Why was there no place for the 33-meter Savior from Tsereteli on the vast territory of Russia

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

For many years now, they say that the laurels of Rio de Janeiro haunt the national master of monumental art, world famous Zurab Tsereteli. Despite his venerable age, the master with a scandalous reputation continues to create his most grandiose monumental statues, striking in their scale. So, one of the last creations of the sculptor - a 33-meter statue of Christ, very similar to the one erected in Brazil, caused a huge resonance in Russia.

A little from the history of the monuments to Christ, erected in the world

Brazilian Christ the Redeemer

The giant Christ Monument atop Mount Corcovado, in Rio de Janeiro, has long become a symbol of Brazil and is named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. The 30-meter statue weighing 635 tons on an eight-meter pedestal was installed in 1931 in honor of the centenary of Brazil's national independence with money raised by the people.

The original project of the statue of the Redeemer with outstretched arms, in general terms very similar to a huge cross, was developed by the artist Carlos Oswald, and the Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa continued to work on the project. Frenchman Paul Landowski modeled the head and arms of the statue, while Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida recreated the project in stone.

Jesus in Lisbon

After the opening of the monument, which had been erected for about nine years, in 1934 the Patriarch of Lisbon, Manuel Serezheira, arrived on a visit to Brazil. He was so impressed by the monument, which could be seen from almost every corner of Rio, that he was eager to erect the same one in Lisbon. Portugal could not let go of its former colony of such superiority and decided to give an answer to the "upstarts" Brazilians.

Having received the support of all Portuguese bishops, in 1940 the government made a decision, or rather made a vow: if Portugal is not touched by the Second World War, then a monument to Christ will be erected over Lisbon.

And, as you know, during the war, Portugal became one of the few states that managed to maintain neutrality. This country, clearly sympathetic to Hitler and the Nazis, was able to avoid participation in the bloodiest meat grinder of mankind.

Even during the war years, the Church Diocese, faithful to this vow, began collecting donations for the erection of the Statue of Christ. By 1941, the collected funds were used to buy land on a hill above the Tagus River, located not far from Lisbon. And in 1946, the patriarchy officially announced that the erection of the monument was a matter of honor and began an active campaign to raise funds for the construction.

The Lisbon memorial was designed by Portuguese architect Francisco Franco, and the foundation stone was laid in late 1949 in the city of Almada, 7 km from Lisbon, and the construction was completed by the spring of 1959. More than 300 thousand people gathered for the opening of the monument, among those invited was the patriarch from Rio.

The height of the Christ statue in Lisbon was 28 meters, which is 2 meters lower than the Brazilian one, but the pedestal was erected 82 meters high and gave the monument the status of the highest monument to Christ in Europe. The majestic monument of Christ, erected as a gratitude of the people, with a total height of 110 meters rises above the Tagus River and is visible from almost all corners of the Portuguese capital within a radius of 20 kilometers.

Statue of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe in Poland

The creation of the monument to the King of the Universe, erected in Poland, was initiated in the early 2000s by the priest of the Temple of Divine Mercy in Swiebodzin Sylvester Zawadsky, whose heart was later buried under the statue. The project was originally conceived as an analogue of the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. But in the process of creating the statue was made 35 meters high, and instead of a pedestal, an artificial mound 16.5 meters high was used. The Poles have outdone themselves in their quest to surprise the whole world by creating the tallest statue of the Son of God.

The idea of creating a monument, which was born in the 2000s, was actively supported by generous donations from believers from all over the country. So, in the west of Poland, almost on the border with Germany, the world's tallest statue of Jesus Christ the Tsar was installed, surpassing the legendary statue of Christ the Redeemer in Brazilian Rio de Janeiro by 5 meters.

The hollow sculpture is made of monolithic reinforced concrete on a metal frame. The total weight of the structure is 440 tons. And the gilded crown of the statue is 3.5 meters in diameter and about 3 meters in height.

The erection of the monument took about 2 years and the official opening and consecration took place at the end of 2010. Today this statue of Christ is considered the tallest in the world.

The long-suffering statue of the Son of God Zurab Tsereteli

Known for his gigantomania, Tsereteli conceived a project back in 2013 that he wanted to conquer the whole world. In St. Petersburg, at the "Monumentskulptura" factory, a bronze sculpture of Christ, 33 meters high, was cast by his order - according to the number of years he lived on Earth. This is not so much: for the highest is the King of the Universe, erected in Poland. However, according to the project, Christ was to be installed on a 50-meter pedestal decorated with bronze reliefs. And then the total height of the Tsereteli monument would have reached 83 meters. In addition, together with the statue, all 64 reliefs depicting the life of Christ, from the Annunciation to the Ascension, were cast in bronze.

However, when the master's grandiose work was completed, a completely reasonable question arose: where, to erect this monumental complex? And then several offers immediately followed from the artist's homeland - Georgia. But the master for his brainchild, "crowning the theme of his whole life," chose Russia. However, it was she who was not delighted with such a gift. And for almost six years now, between several cities and villages, there has been literally a struggle for the right not to host a monument to the Son of God. The city authorities literally disown the monument.

When the statue of Christ was still in the project, the sculptor himself planned to install it on Solovki in memory of the victims of political repression. However, the leadership of the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve categorically immediately rejected this idea.

Sochi was next on the list. However, when it came to deciding whether or not to accept such a generous gift, the Sochi authorities refused to accept the sculptor. One of the arguments for refusal was the fact that the city was offered a ready-made statue, which, according to experts, was impossible to fit into the architectural urban environment, and besides, the content of this monument would be a serious burden on the city's budget.

The city authorities considered the second important fact that this sculpture, even as a brand, is not suitable for Sochi. If something is to be erected, then something original that will become a unique visiting card of Sochi. And by no means what someone already has. Of course, this meant Brazil, Portugal, Poland and other countries that fought to create the best monument in the world dedicated to the Savior, despite the repetition of the idea.

The next contender for Tsereteli's creation was St. Petersburg. The city authorities were not as categorical as the Sochi residents, however, they hinted to the author that it would be nice to plant the Savior somewhere else. But to the best of their loyalty, they nevertheless considered, as an option, the erection of a monument in the ethnopark "Bogoslovka Estate", where the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos is located, stylized as the 18th century. And here, of course, there were opponents who believed that the bronze Christ would literally win “a crushing victory over Russian wooden architecture. Then it was proposed to put the figure in the Nevsky forest park,”but this option was rejected by the author himself.

But the residents of Novosibirsk were not averse to accepting the majestic statue as a gift: an initiative group was even organized in support of the grandiose project to install the monumental work of Tsereteli. But the city authorities were not ready to make such a fateful decision and shifted their powers to the city art council, which is still in thought.

And three years ago, a sluggish discussion about the fate of the monument began to gain momentum and again hit the forefront of the media. And it all started from the statement of the famous actor Mikhail Boyarsky, known for his subtle sense of humor. The actor proposed to demolish the scandalous St. Petersburg long-term construction - the Zenit-Arena stadium - and erect the same 83-meter monument to Christ in its place. Many Petersburgers appreciated Boyarsky's joke, of course, but just in case they thought about it: well, you never know … However, soon the stadium was nevertheless completed, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

A year ago, the idea of erecting a monument to Tsereteli on the hills of Vladivostok was seriously considered by the authorities of Primorye. And if they had agreed to such a step, the sculptor would have had to replace the pedestal with bronze reliefs with a more functional one: with a temple inside.

The situation is truly anecdotal. It is not entirely clear against whom Russia is so up in arms - against the statue of Christ, or still against the gigantomania of Tsereteli. “Trying to stage something huge. After all, this is not a monument to Christ, but a monument to Tsereteli himself,”Dmitry Ratnikov, a local historian from St. Petersburg, said publicly with confidence. The master himself claims that the creation of the figure of Christ is his old dream and almost the main result of his creative path.

And the question "where will we put it?" still remains open.

And in conclusion, I would like to remember more several scandalous stories, associated with the name of Zurab Tsereteli and his creations.