Tropinin, a portrait of Pushkin. VA Tropinin, portrait of Pushkin: description of the painting

Always the fate of any painting that catches our eye in art galleries and museums is interesting. Particular curiosity, of course, is caused by portraits. After all, they depict living once or now living people with their own character, their destiny, whose spirit was captured and perpetuated on canvas by the artist. Whether it is an unknown person or famous, it is always curious to plunge deeper into the fate of both the master who created the masterpiece and the person depicted in the picture.

Today, the focus of our attention will be a portrait of Alexander Pushkin. Tropinin Vasily Andreevich became one of many artists who captured on canvas the great Russian poet. How did the fate and creative path of the artist develop before this acquaintance? Under what circumstances was the portrait painted and where is it now? Let's find out about this.

A few words about the artist

The homeland of Vasily Tropinin, who rightfully is considered one of the most outstanding portraitists of his time in Russia, is the village of Karpovo of Novgorod province. Paradoxically, Tropinin's father was a serf peasant Count Minich, and when his daughter - Natalya Antonovna Minikh - became the wife of Count Morkov, the young artist was transferred to the dowry as a new master.

When Count Morkov sent Tropinin to St. Petersburg to study confectionery, he secretly attended lectures at the Academy of Fine Arts. His innate talent for painting contributed to the fact that Tropinin was allowed to be a volunteer at the Academy. However, he never got an education and must go with the master to Ukraine.

Gradually, he increasingly attracted the attention of the public with his truly talented work. Finally, in 1823 he became free, received the title of academician and began his life in Moscow, near the Great Stone Bridge. It was there that Tropinin painted Pushkin's portrait, which later became one of the most famous images of the poet.

Creative way

The early works of Tropinin are characterized by the intimacy of the images, a delicate, but at the same time very consistent color scale, which he used, drawing etudes-portraits of his masters - the Morkov family.

In the works of the period 1820-1830. You can see the sculptural clarity of the volume, vigorous and attentive characteristics of the model, the fullness of the colors that Tropinin began to use. The portrait of Pushkin, relating to this period, just fully demonstrates all of the above.

In the paintings of 1830-1840-ies. There is an increase in genre features, the complexity of the composition. Tropinin pays great attention to various details, which contributes to the creation of sharp, typical images of his contemporaries. The works of that time are also characterized by outwardly romantic tendencies, which are mostly not characteristic of his work.

The main goal of the artist was to show the typical character depicted by him, conveying the inner appeal and not showing their apparent belonging to a particular class. Drawing specific people, he tried to show all that was typical for people in this circle. This is the picture "Lacemaker", permeated with sincerity and warmth of feelings for a common man from the people.

Artistically valuable and preparatory drawings, over which worked in the process of the artist Tropinin. His paintings played an important role, developing Russian democratic art of the XIX century and forming Moscow artistic traditions.

The history of creating a portrait

It is known that Pushkin himself was not very fond of posing artists. It is for this reason that there are so few pictures of the poet from nature. However, after his return from the Mikhailovskaya exile, at the end of the case of the Decembrists, in 1827 two such portraits were painted, which later became the classics of Russian painting and the best images of Pushkin. The first one was written by OA Kiprensky, and VA Tropinin, whose portrait Pushkin was recognized as the most realistic image, created the second.

Contrary to the popular version, the portrait was written by the order of the poet himself, and not his friend Sergei Aleksandrovich Sobolevsky, who wished to get a portrait of Pushkin before his departure in his usual form, and not in full parade. This became clear from a letter Sobolevsky, published in 1952, where it was said that the poet secretly ordered a picture and presented it to a friend as a gift.

With the choice of the artist was easy to determine, since Vasily Andreevich at that time was already known as an excellent portrait painter. However, in the process of work had to abandon the original design, which was contrary to the usual, well-established system, the adherent of which was Tropinin. Pushkin's portrait in the final version depicted rather not the intimate ease and naturalness of posing, as Sobolevsky wanted, but a poetic confusion with which in romantic art inspiration is so often associated. The deep inner significance and creative intensity of the poet was perfectly conveyed.

All this tried to show the viewer, creating a portrait of Pushkin, Tropinin. The description of the picture proves once again that he succeeded. The poet sits, his posture is natural and at ease. The right hand with two finger rings on the fingers lies on the table, next to the open book. He wears a large home gown with a blue collar, and a long blue scarf around his neck. Background and clothing combines a common golden with a brown color, due to which the face and lapel of the shirt, which is the center of the composition, stand out. Tropinin did not have a purpose to gloss over Pushkin's appearance, but he successfully recreated and captured the high spirituality of the poet.

The fate of the canvas

The history of the life of the picture is also interesting. Sobolevsky took a small copy from the portrait of Avdotya Petrovna Elagina to carry her with her. Although it was done professionally, the whole essence of the portrait was lost. As the researchers write, she did not convey the inner power and movement that the original carries.

Leaving Russia, Sobolevsky left the portrait for storage by the same Avdotya Elagina. However, after returning from abroad five years later, he discovered the substitution of the original for a low-quality copy.

The original portrait appeared in the mid-fifties in one of the changing shops. In 1909, he was in the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery, and after the revolution, in 1937, moved to the All-Union, now All-Russian Museum of Alexander Pushkin in St. Petersburg.

Now the portrait is in the Memorial Museum-apartment of Pushkin on the embankment of the Moika River, 12, which is part of the museum complex.

Criticism of work

Contemporaries unanimously recognized the similarity of the Tropical portrait to the real Pushkin. But one of the critics noted that the artist could not convey the full view of the poet. This statement can hardly be fair, since Pushkin's strained and close look from the portrait expresses genuine inspiration in moments of creative impulse.

In contrast to the work of Kiprensky, the portrait of Tropinin is more modest, but not inferior to the first neither in painting power, nor in expressiveness.

Portrait of Tropinin and a portrait of Kiprensky

Both of these portraits were created in one year and show two different images of the poet. The portrait of Kiprensky was written in the summer of 1827 by order of a friend of Pushkin, AA Delvig. On it Pushkin is inspired, with a deep but diffused gaze, deeply concentrated. Pushkin of Kiprensky's work is filled with solemnity and significance.

This is fundamentally different from what Tropinin wrote. Pushkin's portrait of his hand, as we have already said, depicts the poet as an ordinary person in a home setting and clothes. This image is closer and warmer to the viewer.

Other images of Pushkin

In addition to classic portraits of Tropinin and Kiprensky, there are other images of Pushkin. The very first of these was a miniature work by an unknown artist, on which the poet is depicted at the age of about three years.

After that, many portraits were written and copies and lists were made from the classical images of the poet. Pushkin himself, knowing the features of his face, drew self-portraits in profile, the first of which appeared in preparation for the publication of the first collection of poems.

However, it's hard to argue that any portrait of Pushkin, whose photo we see on the Internet or books, can replace the aesthetic pleasure from contemplating the original exhibited in the picture gallery. Only there you can feel the unique color and spirit that comes from the canvas, and fully understand the artist's intention.