I love Russian painters and one of my favorites is Victor Vasnetzov (1848 - 1926). Part of being a good painter is knowing what to paint, and Vasnetzov certainly knew that. He was riveted by the architecture and wall art in the Czar's palace. And no wonder...it's beautiful! Are these rooms still standing? Wouldn't you love to go to Russia and see this for yourself? Why doesn't some public building in the West reproduce some of these rooms? Why doesn't Disneyworld?
Russia's such an interesting blend of East and West. The red pillars are reminiscent of China, and so is some of the wood carving, and the dress patterns sometime seem influenced by the Islamic south, yet the less formal, European-influenced Russian character seems to pervade everything.
The Vasnetsov painting above manages to capture something else about Russia, and that's what a magical country it used to be. You see it in the art and the literature. Here's the beginning of a Russian kids story: "In the golden holiness of a night that will never be be seen again and will never return, there lived in a certain country far, far away at the other side of the great waters, a little mosquito."
Russian traditional dress (above). Beautiful!
The Russian Orthodox church certainly contributed to the country's character. The religious art I've seen emphasizes the tragic, as if to say human beings find nobility and wisdom in their encounters with great suffering.
Talking about suffering, this poor girl (above) looks miserable, but everybody around her is celebrating. At least she has a pretty place to be miserable in.
A Vasnetsov witch (above) abducts her victim, then makes her getaway. Is that a baptismal font? What's going on here?
A typical covered porch outside the elevated front door of a well-to-do house. These outdoor porches were common in old Russia. Maybe that's where you took off your boots, or maybe it was meant to be a buffer separating the house from the world of freezing wind and ice outside.
I love the witch painting one. It looks very dramatic.
ReplyDeleteEddie i read a post of yours that was about having clutter and it being creative. I was wondering if you knew then about Bottle Village since it's clutter, architecture, and art all in one fabulous lot in simi valley.
I know it has nothing to do with the post but I thought you might want to see it if you haven't. :D
http://home.roadrunner.com/~echomatic/bv/index.html
I used to work with Igor Kovalyov at Klasky. He painted some gorgeous things, then gave them to me at the end of the day. A book that he gave me, that I use for reference, is on Russian Popular Prints. I've always loved the use of complimentary colors in Russian art and architecture. His animation was so dreamy and different from our American styles. He told me that it used to be that an artist was paid by the state and lived comfortably. He was able to make his films from government funding, which in Russia, was as important as building a community building.
ReplyDeleteI wish our government and general population felt that way about art here. Russia is different now, since the end of the USSR. It is much harder for artists than it once was.
Ramble...ramble...
Eddie,
ReplyDeleteThat witch in the painting is Baba Yaga, and the "babtismal font" is her mortar, which she flew in, and steered through the skies with her pestel. Maybe the author of the Baba Yaga stories was an apothecary!
Mark K.
The witch is Baba Yaga.
ReplyDelete"The religious art I've seen emphasizes the tragic, as if to say human beings find nobility and wisdom in their encounters with great suffering."
ReplyDeleteI'll go out on a limb here and say it's probably actually saying something about the tragedy, transcendence, nobility and sacrifice of God-become-man suffering and dying for humanity's sins, but what the hey.
Come on, Fitzgerald! ; )
Great post!
ReplyDeleteRussian art and architechture has always interested me because of the blends of many cultures. You have the mix of the European west, Chinese east, and Turkish middle eastern. It really is unique.
Strange... Nothing of this came up when I read Dostoevsky... maybe when I get into Tolstoy...
ReplyDeleteDidn't know that cwatt is a communist.
ReplyDeleteMark, Rogelio: Thanks for the info! I'll keep my eyes open for more about this character. That was a great painting, wasn't it!?
ReplyDeleteCWyatt: In our own country a lot of the artists who are supported by the government are absolutely terrible. They need the support because the public isn't interested in what they do.
I like classical music and art museums so I tend to be less critical of government subsidies for these, but in principle I don't really believe even in that. I wish I could talk to the artist you mentioned so I could ask him how those Soviet subsidies used to work.
Oh: Haw! Interesting point!
Anon: CWyatt's not a communist. We used to work together and she did some awesome backgrounds.
Sage: It's confusing because there's another bottle building of note near LA.
ReplyDeleteJennifer: I have more on this subject. I've got some other paintings that'll blow your mind.
Oppo: I've been thinking about Dostoyevsky lately. Maybe I'll do a blog about it.
There sure is a lot of pre-raphaelite sorta stuff in those particular examples. Wikipedias Vasnetsov examples lean closer to Sargeant or something, but with fewer saturated colors. Its all good stuff.
ReplyDeleteOh really? is there a link for it?
ReplyDeleteThis is not just one building though, it's about 13-15 made by an old lady to keep collections in. I think you'd find her pretty fantastic.
Bottle village
This stunning russian painter choose very good themes to paint.To think what to paint many times is a dilemma.You said: "Part of being a good painter is knowing what to paint".And this is the important key phrase.I can note you use Ever-Eddie batteries!:-)
ReplyDeleteThose porches are standard here in Wisconsin, where we call them "mud rooms," for obvious reasons. You lucky Californios wouldn't know about that, also for obvious reasons. It's a northern thing.
ReplyDeletethis poor girl (above) looks miserable, but everybody around her is celebrating.
ReplyDeleteProbably getting married off to some ugly hump.
The religious art I've seen emphasizes the tragic, as if to say human beings find nobility and wisdom in their encounters with great suffering.
Others may disagree, but it has always seemed to me that the primary function of big Christianity is to make people content to suffer and toil. it has always been a tool of fascism in disguise. It's to the point now in this country where many will tell you that you are a whining sissy if you believe it is the function of government to provide services.
"In the golden holiness of a night that will never be be seen again and will never return, there lived in a certain country far, far away at the other side of the great waters, a little mosquito."
Awfully elaborate introduction for a mosquito.
CWyatt: In our own country a lot of the artists who are supported by the government are absolutely terrible. They need the support because the public isn't interested in what they do.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't have to be that way. We have lots of badly implemented programs. A poor implementation is hardly the same thing as a bad idea, but the dismantlers of government would very much like you to confuse the two.
A lot of the art that's not government funded is terrible, too.
IDRC: I disagree about the nature of Christianity being fascistic, and promoting suffering by urging people to accept it. We owe a lot of our modern concepts of liberty and parliaments to the Christians, and the idea of accepting suffering coincided with unparalled exploration and scientific advance in the Christian countries after the barbarian centuries.
ReplyDeletevery true.
ReplyDeleteSome is good and some is bad. But I like that art is thought of as a necessary component in society. The appreciation and reflection that art creates is what matters. I'm sure some people believed the Sistine Chapel was a waste of religious resources. "You can't please all of the people all of the time, but you can please some of the people some of the time"
Igor's experience was fascinating to me and he appreciated his government for the attention placed on art in Russia.
Communist...funny... I come from a political background.
neat! Kinda William Blake meets middle ages art, you should do a post of the Far Side and how bland its imitations are speedbump.com
ReplyDeletecwyatt: I was the one who made that wise crack about communism. I shamefully did it anonymously so it wouldn't tarnish my reputation.
ReplyDeleteIDRC: I disagree about the nature of Christianity being fascistic...
ReplyDeleteChristianity is more than one thing, and I am focusing on the population control aspect.
Don't complain, go back to work. God will take care of you later.
Hey Eddie,
ReplyDeleteI don't mean to get political but I thought you might be interested in this. The SB 60 REAL ID ACT OF 2007 passed in the California senate, which mandates an Orwellian national ID card, which is unconstitutional. The governor has until September 29th to veto it. Go to gov.ca.gov/interact#email and tell him to veto it.
By the by, great paintings!
wow! first thx for posting these pictures. secondly, i wish i could paint like vasnetsov. and third, what a magical and wonderful world vasnetsov must have lived in, or maybe just a fertile imagination!
ReplyDeleteto Max, whats wrong with that? Orwell is one of my favorite writers! Any government program inspired by him would be a step forward in my book
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: are you a troll or an idiot? The act is Orwellian in the sense that Orwell predicted and warned against similar legislation.
ReplyDeleteThe left that opposes this kind of ID card should team up with the religious right and oppose any of this Revelation-style crap.
Jorge I think we can all agree that youre the idiot, go back to editing wikipedia and yelling at people on messageboards or whatever you do in your free time
ReplyDeleteThanks again, Eddie! Another amazing artist who I never heard of.
ReplyDeleteRussia would have been a field day for a Pre-Raphaelite. It was still pretty mediaeval there in those days & all that folksy decorative art!
"We owe a lot of our modern concepts of liberty and parliaments to the Christians..."
Now, that would make an interesting post.
I can tell anonymous isn't an idiot because he wrote "youre" instead of "your" which is the most common internet grammatical error.
ReplyDelete