Portrait FIShalyapin. 1911 Konstantin Alekseevich Korovin (1861-1939)

Description of the painting "Portrait of Chaliapin" by Konstantin Korovin

Well acquainted with Impressionist Paris, Konstantin Korovin painted a major portrait of the artist Chaliapin in this style in 1911.

The figure of the musical figure appears to the audience seated on a low chair. Much attention was paid by the artist to domestic painting. The man is surrounded by a French terrace.

In front of him is a table, on which Chaliapin is leaning with the right part of his body. A vase with a bright fresh bouquet of roses in lush greenery, a glass gourmet saucer with a fruit assortment, a beautiful decanter, a large bottle of wine and a glass of poured scarlet wine are grouped on the shining white tablecloth.

Fyodor Ivanovich is dressed in a light-colored suit. He casually threw his leg over his leg. The marvelous artist’s gaze is fixed on the open window, from where you can see the green bushes of the sunlit plant. A radiant smile lights up the musician’s face. Clear eyes open towards the world outside the window.

Later, assessing the exhibited portrait of himself, Chaliapin recalls how he tried to hold on to that charming, artistic smile while posing for Korovin in the process.

The task of the portrait is to convey the inner, mental state in conjunction with the external form of the person. On the canvas with Fyodor Ivanovich all details of character are cut off and only the pure emotion - joy - is revealed to us. Unusually and brilliantly solved the problem of Russian painter.

The musician in Korovin’s work looks young, full of vitality, manly and stately. The bluish silk bow gives away his artistic nature.

The happy expression on his face is caused by the morning freshness of the new day. The sun seems to have reflected in the face of the man sitting on the veranda, bestowing him with warmth and vivacity.

The technique of the portrait is above all praise. Impressionism is revealed in the dynamic strokes of oil paint, in a well-captured moment of the vivid life of a remarkable artist, whom Korovin so admired.