"Death of Pompeii" (painting). Ivan Constantinovich Aivazovski

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

"The Fall of Pompeii" can be called one of the little-known masterpieces of Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky. The historical event, the tragedy of the ancient city, inspired the painter to approach the subject with new thoughts.

Artist

Ivan Aivazovsky, or Hovhannes Ayvazyan, was and remains one of the most famous marine painters in Russia. His seascapes are loved and appreciated all over the world. Works are exhibited at the popular Sotheby's and Christie's auctions for millions of British pounds.

Born in 1817, Ivan Konstantinovich lived for eighty-three years and died peacefully in his sleep.

Hovhannes was born into a merchant family of Armenians from Galicia. The famous artist later recalled that his father was the first to move away from his roots and even tried to pronounce his last name in the Polish manner. Ivan was proud of his educated parent who knew several languages.

From his birth, Aivazovsky lived in Feodosia. His talents for art were early noticed by the architect Yakov Koch. It was he who began to teach Ivan painting.

The Mayor of Sevastopol, seeing the gift of the futuremaster, also took part in his formation as an artist. The young talent, thanks to the efforts of the head of the city, was sent to study for free in St. Petersburg. Like many other famous Russian artists, Aivazovsky was a native of the Art Academy. She largely influenced the preferences of the classic of marine painting.

Style

The Art Academy in St. Petersburg helped shape Aivazovsky's style, thanks to his studies with Johann Gross, Philip Tanner, Alexander Sauerweid.

Having drawn "Calm", Ivan Konstantinovich in 1837 receives a gold medal and the right to go to Europe.

After that, Aivazovsky returns to the Crimea, to his homeland. There he painted seascapes for two years, and also helped the army in battles against the enemy. One of his paintings from that period was bought by Emperor Nicholas I.

On his return to St. Petersburg he was awarded the title of nobility. In addition, he acquires such eminent friends as Karl Bryullov and composer Mikhail Glinka.

Wandering

From 1840, Aivazovsky's pilgrimage to Italy began. On the way to the capital, Ivan and his friend Vasily Sternberg stop by Venice. There they meet another representative of the Russian elite, Gogol. The artist Aivazovsky, whose paintings have already become famous in the Russian Empire, visited many Italian cities, visited Florence, Rome. Stayed in Sorrento for a long time.

For many months Aivazovsky stayed with his brother, who became a monk, on the island of St. Lazarus. There he spoke withEnglish poet George Byron.

The work "Chaos" was bought from him by Pope Gregory the Sixteenth. Critics favored Aivazovsky, and the Paris Academy of Arts even gave him a medal of merit.

In 1842 the marine painter leaves Italy. After crossing Switzerland and the Rhine, he travels to Holland, later to Great Britain. On the way back he visits Paris, Spain and Portugal. Four years later he is back in Russia.

Aivazovsky, living in St. Petersburg, became an honorary professor of the academy of both this city and Paris, Rome, Stuttgart, Florence and Amsterdam. He continued to paint marine paintings. He has over 6,000 landscapes to his credit.

From 1845 he lived in Feodosia, where he founded his own school, helped create a gallery, initiated the construction of the railway. After death, the unfinished painting “The Explosion of a Turkish Ship” remained.

Famous paintings

Aivazovsky's paintings were dearly loved by representatives of all classes of the Russian Empire, and later the Soviet Union. Almost every modern family keeps at least one reproduction of Ivan Konstantinovich at home.

His name has long been a sign of the highest quality among marine painters. The most popular are the following works of the artist:

• The Ninth Wave.
• "Pushkin's Farewell to the Sea", which he wrote together with Repin.
• "Rainbow".
• "Moonlit night on the Bosphorus".
• Among the masterpieces that Aivazovsky wrote is "The Death of Pompeii".
• "View of Constantinople and the Bosporus".
• "Black Sea".

These paintings even appeared on postage stamps. They were copied, cross-stitched and stitched.

Confusion

It is interesting that many people confuse the "Death of Pompeii". The picture, who painted it, is not known to everyone, has nothing to do with Bryullov's canvas. His work is called "The Last Day of Pompeii".

Written by Karl Pavlovich in 1833. It depicts ancient people fleeing from an erupting volcano. In Bryullov, the inhabitants of Pompeii are locked in the city itself. "The Fall of Pompeii", the description of the painting is very different, conveys a completely different idea.

Aivazovsky's landscape was painted in 1889, much later than his predecessor. It is likely that, being a friend of Bryullov, the marine painter could be inspired by the same chosen theme of the tragedy of the ancient period.

The story of the painting

The most uncharacteristic work of Aivazovsky is considered to be "The Death of Pompeii". The painting was created in 1889. He took a plot from history as a basis. What happened to the city is still considered one of the biggest natural disasters in the world. Pompeii, once a beautiful ancient settlement, was located near Naples, near an active volcano. In 79, an eruption began, which claimed hundreds of lives. The description of the painting by Aivazovsky helps convey all these events.

If Bryullov showed in his canvas what the city itself and the people inside it could look like, then Aivazovsky focused on the sea.

"Death of Pompeii". picture: whowrote and what I wanted to say

Being a marine painter, Ivan Konstantinovich focused on conveying the plot outside the city. History already tells us how the death of Pompeii ends. The picture is painted in very dark scarlet tones, symbolizing all human lives buried alive under a layer of lava.

The central figure of the canvas is the sea, on which ships sail. In the distance you can see the city illuminated by lava. The sky is dark with smoke.

Despite the horror of this event, Aivazovsky offers some hope for a brighter future by showing ships overflowing with survivors.

Ivan Konstantinovich wanted to convey the despair of those who saw the death of Pompeii. The painting is not focused on the faces of dying people. Nevertheless, all the tragedy and horror of the situation seems to be spoken by a hot sea. The canvas is dominated by crimson, black and yellow colors.

In the central plan are two large ships that are fighting the sea waves. A few more can be seen in the distance, hurrying to leave the place of death, in which the inhabitants of the city, depicted on the canvas “The Death of Pompeii”, forever froze.

If you look closely, at the top, in the rings of smoke, there is an erupting volcano, from which rivers of lava pour onto ancient temples and houses. Aivazovsky enhanced the effect of presence by adding many black dots of ash settling on the water throughout the picture.

View painting

"Death of Pompeii" - an oil painting on a regular canvas measuring 128 by 218 cm, stored inRostov.

She is an integral part of the collection of the Rostov Regional Museum of Fine Arts. It welcomes visitors every day from 10.00 am to 18.00 pm. The museum is closed only on Tuesdays. Address: Pushkinskaya street, 115.

The cost of a regular ticket without benefits will cost the visitor 100 rubles. Children who do not yet go to school will need to pay 10 rubles. Students can pay an entrance ticket of 25 rubles. Students pay 50 rubles, and pensioners 60 rubles.

The museum collection also contains other paintings by Aivazovsky, such as "Sea" and "Moonlight Night". Nevertheless, the pearl of the collection is the “Death of Pompeii”. The description of the painting gives a clear idea of how formidable nature can be.