Russian painter, master of fresco and icon painting Gury Nikitin: biography, creativity and interesting facts

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Russia has always been famous for its rich culture and a huge array of talents. Gury Nikitin is one of the most famous and significant figures in Russian painting and icon painting. His life and work fell on the 17th century and left a bright mark on the cultural history of Russia. And although the factual data about the artist, which have come down to the present day, are very fragmentary, his works, his individual handwriting will forever remain monuments of the high spirituality of the past.

Biography

The exact date of birth of Gury Nikitin is unknown. Tentatively it was the beginning of 1620/1625. The hometown of the future artist was Kostroma. Nikitin is the pseudonym of the artist, or rather, patronymic (Nikitich - Nikitin). His real name is Kineshmitsev. Before his rise to art, he kept several shops in the s alt and fish rows.

Family

Father Gury Nikitin (Nikita Kineshmtsev) died in 1653 during a pestilence, thereforethe head of the family was the mother of Solomonides. Guria had a brother, Luka, or, as his relatives called him, Auchka. He was a shoemaker.

In addition to his mother and brother, Guria had cousins Michael and Fedor. They were relatively we althy people. After their death, Gury Nikitin inherited several city shops in the fur coat, cloth and fish rows.

About the personal life of the icon painter, it is known for sure that he was never married, had no children. This is evidenced by an entry in the Landrat book, made much later than his death. It indicates exactly the year of the death of the icon painter (1691) and the absence of heirs.

Creativity

Gury Nikitin showed creative talent from an early age. Where he was educated is not known. The main researcher of his work V. G. Bryusov suggests that Vasily Ilyin, a famous Kostroma artist and icon painter of that time, could have been Nikitin's teacher.

But in many ways, the mother of the future icon painter contributed to the creative advancement. Immersed in his world, young Gury had a cozy home, food and a friendly family. And at that difficult time, it was quite difficult to create something like a Russian woman left without support. Later, the image of a woman-mother will receive a special place in the work of Nikitin.

His path to art was not easy. After all, Guriy came from a simple working-class family, far from icon painting. The artist gained significant experience when, as part of the Kostroma artel, he painted Moscow churches (the Church of the Trinity, the Archangel Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin). Apart frommasters from Kostroma, talented icon painters from Yaroslavl, Novgorod, Moscow worked there.

This colossal creative movement of that era was for Nikitin the first confident step into the history of art. Proving himself as a gifted artist, Guriy received many invitations from Orthodox churches in Russia and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich himself to paint walls and paint / restore icons.

Individual handwriting

Speaking of the splendor and symbolism of Russian icon painting, art historians always point to the unique genius that was Gury Nikitin. His paintings are a unique combination of decorativeism and monumentality in one work. It is no coincidence that the heyday of his work coincided with the rise of decorative and monumental art in Russia (second half of the 17th century)

All the works of the outstanding artist and icon painter have a unique style, individual handwriting. He built compositions of paintings according to the principle of non-mirror symmetry, applied contrasts of chiaroscuro. Art critics note the internal dynamics, the sense of rhythm in prescribing images. In addition, Gury Nikitin's frescoes cover a wide range of colors, which undoubtedly enhances the decorative effect of the compositions.

Famous works

The mention of the first artistic creations of Nikitin dates back to 1650. It is associated with the painting of the porch of the Church of the Resurrection and the Trinity Cathedral in Kostroma. The frescoes of Gury Nikitin in the Holy Cross Cathedral in Romanov (now Tutaev) (beginning of the 1650s), in the Danilov Monastery inPereslavl-Zalessky (1662-68), in the Assumption Cathedral (Rostov Kremlin, 1670) and in the Church of Elijah the Prophet (Yaroslavl, 1680). For the latter, Nikitin also painted holiday icons.

1666 was a difficult, turning point for the Russian Church. Nikitin took an active part in the restoration of the murals of the Archangel Cathedral. The images of martyr soldiers and several fragments of the monumental composition "The Last Judgment" belong to his brush.

Iconography

The house of the artist and icon painter was not far from the Epiphany Cathedral. Of course, this fact means the direct participation of Guria in the painting of the temple. The brightest murals, the icons of Gury Nikitin for the cathedral, date back to 1667-1672.

In the same years, he painted cypress folds commissioned by Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna. Their composition was presented in such a way that the image of the Virgin of Kazan was depicted in the center, Nicholas the Wonderworker on the right, and the Great Martyrs Agrippina and Evdokia on the left. Seven icons were also created for Patriarch Macarius of Antioch.

A lot of icons were painted by Nikitin for the Assumption Cathedral. Among them: "The Last Judgment", "The Sign", "The Descent of St. Spirit”, “Kazan in miracles”.

The Old Testament Trinity icon by Gury Nikitin for the Trinity-Sypanovsky Cathedral in Kostroma, painted in 1690, is considered to be the last work.

Attributed works

There are several artworks attributed to Gury Nikitin. However, they have not received sufficient attribution. These include The Theodorov Icon of the Mother of God with a Legend (1680), Martyrs Kirik and Julita (1680s), Ex altation of the Cross, and a fresco from the Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma. According to historical data, some of them (for example, the "Feodorovskaya icon …") are not the artist's own works, but a skillful restoration of the works of their predecessors.

Interesting facts

Gury Nikitin lived in virginity and celibacy, but his family had no spiritual fathers. And the icon painter himself did not take tonsure. Such a decision remained a mystery to the artist's contemporaries. However, in the memorial record of the Nikitin family, after the date of the death of the father of the family, the name of Elena the schema was indicated. Researchers suggest that this is the church name of mother Guria (Solomonides), who already at an advanced age went to the monastery.

In 1659, when talented icon painters were needed in Moscow to paint the Archangel Cathedral, Emelyan Pushkarev went from Kostroma. However, he had bad legs and was soon sent back. For his replacement, he recommended several fellow countrymen, among whom was Gury Nikitin. The artist successfully passed the certification and in 1660 received the status of an icon painter of Article I.

Guriy Nikitin was the headman (or foreman) of the artel of Kostroma icon painters. Despite a number of privileges in his position, the artist treated his work very responsibly and did not allow himself any indulgence, working on a par with colleagues in the shop and even more. When designing the Ipatiev Monastery and ChurchElijah the Prophet, he independently drew the contours of future frescoes, and left the finishing touches to his students.

The name "Gury" literally means "patient worker". That is exactly what Guriy Nikitin was. His biography is fragmentary, but the memoirs of contemporaries indicate that the icon painter was a pious and God-fearing person. I have always approached the painting of icons responsibly both from the artistic and spiritual side. There is a known case when he began to paint the image of the Theodore Mother of God during Great Lent, having previously confessed and received communion. Later, during the procession in Yaroslavl, this image showed miracles of healing.

Gury Nikitin often had to restore old icons and paintings. He carefully treated the cultural and historical heritage, therefore, he retained such stylistic features of the works of his predecessors as large figures and restraint of movements. That is why some of the artist's works remained unknown.

Art critics rank the name of Gury Nikitin in the list of great Russian icon painters. Along with Feofan Grek, Andrei Rublev and Simon Ushakov, he had a great influence on Russian icon painting and rightfully deserved a place of honor among the masters of his craft.

Today

Many of Gury Nikitin's masterpieces have survived to this day. The largest and most significant are located in the artist's homeland in Kostroma. So, at present, in the Trinity and Ipatiev Cathedrals, you can get on an excursion and get acquainted with the unique monuments of Russian architecture and painting. Central location of coursededicated to the review of frescoes by Gury Nikitin.