Table of contents:
- Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan on November 16, 1581
- Solemn meeting of the State Council
- Portrait of Prime Minister Stolypin
- Portrait of the pianist Countess Louise Mercy dArgento
- Portrait of Mussorgsky
Video: "Fatal" artist: mysticism and myths associated with the paintings of Ilya Repin
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
Today, the assertion that Ilya Efimovich Repin is one of the greatest Russian painters is not controversial. But his work was accompanied by one strange circumstance - many who were lucky enough to become his sitters soon went to another world. And although in each of the cases there were some objective reasons for death, coincidences are alarming …
"Fear the painter's brush - his portrait may turn out to be more alive than the original," wrote Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim in the 15th century. The work of the great Russian artist Ilya Repin was a confirmation of this. Pirogov, Pisemsky, Mussorgsky, the French pianist Mercy d'Argento and other sitters became the "victims" of the artist. As soon as the master began to paint a portrait of Fyodor Tyutchev, the poet died. Even healthy men who posed for Repin for the painting "Barge Haulers on the Volga", according to rumors, prematurely gave their souls to God.
Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan on November 16, 1581
Today this painting is known as "Ivan the Terrible kills his son" … It was with this picture of Repin that a terrible story happened. When it was exhibited at the Tretyakov Gallery, the canvas made a strange impression on visitors: some fell into a stupor in front of the painting, others cried, and others had hysterical fits. Even the most balanced people in front of the picture felt uneasy: there was too much blood on the canvas, it looked very realistic.
On January 16, 1913, the young icon painter Abram Balashov cut the picture with a knife, for which he was sent to the "yellow" house, where he died. The picture was restored. But the tragedies did not end there. The artist Myasoyedov, who posed for Repin for the image of the tsar, almost killed his son in a fit of anger, and the writer Vsevolod Garshin, a model for Tsarevich Ivan, went mad and committed suicide.
Solemn meeting of the State Council
In 1903, Ilya Repin completed the monumental painting "The ceremonial meeting of the State Council." And in 1905, the First Russian Revolution took place, during which many government officials, captured in the picture, laid down their heads. Thus, the former governor-general of Moscow, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich and Minister V. K. Pleve, were killed by terrorists.
Portrait of Prime Minister Stolypin
The writer Korney Chukovsky recalled: "".
Repin did not immediately agree to the proposal to paint a portrait of the Prime Minister, he was looking for a variety of excuses to refuse. But the Saratov Duma fulfilled all the requirements of the artist, and it was already simply inconvenient to refuse.
The artist decided to portray Stolypin not as a courtier in a uniform with orders and all regalia, but in a regular suit. The portrait is evidence that Repin was interested in a person, and not a state person. Only a dark red background gives the portrait an official and solemnity.
After the first session, Repin told his friends: “It's strange: the curtains in his office are red, like blood, like fire. I am writing it against this bloody fiery background. And he does not understand that this is the background of the revolution …”As soon as Repin finished the portrait, Stolypin went to Kiev, where he was killed. “Thanks to Ilya Efimovich!” - the Satyricons joked angrily.
In 1918, the portrait entered the Radishchev Museum of Saratov and has been there ever since.
Portrait of the pianist Countess Louise Mercy dArgento
Another "victim" of Repin was Countess Louise Mercy d'Argento, whose portrait Repin painted in 1890. True, one should not forget that at that time the Frenchwoman, who was the first to introduce the Western public to the music of the young Russian school, was seriously ill and could not even pose while sitting.
Portrait of Mussorgsky
Portrait of the great composer Modest Mussorgsky was written by Repin in just four days - from 2 to 4 March 1881. The composer died on March 6, 1881. True, here it is hardly appropriate to speak of mysticism. The artist arrived at the Nikolaev military hospital immediately after he learned about a friend's fatal illness in the winter of 1881. He immediately rushed to him to paint a lifetime portrait. Here fans of the mystic are clearly confusing cause and effect.
These are mystical and not very stories associated with the paintings of Ilya Repin. Today, no one faints from his paintings, so you can safely go to the Tretyakov Gallery and other museums where his canvases are kept in order to enjoy the work of a real master of the brush.
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