View of Smolny Monastery from Bolshaya Okhta Alexey Petrovich Bogolubov (1824-1896)
Alexey Petrovich Bogolubov – View of Smolny Monastery from Bolshaya Okhta
1851.
Edit attribution
Download full size: 1535×1108 px (0,2 Mb)
Painter: Alexey Petrovich Bogolubov
Album navigation:
COMMENTS: 1 Ответы
Alexei Petrovich Bogolyubov (1824-1896)
- a sailor and an artist, as he called himself.
He was a graduate of the Naval Cadet Corps. He studied at the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg, graduating with a gold medal. He came from a noble aristocratic family, grandson of Radishchev. A master of depicting water elements. Bogolyubovs sketch landscapes and his finished paintings are magnificent, academic painting with an impressionistic approach. It is no wonder that such a skilled artist taught drawing to the future Emperor Alexander III and his wife, Maria Feodorovna. His watercolors are superb. As a painter and teacher, he made a huge contribution to the education of Russian Peredvizhniki (Itinerants). In France, he was inspired by the Barbizon school and Impressionism. He loved Venice very much.
He painted a vast number of paintings dedicated to the Russian fleet. He became an example for other artists not only as a realist but also as a battle painter, a romantic of the sea and the fleet, and a historian.
In Paris, he founded the Society of Russian Artists. He helped Russian artists and students of the Academy of Arts to gain painting experience abroad.
In memory of his great grandfather, the philosopher and freethinker, inspirer of the Decembrists, Alexander Nikolaevich Radishchev, father of his mother, he created a beautiful art museum in Saratov in 1885, with an attached drawing school, which later became the Saratov Art School named after A. P. Bogolyubov.
He collected a large collection of paintings by his fellow artists. He often gave his works to his friends.
An amazing, versatile, educated person, generous in spirit and passionate about art – a bright and unique talent. The Hermitage of the Volga region, the Radishchev Museum, is celebrating its 130th anniversary this year. And today, Bogolyubov would be 191 years old...
Happy Birthday, dear TEACHER!
Graduate of the Saratov Art School named after A. P. Bogolyubov
March 28, 2015
A portrait of Alexei Petrovich Bogolyubov by V. V. Mate, 1897, is presented. Etching; 31x33; 40x53 cm.
You cannot comment Why?
The foreground depicts a muddy bank populated by sparse vegetation and a solitary figure dressed in red, seemingly engaged in some form of labor or observation. A few small boats are scattered across the water’s surface, their presence hinting at activity and connection between the viewers vantage point and the distant buildings. The water itself is rendered with subtle gradations of color, creating a sense of depth and reflecting both the sky above and the architecture on the opposite shore.
The atmospheric perspective employed by the artist contributes to the overall effect of distance and grandeur. Details diminish as they recede into the background, softening the edges of the buildings and blurring the horizon line. The sky is characterized by a pale blue hue punctuated by scattered clouds, which add visual interest and reinforce the sense of spaciousness.
Beyond the immediate architectural focus, the painting evokes a feeling of quiet contemplation and perhaps even melancholy. The solitary figure in the foreground emphasizes the scale of the buildings and the vastness of the landscape, suggesting a sense of human insignificance within this grand setting. The subdued color palette and the lack of overt narrative elements contribute to an atmosphere of stillness and introspection.
Subtly embedded within the scene is a suggestion of industrial activity – glimpses of masts and structures on the left side hint at port operations or other forms of commerce, subtly contrasting with the solemnity of the religious architecture. This juxtaposition introduces a layer of complexity, implying a dialogue between tradition and modernity, faith and industry, that characterizes the era in which this work was likely created.