The founder of Russian iconography, the Monk Alimpii and his brilliant followers

Having received baptism, Kievan Rus began to learn anew to believe in God. An important part of the process of accepting New Testament principles was the ritual aspect of church life. How to pray properly, what should I worship, in what order do I serve? All this should be learned by the flock and the priests.

Byzantine rite to the IX century as a whole was formed, and at the end of the tenth century it acquired a clear form, formed in the established church image. The iconoclasts were defeated at the Council of Nicaea, which was called back in 787. Images of saints, the Virgin and the Son of God became an integral part of the interior decoration of churches.

The history of Russian icon painting dates back to the years of the construction of the first churches. Accumulated for a century Byzantine experience was embodied in the painting of St. Sophia of Kiev, whose work began with God's help in 1037. Masters of the classical school helped the ancient Russian artists, passing them Byzantine aesthetic views and dedicating them to the subtleties of their art.

The founder of Russian iconography, the Monk Alimpiy (in other sources Alipiy) was a pupil of the Greeks who came to Kiev. He possessed an undoubted artistic talent sent to him from above for the purity of thoughts, diligence, humility and love of God. The asceticism and asceticism peculiar to Alimpia are reflected in his work, which became visible evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit within the walls of the glorious monastery. Mosaics, frescoes of the Kiev period of Christianity were characterized by laconic fundamentality, characteristic of Byzantine art.

Traditions of the first masters of Russian icon painting were interrupted by the Mongol invasion of the 13th century. Many wonderful works have been scolded, damaged and destroyed. The images created in the 11th-13th centuries were damaged, but their artistic merits can be judged from the surviving examples of the Novgorod school, which was flourishing around the same time.

Another ancestor of Russian iconography is Metropolitan Peter of Moscow, whose church activities in the XIV century were combined with artistic asceticism. Unlike the images of the pre-Mongol period, which was characterized by subdued and even gloomy colors, its icons are characterized by a cheerful brightness of colors and simplicity of composition. At the end of the XIX century, this tradition was continued by the founder of the Russian icon painting of the Rostov School, Metropolitan Theodore.

The most vividly national features are expressed in the images created by Andrei Rublev, the Reverend, a true genius who managed to combine the Byzantine idea with the Russian character. The 15th century is overshadowed by his work, illuminated by faith, enhanced by an exceptional artistic gift. Together with the Reverend Daniil Cherniy, they created masterpieces that have become the glory of the art of Russia. Many art historians believe, and not without reason, that it is Rublyov - the founder of Russian iconography in its most vivid national manifestations.

At the end of the XV and in the first decades of the XVI century the master Dionysius worked, who determined the church aesthetics for many subsequent epochs. The refinement of color solutions and forms, the purity of color and the tenderness of tones, together with the dynamic gracefulness of the effect of movement, create the impression of musical harmony with Orthodox hymns. In a sense, he, too, is the founder of Russian icon painting, his works carry in themselves the positive emotional charge that is characteristic of Slavic Christianity.

It is difficult to say which of these remarkable creators should be considered the founder of the original art of church painting. Each of them contributed to the formation of Russian icon painting, unique and miraculous.