-82) and the playfully fairy-tale Hut on Chicken Legs (1883). He also designed the decorative composition of the facade. Tretyakov Gallery(1906) with the coat of arms of Moscow (St. George defeating the dragon) in the center.

After 1917, the artist went entirely to the fairy-tale theme, as eloquently evidenced by the titles of the last major canvases: "The Sleeping Princess", "The Frog Princess", "Kashchei the Immortal", "Princess Nesmeyana", "Sivka-Burka", "Baba Yaga" , "Three princesses of the underworld", "Sirin and Alkonost" ... He existed on a pension provided to him as an honored artist, Soviet power, to which he, in turn, was forced to sell the house, which is now a house-museum. In the upper room of this house, to this day, there is a heroic oak table with the image of a huge Double-headed Eagle in full breadth, which vividly illustrates the scale and spirit of Vasnetsov's monarchism. The importance of Vasnetsov for the development of the creative element of Russian monarchism can hardly be overestimated. It was in his paintings that a generation of future theoreticians of Russian autocracy was brought up (I. A. Ilyin, P. A. Florensky). It was Vasnetsov who gave rise to national school in Russian painting (M. Nesterov, P. Korin, I. Bilibin). Black-and-white postcards with images of Vasnetsov's paintings, published in millions of copies during the First World War, contributed to the high patriotic upsurge of the Russian spirit. No less great was the influence of the artist on Soviet art and culture, namely in Vasnetsov's Budyonnovka (or as they were originally called - bogatyrs), designed by the artist for a single holiday parade tsarist army, due to a special set of circumstances, became the form of the army, which in 1918-1922 restored the unity of the country and repulsed foreign intervention.

Vasnetsov died in Moscow in his studio, working on a portrait of the artist M.V. Nesterov.

The younger brother of the famous Viktor Vasnetsov, much less known, Appolinary Vasnetsov was also an artist - by no means was his timid shadow, but had a completely original talent. An excellent master landscape painter, A. M. Vasnetsov became famous as a connoisseur and inspired poet of old Moscow. It is rare that, once seen, they will not remember his paintings, watercolors, drawings, recreating the excitingly fabulous and at the same time so convincing real image ancient Russian capital.

IN In 1900, Appolinary Vasnetsov became an academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, then led the landscape class of the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, and from 1918 headed the Commission for the Study of Old Moscow and conducted archaeological research during earthworks in the central part of the city.

The grandson of Viktor Vasnetsov, Andrei Vasnetsov, also became an artist, later - the founder of the so-called " severe style". In 1988-1992 Andrey Vasnetsov was the chairman of the Union of Artists of the USSR, an active member Russian Academy Arts, since 1998 - member of the Presidium. He was honorary chairman of the Vasnetsov Foundation.

Landscape backgrounds of V.'s works on fabulous and historical themes imbued with a deep national feeling native nature, sometimes remarkable for the lyrical immediacy of her perception ("Alyonushka"), sometimes epic in character ("After the battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians"), played important role in the development of Russian landscape painting. In 1883-85, V. completed the monumental panel "Stone Age" for the Historical Museum in Moscow, in 1885-96 - most frescoes in the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv. In the murals of the Vladimir Cathedral, V. tried to bring spiritual content and emotionality into the traditional system of church monumental painting, which in the 2nd half of the 19th century. fell into complete disrepair. V.'s painting mature period, distinguished by its desire for a monumental and decorative artistic language, the muffled sound of generalized color spots, and sometimes even an appeal to symbolism, anticipates the "modern" style that later became widespread in Russia. V. also performed a number of portraits (A. M. Vasnetsov, 1878; Ivan Petrov, 1883; both - in the Tretyakov Gallery), illustrations for "The Song of the Prophetic Oleg" by A. S. Pushkin (watercolor, 1899, Literary Museum, Moscow). According to his drawings, a church and the fabulous "Hut on chicken legs" were built in Abramtsevo (near Moscow; 1883), the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery was built (1902). IN Soviet time V. continued to work on folk fabulous themes("Fight of Dobrynya Nikitich with the seven-headed Serpent Gorynych", 1918; "Kashchei the Immortal", 1917-26; both paintings are in the House-Museum of V. M. Vasnetsov in Moscow).
Lit .: Stasov V.V., Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov and his work, in his book: Articles and notes, vol. 2, M., 1954; Lebedev A. K., V. M. Vasnetsov. 1848-1926, M., 1955; Morgunov N., Morgunova-Rudnitskaya N., V. M. Vasnetsov, Moscow, 1962.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
In the work of Vasnetsov are clearly represented different genres, which have become stages of a very interesting evolution: from everyday writing to a fairy tale, from easel painting to the monumental, from the earthiness of the Wanderers to the prototype of the Art Nouveau style. On early stage Vasnetsov's works were dominated household plots, for example, in the paintings “From Apartment to Apartment” (1876), “Military Telegram” (1878), “Bookshop” (1876), “Showrooms in Paris” (1877). Later, the epic-historical became the main direction - “The Knight at the Crossroads” (1882), “After the Battle of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians” (1880), “Alyonushka” (1881), “Ivan Tsarevich on the Gray Wolf” (1889), “Heroes "(1881-1898)," Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible "(1897). In the late 1890s, an increasingly prominent place in his work was occupied by a religious theme (works in the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv and in the Church of the Resurrection (Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood) in St. Petersburg, watercolor drawings and, in general, the preparatory originals of wall painting for the Cathedral of St. Vladimir, the painting of the Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist on Presnya. Vasnetsov worked in a team of artists who designed the interior of the memorial church of Alexander Nevsky in Sofia. He collaborated with artists M. V. Nesterov, I. G. Blinov and others. After 1917, Vasnetsov continued to work on folk fairy-tale themes, creating canvases “The Battle of Dobrynya Nikitich with the Seven-Headed Serpent Gorynych” (1918); "Koschey the Immortal" (1917-1926)

Vasnetsov Viktor Mikhailovich (1848-1926) - a great Russian artist, one of the founders of Russian Art Nouveau in its national-romantic version. Probably the first of the great Russian artists enters our infant life with his epic paintings, fairy tale paintings and accompanies us throughout life, giving us impetus for reflection not only with the works of the named direction, but also with his genre paintings, portraits and religious painting that we discover. .

1. Reaper (1867)

Canvas, oil.

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov was born on May 15, 1848 in the distant Vyatka village of Lopyal in a large patriarchal family village priest. Soon the family moved to the village of Ryabov, where the artist spent his childhood. He began to draw early, but according to tradition, the sons were supposed to inherit their father's profession, and in 1858 the boy was sent to religious school, and soon transferred to the Vyatka Theological Seminary. In the last year of the seminary, the young man decided that he would leave Vyatka for St. Petersburg and enter the Academy of Arts. Having performed two genre pictures - "The Milkmaid" and "The Reaper" (1867) - and playing them in the lottery, Vasnetsov travels to St. Petersburg with the proceeds and begins to study at the school of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, and in 1868 becomes a student of the Academy. Forced to earn money for a living, Vasnetsov gives private lessons, illustrates various publications.

2. Alyonushka (1881)

Canvas, oil. 121 x 173 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

In 1881, in Abramtsevo, the estate of the Russian philanthropist Savva Mamontov near Moscow, Vasnetsov wrote one of his best works - Alyonushka - based on the plot of a Russian fairy tale. The touching tenderness and deep poetry of the tale excited the sensitive, sympathetic heart of the artist. Not a literal reproduction of a fairy tale plot, but a deep penetration into its emotional structure distinguishes Vasnetsov's painting. The frozen pose of the girl, the bowed head, the brown hair scattered over her shoulders, the look full of sadness - everything speaks of Alyonushka's longing and grief. Nature is in tune with her mood, she seems to mourn with the girl. Slender birch trees, young Christmas trees surrounding Alyonushka seem to protect her from the evil world. The painting "Alyonushka" is one of the first in domestic art where poetry is inextricably merged folk tales with poetry and sincerity of native Russian nature.

3. From flat to flat (1876)

Canvas, oil. 53.5 x 67.2 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

Particular success fell to the share of the painting "From apartment to apartment", on which the artist worked since 1875. The fate of poor, lonely old people, thrown out into the street on a cold frosty day, looking for shelter, excited the artist. Deep sadness emanates from the picture, which tells about a homeless old age, about a tragedy that no one the right people. "I think,- wrote Stasov, - each of us has met them. What poor people, what sad human nature!.. What a beautiful picture!”

4. Bookshop (1876)

Canvas, oil. 84 x 66.3 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

The painting "Bookshop" secured his position as a genre painter, knowing life able to reproduce it expressively and vividly.

5. Flying carpet (1880)

Canvas, oil. 165 x 297 cm. Nizhny Novgorod Art Museum

Vasnetsov is actively working on the introduction of folklore into Russian painting, reflecting the sides of the Russian national character(“Flying Carpet”, 1880). In his paintings based on fairy tales, the artist combines folk fantasy with religious teachings and a scientific view of the world.

6. Calm (1881)

Canvas, oil. State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.

V.A. Gilyarovsky. About the painting by V.M. Vasnetsov "Calm".

“The pines are dozing. They gave a nap.
Resting, the forest slumbers.
Fell into still waters
Heaven reflections.

I'm sitting under a pine tree in my thoughts ...
And calm and peace -
And in the whispering of gloomy needles
The joy of life is before me."

7. Knight at the Crossroads (1882)

Canvas, oil. 167x299 cm, timing.

"Oppositions of genre and history,- wrote V. Vasnetsov, - there has never been a turning point in my soul, and therefore there has never been a turning point or any kind of transitional struggle in me ... I have always been convinced that in genre and historical paintings... in a fairy tale, song, epic, drama, the whole whole image of the people, internal and external, with the past and present, and maybe the future, is reflected ... The people who do not remember, do not appreciate and do not love their history are bad" .

8. Warriors of the Apocalypse (1887)

Canvas, oil.

"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" is a term describing four characters from the sixth chapter of the Revelation of John the Evangelist, the last of the books of the New Testament. There is still no consensus on what exactly each of the riders represents, but they are often called the Conqueror (Plague, Disease), War, Famine and Death. God calls them and empowers them to sow holy chaos and destruction in the world. Riders appear strictly one after another, each with the opening of the next first four of the seven seals of the book of Revelation. The appearance of each of the horsemen is preceded by the removal of the seals from the Book of Life by the Lamb. After the removal of each of the first four seals, the tetramorphs exclaim to John - "come and see" - and the apocalyptic horsemen appear in front of him in turn.

In the picture, a rider on a white horse is a plague, on a red one - war, on a black one - hunger, on a pale one - death.

From the Revelation of John the Evangelist:

Rider on a white horse
"And I saw that the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures, saying as it were with a voice of thunder: Come and see. I looked, and behold, a white horse, and on it a rider having a bow, and He had a crown, and he went out victorious, and to overcome (Rev. 6:1-2)"

Rider on a red horse
"And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second animal say: Come and see. And another horse, red, went out; and it was given to him who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another; and a great sword was given to him. (Rev. .6:3-4)"

Rider on a black horse
"And when He opened the third seal, I heard a third animal saying, Come and see. I looked, and, behold, a black horse, and on it was a rider, having a measure in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four animals, saying: Chinix wheat for a penny, and three quinixes of barley for a penny, but do not harm the oil and wine (Rev. 6:5-6)"

Rider on a pale horse
"And when He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast, saying, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and on it was a rider whose name was death; and hell followed him; and power over the fourth part of the earth - to kill with the sword, and with famine, and with pestilence, and with the beasts of the earth (Rev. 6:7-8)"

9. Sirin and Alkonost. Song of Joy and Sorrow (1896)

Canvas, oil. 133 x 250 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

"Two faithful friends - Love and Separation - do not go one without the other." Bulat Okudzhava

Traditional Slavic symbols joy and sorrow were considered two birds of paradise: Sirin and Alkonost. In Orthodox bestiaries, the Sirins are said to be half-human, half-bird, bisexual, singing songs so sweet that the one who hears them loses his mind, goes to the voice, not noticing the path, falls into the water and dies.
According to another version: he forgets his life, goes into the desert and, getting lost, dies. Sirins or pitchforks are spirits of water sources that can fly. Subsequently, this tribe in the Russian lubok turns into one single bird.

In legends Western Europe the bird Sirin is considered the embodiment of an unfortunate soul. Her name can be easily correlated with the Greek "sirens", the legends about which could be brought to Ancient Rus' trading people who walked along the rivers from Byzantium itself and Greece. Sirens - predatory beauties with a head and a body beautiful woman and with clawed bird paws. They are the daughters of the lord of fresh waters Aheloy and one of the muses (Melpomene or Terpsichore). From their father they inherited a wild and vicious disposition, and from their mother a divine voice. His magical singing Sirens lured sailors to their island - they crashed ships on coastal reefs, and they themselves died in whirlpools or in the claws of temptresses. Sirens were often depicted in ancient times. tombstones and called the Muses underworld.

About Alconsta, in Orthodox tradition, is reported to be a bird that lays its eggs in sea ​​depth in the middle of winter, and "these eggs are idle - they do not deteriorate and float up" as soon as the time comes. Alkonost does not take his eyes off the surface of the water and waits for the ascent, therefore it is very difficult to steal the Alkonost egg. If this succeeds, then people hang such an egg under the chandelier in the church, which is a symbol of the integrity and unity of all the people who come to it. The bird Alkonost is an example of God's Mercy and divine providence, therefore, in those seven days when Alkonost looks out for its children, the sea is calm. Shipbuilders value these days and call them Alkonost or Alcyone.

The singing of Alkonost is joyful as she promises Paradise. Sirin's singing, as medieval sources indicate, is poignant, Sirin yearns for paradise lost, asks for a return to heaven. IN contemporary culture Sirin and Alkonost are inseparable, they are well-established symbols of Sorrowful and Joyful singing.

The symbolist poet A. A. Blok responded to the picture with a poem:

Throwing back the waves of thick curls,
Throwing your head back
Throws Sirin full of happiness,
Blessings of otherworldly full look ...
The other is all powerful sadness
Exhausted, exhausted...
Anguish everyday and all-night
The whole chest is full...
In the distance - crimson lightning,
The sky has faded turquoise...
And from a bloody eyelash
A heavy tear rolls down...

10. Bogatyrs (1898)

Canvas, oil. 295 x 446 cm. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

At his first solo exhibition in 1898, Vasnetsov showed "Bogatyrs", work on which lasted about twenty years. Solved in a monumental and decorative way, the picture recreates the images of the three most beloved heroes of the epic epic: Ilya Muromets, Dobrynya Nikitich and Alyosha Popovich. Each of them is distinguished individual characteristics. Striving for a monumental solution, Vasnetsov slightly raises the horizon line, and the viewer, as it were, looks down on the riders, whose clear silhouettes stand out against the background of light clouds. Bright and sonorous colors are subtly and noblely combined - green, brown, red, white, blue, giving a special decorative effect to the canvas. The landscape, with its boundless expanse, gently sloping hills, meadows overgrown with wild grass, is united by smooth and calm rhythms with the figures of heroes. Here, Vasnetsov's ability to create an epic canvas, consonant with folk poetic ideas, was manifested. In 1898, "Bogatyrs" took pride of place in the Tretyakov Gallery.

"I believe that Vasnetsov's Bogatyrs occupy one of the first places in the history of Russian painting", - expressed the general opinion of V. V. Stasov. Comparing Repin's Barge Haulers with Bogatyrs, Stasov wrote: "And here and there - all the strength and mighty power of the Russian people. Only this strength is there - oppressed and still trampled ... and here - the strength is triumphant, calm and important, fearing no one and doing by itself, of its own free will, what it she likes what she thinks is necessary for everyone, for the people.

Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov

Today I want to tell you about the Russian artist Viktor Vasnetsov.

There was a time when his paintings from the very early childhood entered the life of a young Russian, and this name (as well as the paintings of the author) was known to anyone who graduated from a simple high school.

Artist Viktor Vasnetsov. Biography

The creative path of the artist Viktor Vasnetsov began in the 70s of the nineteenth century. It was a time when such famous peers and contemporaries of Vasnetsov worked as Repin I.E., Surikov V.I., Polenov V.D. and many others. In those days, the Russian public followed with great interest and enthusiasm the successes of the emerging "realistic art" and simply "felled" to the exhibitions of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions.

Great interest was not only in painting. Literature, science, music - everything was interesting, everything was warmed by the idea of ​​the revival of Russian culture and Russian traditions.

Artist Viktor Vasnetsov was born on May 15, 1848 in the remote Vyatka village of Lopatya, into the family of a village priest. Big family very soon, after the birth of Victor, she moved to the village of Ryabovo, Vyatka province. In that forgotten by God village and the childhood of the future artist passed.

The life of the family of a rural priest differed little from the life of a simple peasant. The same garden, cattle, folk songs and fairy tales.

Soon the young man goes to Vyatka and becomes a student of the theological seminary. It was boring to study, and Victor began to take drawing lessons from the gymnasium teacher N.G. Chernyshov. Vasnetsov with great joy and with desire he painted from plasters and lithographs in the Vyatka Museum, got a job as an assistant to the artist E. Andriolli, who at that time was painting the cathedral in Vyatka.

In 1967 future artist arrives in St. Petersburg and a year later enters the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. Here he begins a completely different life: he became friends with Repin and Antokolsky, Stasov and Kramskoy. Countless meetings and literary parties, disputes about the development of Russian art and culture.

Many contemporaries of the artist recalled that at that time Vasnetsov became interested in reading Russian epics, studied national culture, folklore and folk art. However, his studies at the academy became simply formal - his father died and Vasnetsov devoted more time to the elementary struggle with poverty. I had to somehow live on my own and help my mother, who was left alone with young children in her arms. Maybe that's why, later recalling the years spent at the academy, Vasnetsov called his only teacher only one Chistyakov P.P., with whom Victor had friendly relations and to whom he very often turned for help and advice.

As a student, Vasnetsov became famous as the author of numerous drawings, which depicted genre scenes and urban types. In newspapers, critics praised the young author for his powers of observation and benevolent humor, democratic sympathy. And they predicted a great future for him as a typist (there was such a word. This is the one who draws types).

However, Vasnetsov sees himself as a serious artist and tries his hand at painting. His genre paintings the audience notices. Particular success fell on the picture "From apartment to apartment."

From apartment to apartment

This painting was purchased for his famous exhibition by P.M. Tretyakov.

Critics do not scold the artist, but note that his genre paintings do not differ in originality in composition and are modest in painting.

The picture “Preference” (1879) is of a completely different order.

Preference

She is called the best not only in the work of a young artist, but also in Russian genre painting of the second half of the nineteenth century. Here is what he said about this picture and about the artist Kramskoy:

The entire Russian school over the past 15 years has been telling more than portraying. At the present time, he will be right who really depicts it not as a hint, but live. You are one of the brightest talents in understanding type. Don't you feel your terrible force in terms of character?

However, despite the undoubted success, genre painting did not bring complete satisfaction to Vasnetsov himself. I wanted something completely different, other types and images attracted the artist.

Repin calls Vasnetsov to Paris - to unwind and look around, to be fed with new ideas.

Vasnetsov whole year lives in Paris, studies painting by modern French masters, visits museums. And he decides to return to Russia and settle in Moscow.

The desire to live in Moscow is not at all accidental - Moscow has long attracted the artist. Many years later he writes:

When I arrived in Moscow, I felt that I had come home and there was nowhere else to go - the Kremlin, St. Basil the Blessed made me almost cry, to such an extent all this breathed into the soul of my relatives, unforgettable.

It must be said that Moscow at that time attracted more than one Vasnetsov. Around the same time, Repin and Polenov moved to Moscow, Surikov moved from the capital. Artists were keenly interested ancient capital, like a miraculous oasis, capable of imbuing art with life-giving forces. It should not be forgotten that the end of the nineteenth century was a time when interest in national history and domestic culture.

It is in Moscow that Vasnetsov makes a "decisive and conscious transition from the genre." He suddenly clearly realized that all these years he had vaguely dreamed of Russian history and Russian epics, old Russian fairy tales.

And very soon the first canvas of the artist was born, as a result of these "historical dreams".

After the battle of Igor Svyatoslavovich with the Polovtsy

“After the battle of Igor Svyatoslavovich with the Polovtsy”, the public and critics met rather coolly. The “people” demanded an archaeologically accurate depiction of the battle, but they did not want to accept the “fairy tale and epic”.

The artist tried to explain that by borrowing the plot from The Tale of Igor's Campaign, he was not trying to create an illustration for the work. No. He deliberately removed the blood and dirt of a real battle from the canvas, and wanted to create a heroic picture that would reflect the Russian spirit and attract the viewer not with the terrible details of the past battle, but with hidden drama, and beauty, and the creation of a poetic artistic image.

Chistyakov wrote to Vasnetsov:

You, most noble, Viktor Mikhailovich, are a poet-artist! I smelled such a distant, such a grandiose and in its own way original Russian spirit that I just felt sad, I, a pre-Petrine eccentric, envied you.

The artist offered the public a completely new artistic language, which was initially not understood and not heard.

But, not everyone felt that way. As soon as the painting appeared at the exhibition, it was immediately acquired by Tretyakov, who realized what opportunities the new direction opens up for Russian realism. And since then well-known philanthropist and the collector vigilantly followed each creative step artist.

Meanwhile, Vasnetsov's life in Moscow developed just happily: he found himself good friends, often visited Tretyakov's house. at famous musical evenings.

Another friend who played a big role in the fate of the artist was Savva Ivanovich Mamontov. The artist has always been a welcome guest and country house, and in the famous Abramtsevo estate. Mamontov simply selflessly loved Russian antiquity, folk art and supported young artists and writers. Very soon, thanks to the efforts of Vasnetsov, a friendly circle was formed in Abramtsevo, which consisted of young artists, musicians, artists, writers who saw the origins of their work in Russian culture, in its origins and its uniqueness.

Paintings by Viktor Vasnetsov

It was in "Abramtsevo" (where the artist for a long time lived) the first cycle of Vasnetsov's fabulous paintings was born. The cycle was opened by three paintings that were commissioned by Mamontov: “Three princesses of the underworld”, “Alyonushka”, “Ivan Tsarevich on gray wolf».

Three princesses of the underworld

Alyonushka

Ivan Tsarevich on the Gray Wolf

Paintings from fairy tales Vasnetsov wrote all his life. With all their diversity (and even unequal value), all the paintings are united, first of all, by the desire to reveal the inner content of the Russian fairy tale, to create an atmosphere that is real and at the same time fantastic. Fabulous. With a special understanding of good and evil. And faith in justice and the triumph of good.

Carpet plane

Knight at the Crossroads

Already in the first works of the artist is visible big love to the folk costume and attention to its details. It was during this period that the participants of the Abramtsevo circle began to engage in in-depth study ancient folk costume, forms and ornaments. And Vasnetsov uses the knowledge gained in writing his paintings.

sleeping princess

Snow Maiden

A prime example of passion folk costume was the sketch of the artist "In the costume of a buffoon".

In a buffoon costume

In 1881, Vasnetsov wrote one of his best fairy-tale paintings, Alyonushka. He paints this picture in Abramtsevo. In the same place, in Abramtsevo, the artist began to decoration performance "Snow Maiden".

Chambers of Tsar Berendey. Sketch of the scenery for the opera

The performance was originally staged in Mamontov's house, and later transferred to the professional stage.

With all the success of Alyonushka, the Bogatyrs became the most ambitious plan of the eighties. The artist painted this picture for almost twenty years (1881-1898). It must be said that during this period Vasnetsov wrote several large and very significant works.

The painting-frieze "Stone Age" (1882 - 1885) for the Moscow Historical Museum - 16 meters in length, consisting of three parts: the first is dedicated to the life and life of ancient people, the second is a scene of hunting for mammoths, the third is "Feast".

It is thanks to " stone age» the artist received a contract to paint the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv.

Sketches for the painting of the Vladimir Cathedral. Princess Olga and Nestor the Chronicler

In 1891, the painting work was almost completed and the artist, together with his family, returned to Moscow. By this period financial situation The family improved so much that the Vasnetsovs were able to buy a small estate in Abramtsevo and build a small house with a workshop in Moscow. It was in this workshop that the artist resumes work on the “Bogatyrs” and, at the same time, begins to paint the painting “Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible” (with this painting in 1897, the artist in last time will perform at the exhibition of the Wanderers).

Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible

In 1899, the first personal exhibition artist. AND central work exhibitions become "Bogatyrs".

Three heroes

In recent XIX years century Vasnetsov is at the peak of fame: the domestic and foreign press write well and much about the artist, his workshop is visited famous musicians, artists and writers. Tretyakov in his gallery (already donated to Moscow) is building a special hall for the works of Vasnetsov.

During this period, the artist was suddenly fascinated by architecture. Many years ago, two small buildings were erected in Abramtsevo according to the sketches of the artist: a home church and the "Hut on Chicken Legs". Later - the facade of the Tretyakov Gallery and several private houses in Moscow.

Visual arts

Fairy tale world of Viktor Vasnetsov

"Traditions of ancient times" came to life thanks to the brush of Viktor Vasnetsov. Bogatyrs and princesses went beyond book lines and illustrations. The artist grew up in the wilderness of the Ural forests on Russian fairy tales that sounded to the crackle of a torch. And already being in St. Petersburg, he did not forget childhood memories and endured those magic stories onto canvas. We examine fabulous canvases with Natalia Letnikova.

Alyonushka

A barefoot, simple-haired girl on the banks of a forest river. With inexpressible sadness, he looks into a deep pool. The sad picture was inspired by a fairy tale about sister Alyonushka and brother Ivanushka, and he painted an orphan from a peasant girl from the Akhtyrka estate, adding, as he himself admitted, the features of Verusha Mamontova, the daughter of a famous Moscow philanthropist. Nature echoes girlish sadness, intertwining with the poetry of folk tales.

Ivan Tsarevich on the Gray Wolf

Gloomy dark forest. And a gray wolf, quite expected for such a thicket. Only instead of an evil grin, the predator has human eyes, and on it are two riders. Cautious Ivanushka carefully holds Elena the Beautiful, submissive to fate. We recognize not only the plot of the Russian fairy tale, but also the image of the girl. The artist endowed fairy tale heroine real features - the nieces of Savva Mamontov, Natalia.

V.M. Vasnetsov. Alyonushka. 1881

V.M. Vasnetsov. Ivan Tsarevich on a gray wolf. 1889

Bogatyrs

Viktor Vasnetsov. Bogatyrs. 1898

One of the most famous paintings Vasnetsov devoted 20 years of his life to Russian painting. "Bogatyrs" became the artist's largest painting. The size of the canvas is almost 3 by 4.5 meters. Bogatyrs are a collective image. Ilya, for example, is a peasant Ivan Petrov, and a blacksmith from Abramtsevo, and a cab driver from the Crimean bridge. At the heart of the picture are the childish feelings of the author. “So it was before my eyes: hills, space, heroes. Wonderful dream of childhood.

Song of Joy and Sorrow

Viktor Vasnetsov. Sirin and Alkonost. A song of joy and sorrow. 1896

Alkonost and Sirin. Two half-birds with ghostly promises of a cloudless paradise in the future and with regrets about the lost paradise. Vasnetsov embellished sexless birds, giving mythical creatures lovely female faces and rich crowns. Sirin's singing is so sad that the leaves of a century-old tree turned black, the delight of an alkonost can make you forget about everything ... if you linger on the picture.

Carpet plane

Viktor Vasnetsov. Carpet plane. 1880

Painting for Office railway. Not a train, not even a postal troika. Carpet plane. This is how Victor Vasnetsov responded to the request of Savva Mamontov to paint a picture for the industrialist's new project. Fairy aircraft- a symbol of victory over space puzzled the members of the board and inspired the artist himself. Mamontov bought the painting, and Vasnetsov discovered new world. In which there is no place for the ordinary.

Three princesses of the underworld

Viktor Vasnetsov. Three princesses of the underworld. 1884

Gold, copper and coal. Three riches that are hidden in the bowels of the earth. Three fabulous princesses are the embodiment of earthly blessings. Proud and haughty gold, curious copper and timid coal. Princesses are mistresses of mountain mines, accustomed to command people. There are two pictures with such a plot at once. On one of them in the corner - as petitioners, the figures of two men obsequiously looking into beautiful cold faces.

Koschei the Deathless

Viktor Vasnetsov. Koschei the Deathless. 1917–1926

Rich mansions with chocolate, red and gold hues. The luxury of brocade and rare woods is a worthy frame for heavy chests with treasures, and the main treasure that Koshchei is not given in his hands is a young beauty. The girl is interested in the sword, which, however, cannot defeat Koshchei. The image of the main fairy-tale villain Viktor Vasnetsov wrote for nine years. Chronologically, the picture was the last for the artist.