Vereshchagin Vasily (Petrovich) – The Siege of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra 900 Classic russian paintings

Description of Vasily Vereshchagin’s painting The Siege of Trinity Sergius Lavra

Vasily Petrovich Vereshchagin’s painting The Siege of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, painted in 1891, depicts one of the most bitter periods in the history of our Motherland. There is no point in telling about the events that took place at that time, dubbed the "Time of Troubles". The painting depicts an episode of storming a monastery, although the viewer does not see battle scenes. Rather the opposite. In the foreground, the viewers see the anxious, suffering, frightened, but at the same time spiritualized faces of people who are ready to die, but not to betray the Motherland and the faith.

Indeed, the artist was able to express the meaning of what is happening, using not quite the usual symbols. Unity of the people and clergy in the hour of mourning in the face of the priest carrying the blessing and at the same time the fighting spirit of the defenders of the Lavra, listening carefully to the instructions of the senior and ready to defend their land, all this is carried by the artist slightly in the background of the painting. Compositionally, these elements are located in the left and right parts of the canvas.

The central part of the composition, which doesn’t even immediately catch your eye against the background of the huge Orthodox temple, is a group of defenders of the Lavra, carrying a wounded comrade. Each of these characters represents a different part of society at the time. It was by this combination that the artist wanted to show the unity of all, as it is now customary to say "social groups," against the enemy. If you like, the unification of all Russian people!

At the same time, the sorrow of the central composition does not diminish the positivity of the painting. Despite the general sorrow, it is filled with many symbols that hint at the positive changes to come. At the bottom of the painting, in its very center, the artist has depicted abandoned weapons, suggesting that the war has been imposed from outside. At the same time, the lower left corner of the painting depicts a small, playing child as a symbol of the future peaceful life.

The canvas is painted in light colors, which again speaks to the positive outcome of the grueling siege of the Lavra. The spirituality of the Russian people, their unity in a difficult moment and the bright, albeit cloudy sky of the Motherland - these are the main thoughts that Vasily Petrovich Vasnetsov wanted to convey to the viewer.