Mysterious portrait: who really was the "Horsewoman" Karl Bryullov. Karl Bryullov "Horsewoman": a description of the painting What words to end the description of the painting Bryullov horsewoman

Name of the painting: "Horsewoman"
Picture painted: 1832
Canvas, oil.
Size: 291 × 206 cm

Description of the painting "Horsewoman" K. Bryullov

Artist: Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (Bryulov)
Name of the painting: "Horsewoman"
Picture painted: 1832
Canvas, oil.
Size: 291 × 206 cm

Quite a lot has already been said about the Russian artist K. Bryullov. He was the author of outstanding paintings, and today they occupy a worthy place in the list of world masterpieces and museum expositions. One of them is "Rider".

The history of writing the canvas is attractive and unusual. As you know, the painter lived in Italy for a long time, but just before leaving this romantic country, he commissioned Countess Y. Samoylova to paint a portrait of her adopted daughters, Giovannina and Amazilia Pacchini, the daughters of the same composer who created the opera The Last Day of Pompeii, which inspired the artist for a monumental canvas in the future. But before that, a portrait of two pupils of a Russian aristocrat appeared in a secluded villa near Milan. The work was called "Jovanin on a horse", but for everyone she became a "Horsewoman".

The image of Jovanina on a horse was revolutionary, because earlier only generals, emperors and kings were depicted this way, and not ordinary citizens.

A horsewoman stands out on the canvas, which stops the horse at full gallop. She controls it confidently, causing genuine delight in the little girl near the balcony. Two dogs, barking at a rearing horse, are also interested in what is happening, which, by inertia, also indulges in nature - tree trunks tilted from the wind that ran through them, and clouds rush across the sky. The rays of the evening sun make their way to the earth spontaneously and restlessly.

The value of this painting is not only in the innovative approach to depicting people, but also in the fact that Bryullov modernized the front portrait. If you look closely at the outline of the silhouette of the horse and Jovanina sitting on it, then it resembles a triangle. It is noteworthy that earlier this technique was used by Titian, Velasquez, Rubens and Van Dyck. Bryullov, on the other hand, interprets this compositional technique in a completely unusual way - he introduces the image of a child into the picture. Little Amalicia, hearing the clatter, ran out onto the balcony and held out her hand, trying to catch the movement of the horse. Her wide eyes and slightly parted mouth express surprise and delight. At the same time, she worries about how fast her sister is galloping with a majestically haughty, almost marble face, filled with some kind of extraterrestrial renunciation. The girl successfully creates balance and gives the canvas realism, spontaneity and as if breathes life into it.

Look at the shaggy dog ​​at the feet of Jovanina's horse. It makes the space in the picture voluminous, as if it exists not only behind, but also around the figures.

The canvas is dynamic, and anyone who has ever seen it in the Tretyakov Gallery will certainly have the feeling that this is not a painting, but a photo that only for a second stopped the frantic pace of life. The black horse shines after a walk, he still beats with his hoof, because he cannot tune in to calmness after running, and the dog, conveying the atmosphere of a rich house of those times, gleams with a nominal collar and joyfully meets the rider. Amacilia in a touching dress, like all children of her age, is lively and nimble. She couldn't sit still when she heard her older sister coming back. The girl's huge eyes express not only physical dynamism, but also emotional dynamism - adoration, devotion and slight envy for her older sister, whom she wants to be like so much that even their hair is curled the same way.

The Horsewoman simply breathes life, she becomes the messenger of all earthly joys - the picture is so direct. There is everything here: the lively images of the characters, the boldness of the compositional solution, the grandeur of the pre-stormy sky, and the variety of shades of the palette.

Moreover, the latter is filled with rather bold color schemes, which are not only incompatible at first glance, but also uncharacteristic of Bryullov. On the canvas, the pink, almost powdery, color of Amacilia's dress, the black, even velvety color of the horse, and the airy white, with a slight blueness, dress of the horsewoman are quite risky. At first glance, the combination of red-pink, black-blue and crystal white shades is quite difficult to perceive. This is the peculiarity of Bryullov's style of writing - the use of not close, but contrasting color schemes, the most difficult in the skill of the artist. Note that the tones of the painting are not overdriven, which enhances their sound. The tonal harmony of the canvas is so calm and concise that there are no carelessness or inaccuracies in the portrait. It is not for nothing that fashion historians of that time call Giovanina the “cover girl” of a fashion magazine. Fashion trends of the early 19th century can be traced in her clothes - an aristocrat sits in a ladies' saddle, her Amazon is light blue, befitting unmarried young ladies, tightly buttoned with all buttons, with puffed sleeves. The horsewoman put on gloves on her hands - both for the reason not to injure her delicate aristocratic hands, and because etiquette forbade showing them in society. Walking hats were popular in the 19th century. Jovanina was no exception: her headdress is dark green with flowing ribbons.

Amacilia is not so conservatively dressed - she is wearing a powdery pink dress with open arms, lace knickers and green shoes. We see the fashion trends of the century before last in her hairstyle - in those days, the children of aristocrats were supposed to do a perm.

The painting "Horsewoman" was first exhibited in Rome (1832). The life-size portrait of a girl caused, if not a stir, then the gossip of the critics around him. Some noted the skill of the artist, calling the girl on horseback a "flying angel" and admired Bryullov's ability to convey the play of light. Other art connoisseurs from Italy said that the horsewoman's face was lifeless, and therefore she did not notice the movement of the horse. Bryullov himself refuted all these arguments, speaking about the main task of art - the image of life.

Nevertheless, his skill as an artist and the unprecedented scale of the portrait captivated the public so much that he was awarded the title of genius and stood on a par with Rubens and Van Dyck, and the painting itself is rightfully called one of the most famous examples of art of the 19th century.

Horsewoman is a painting by the Russian artist Karl Bryullov, painted in 1832 at the request of Countess Yulia Samoilova. Even on the dog's collar, the artist depicted the name of the Samoilovs. The painting was first exhibited in 1832 at the Brera Gallery in Milan. Further, the canvas was with the Countess herself until her ruin in 1972, when the painting was sold.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova

Even before the painting "The Horsewoman" was born, Bryullov already had universal recognition. The artist decides to bring the image of a beautiful rider to life at the end of his stay in Italy, when Countess Samoilova orders a portrait of his adopted daughters from him. Without thinking twice, the artist makes a bold decision - to portray the eldest pupil, Jovanina, on horseback, as before they decided to depict only generals and titled persons. The youngest, Amalicia, stands aside, watching the end of the horse ride.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

In 1896, The Horsewoman was purchased for the Tretyakov Gallery. At first it was assumed that the Countess herself was depicted on the canvas, but art historians, having studied Bryullov's later canvases, were able to prove that this was not so. The painting depicts Giovannina and Amalicia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yulia Samoilova. The artist called his painting "Jovanin on a horse." In Italy, there are engravings of this painting, which are considered a portrait of the singer Malibran, who is quite famous and is the sister of Pauline Viardot.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The picture conveys the scene of the walk. The moment of returning home is captured, when Jovanin rides up to the porch on a black horse. Bryullov's composition "Horsewoman" is filled with dynamism - everything in it is in motion, it froze for literally a second, so that the artist could capture. The black horse beats with its hoof, flushed after a walk, and the dog, with a nominal collar, rushes under his hooves, joyfully meeting Jovanin.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The canvas also depicts the little half-sister of Jovanin - Amalicia. She is wearing a pink dress and green shoes. But most of all, her enthusiastic look, with which she looks at her half-sister Jovanin, attracts attention.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

Danny Wright

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The finished work was presented to the public in 1832, to a mixed response from critics. Many condemned the picture, pointing to the frozen, lifeless face of the rider. Also, some critics pointed out that the rider's posture was too loose, which lost a sense of speed and dynamics. One of them said: "She either does not notice the frantic speed of the ride, or is too self-confident to pull on the reins and duck, as a skilled rider would."

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

But, despite the criticism, the main part of the public accepted the picture positively, calling it a masterpiece. After the painting "The Horsewoman" was presented to the public, Bryullov took his place next to such legends as Rubens and Van Dyck. (Well, this is unlikely - my note.) The audience was simply captivated by the scale of the picture and the skill of the artist's brush. As for the facial expression of Giovannina, the creator himself explained this as a special task that he set before art at that time. At first, the painting was given to the collection of Samoilova, but when the count's family went bankrupt, the canvas changed hands. In 1896, it was bought for the Tretyakov Gallery.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

What does the viewer see when looking at the canvas? First of all, it is speed, movement, liveliness, which the artist conveyed in the best possible way. These features are noticeable in almost all characters: a lathered horse that clearly does not want to stop, an enthusiastic girl on the balcony, and a shaggy dog ​​barking animatedly at the rider. It seems that even the dog hiding behind the girl will now take off and rush after the horse. Perhaps she would have done this if the rider had not stopped the horse. And only the rider herself remains calm: it seems that she does not care about the world around her at all, in her thoughts she is somewhere far away ...

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The most interesting thing that can be seen in the picture is, perhaps, little Amalicia. In every movement, lively face and enthusiastic eyes of the baby, you can read the delight mixed with expectation. The girl is waiting for her to become as adult as her sister, to be able to saddle a black horse, and just as majestically ride it in front of enthusiastic relatives.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The picture is full of joy from the meeting after a short, but still absence. From watching her, the spirit freezes and the viewer seems to plunge into this joyful atmosphere depicted on the canvas of the Russian artist Karl Bryullov, who was able to convey the atmosphere that prevailed at that time in the countess's estate so sincerely and honestly.

Karl Bryullov
Rider.
Portrait of Giovannina and Amazilia Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, (detail)
1832. Oil on canvas. 291.5 x 206 cm.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

Russian Academy of Arts

State educational institution of higher professional education

St. Petersburg State Academic Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture named after I.E. Repin

Faculty of Theory and History of Art

Department of Russian (foreign) art

Course work

"Rider". Karl Pavlovich Bryullov

Saint Petersburg 2011

Introduction

Conclusion

Bibliography

List of illustrations

Introduction

“The Russian painter Karl Bryullov painted a life-size portrait of a girl on a horse and a girl looking at her. As far as we remember, we still have not seen an equestrian portrait conceived and executed with such art... This portrait shows us a painter who speaks out immediately, and more importantly, a brilliant painter.” Such and other, no less flattering, reviews appeared in Italian newspapers in 1832. The interest and admiration of art lovers was aroused by the painting “Horsewoman. Portrait of Amazilia and Giovanina Pacini, pupils of Countess Yu. P. Samoilova.

In general, the literature about Karl Pavlovich Bryullov and his works is diverse and extremely extensive: articles, memoirs of contemporaries, correspondence, discussions about art. The attitude towards his work is different. Even during the lifetime of this, no doubt, a great master, a number of articles appeared in the Russian and Italian press, mostly enthusiastic. But the tone of some articles changes dramatically after the death of the artist. This can be explained by the fact that in the 1860s, with the growth of the democratic movement, Russian art faced new goals and tasks.

The change of points of view in criticism is clearly seen in the example of V.V. Stasov. Being in Rome at the time when Bryullov died, Stasov explores his works, the works left to the world after the death of their author. And he writes an article in 1852, in very high, laudatory tones. After only a few years, Stasov debunks his recent idol, destroying all his work in the name of another artist. This article is called "On the Significance of Bryullov and Ivanov in Russian Art." I.S. Turgenev chooses the same path of destroying Bryullov in the name of Ivanov in the article "Literary and everyday memories." At the very beginning of the 1860s, the disputes around the name of the artist subsided a bit, only to resume with renewed vigor at the very end of the century, when events were being prepared and held to commemorate the centenary of the birth of Bryullov.

From A.N. Benois, the significance of Bryullov's work is almost unconditionally denied. And the artists N.N. Ge and I.E. Repin, on the contrary, put his works and contribution to art very highly. Repin, in a speech at the celebrations on December 12, 1899, calls Bryullov “the best draftsman after Raphael”, “the greatest artist in the last 300 years ...” (Leontieva G.K. Karl Pavlovich Bryullov - L .: Artist of the RSFSR, 1986).

Despite all the strife and controversy around the name of Karl Pavlovich, he was and will remain one of the greatest artists of our country, who made an extraordinary contribution to the development of artistic culture. As rightly writes G.I. Pikulev “Karl Pavlovich Bryullov is one of the largest and most talented Russian artists, who during his lifetime gained wide popularity in his homeland and in Europe. Bryullov is distinguished by the breadth of his creative outlook. In equal measure, he can be called a historical painter, genre painter, muralist, master of religious painting, watercolorist and excellent portrait painter. Bryullov also mastered the technique of engraving and modeling. And in all areas, the inexhaustible wealth of his creative imagination affected. The role of Bryullov the professor, who brought up a whole galaxy of famous Russian artists, is enormous ”(Pikuleva G.I. Gallery of Geniuses: Bryullov - M .: OLMA-PRESS Education, 2004.). According to G.K. Leontieva, “A truly deep analysis, systematization, and objective assessment of Bryullov’s work is received in the works of Soviet art critics. The first experience of a problematic monograph was carried out in 1940 by O.A. Lyaskovskaya. The book by E.N. Atsarkina "Karl Pavlovich Bryullov", equipped with a scientific apparatus and including the most complete catalog of the artist's works "(Leontieva G.K. / Karl Pavlovich Bryullov / L .: Artist of the RSFSR, 1986).

Chapter 1 History of creation

The Horsewoman is a painting by the Russian artist Karl Bryullov, painted in 1832, when Karl Pavlovich Bryullov lived in Milan, northern Italy. A close friend of the artist, a wealthy aristocrat, Countess Yulia Samoilova ordered a portrait of her pupils from the young master. They were the daughter and young relative of the deceased composer Giuseppe Pacini. The same Pacini, whose opera "The Last Day of Pompeii" prompted Bryullov to the theme of the famous painting in the future. The painter painted two sisters in a villa near Milan. It was first exhibited in 1832 in Milan, in the Brera Gallery. And then there were a lot of responses to it, which were collected, translated by one of Bryullov's faithful students, the artist Mikhail Zheleznov. The canvas was in the collection of the countess, which was sold out in 1872, shortly before the death of the bankrupt Samoilova.

In 1896, The Horsewoman was purchased for the gallery by P.M. Tretyakov. Where is it to this day. At first it was assumed that the painting depicts the countess herself, perhaps because of the inscription on the collar of one of the dogs, in the lower right corner of the canvas, it bears the name "Samoylova". (see ill.1)

But if we compare the picture with Bryullov’s later works “Portrait of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova with pupil Giovannina and a black boy" and "Portrait of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, leaving the ball with her adopted daughter Amazilia, "it is clear that this is not so. The painting depicts two pupils of Countess Samoilova Jovanina and Amazilia Pacini. Amazilia Pacini was the daughter of the Italian composer, a friend of Y. Samoilova, Giovanni Pacini. Little is known about Jovanin. There is a version that her real name is Giovannina Carmine Bertolotti and she is the daughter of Clementine Perry, the sister of Samoilova's second husband. The artist called his work "Zhovanin on a horse."

The picture is interested in the skill of execution and a non-trivial plot. Since the artist faced a difficult task, to harmoniously depict a young girl sitting on a magnificent horse, while not creating a pretentious front portrait. The artist dared to portray the modest pupil of Countess Y. Samoilova - Jovanina, in the way that before him only titled persons or famous commanders were depicted.

Thinking of writing The Horsewoman, Bryullov set himself the task of creating a large equestrian portrait. In it, he used the motif of a walk, which made it possible to convey a figure in motion.

Chapter 2. Karl Pavlovich Bryullov. Life and art

Carl Pa ?Vlovich Brullo ?in (December 12 (23), 1799, St. Petersburg - June 11 (23), 1852, Manziana, Italy) - a great Russian artist, painter, muralist, watercolorist, draftsman, representative of academism, Member of the Milan and Parma academies, the Academy of St. Luke in Rome, professor at the St. Petersburg and Florence academies of arts, honorary free accomplice of the Paris academy of arts. Brother of Alexander Bryullov, architect, representative of the Romanticism style.

Karl Bryullov was born in the family of an academician, wood carver and engraver of French origin Pavel Ivanovich Brullo (Brulleau, 1760-1833) and his wife Maria Ivanovna Schroeder (Schroeder), who had German roots. From 1809 to 1821 he studied painting at the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg, was a student of Andrei Ivanovich Ivanov. A brilliant student, he received a gold medal in the class of historical painting. By 1820, his first known work, Narcissus, dates back. (see ill.2)

The work of Karl Pavlovich Bryullov is distinguished by the content of ideological and artistic tasks, genuine artistry. Already in his early years, serious creative searches were inherent in him.

Graduating from the Academy of Arts in 1821, Bryullov eight times reworked his program for the Big Gold Medal - "The Appearance of Three Angels to Abraham at the Oak of Mamreia." The next year he left for Italy to improve.

The portraits and paintings he created here reflected the desire to convey the beauty of life and overcome the conventionality of the pictorial-plastic form learned at the Academy of Arts. Under the hot Roman sun, such paintings as “Italian Morning” (1823) and “Italian Noon” (1827) (see ill. 3) were painted, as well as, after three years of painstaking work, the famous work “The Last Day of Pompeii” ( 1830-33) (see ill. 4).

Fig.3 Fig.4

Striving for great historical themes, in 1830, having visited the excavation site of the ancient Roman city destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius, Bryullov begins work on the painting "The Last Day of Pompeii". The multi-figure tragic canvas becomes one of the “catastrophe paintings” characteristic of romanticism. The painting "The Last Day of Pompeii" by Bryullov (completed in 1833 and stored in the Russian Museum) produces a sensation both in Russia (where A.S. Pushkin, N.V. Gogol, A.I. Herzen and other writers enthusiastically write about it), and abroad, where this work of the painter is hailed as the first great international success of the Russian painting school.

In 1835, the artist returned to his homeland as a living classic. Having visited Greece and Turkey along the way, Bryullov creates a number of poetic images of the Eastern Mediterranean. Turning to Russian history at the suggestion of Emperor Nicholas I, Bryullov wrote The Siege of Pskov by Stefan Batory (1836-1843, Tretyakov Gallery), failing, however, to achieve (despite a number of striking pictorial finds in the sketches) the epic integrity of his Italian masterpiece. Upon his return to Russia, Bryullov's monumental design projects began to form an important area of ​​creativity, where he managed to organically combine the talents of a decorator and a playwright (sketches for murals at the Pulkovo Observatory, 1839-1845; sketches and sketches of angels and saints for St. Isaac's Cathedral).

Bryullov acts as a complete master of his images in portraits. Even in things made to order (like the portrait of "Countess Yulia Samoilova leaving the ball with her adopted daughter Pacchini" (see ill. 5), circa 1842, Russian Museum) the enchanting splendor of color and mise-en-scenes looks, first of all, as a triumph of art. Bryullov painted many excellent portraits; with them he turned out to be closest to the realistic taste of the second half of the 19th century. Large ceremonial, imposing, "story" portraits of secular beauties - a phenomenon of its kind, the only one and no longer repeated in Russian art. We like them differently than in those days: we do not take them too seriously, there is something naive in their luxury, but that is why they are attractive. Even more relaxed, psychologically sincere in colors and chiaroscuro are the images of people of art (poet N.V. Kukolnik, 1836; sculptor I.P. Vitali, 1837; fabulist I.A. Krylov, (see ill. 6) 1839; writer and criticism by A.N. Strugovshchikov, 1840; all works in the Tretyakov Gallery), including the famous melancholic self-portrait (1848, ibid.). Ever weaker from illness, since 1849 Bryullov has been living on the island of Madeira, and since 1850 in Italy. Karl Bryullov died on June 23, 1852 in the town of Mandziana, near Rome.

Fig.5 Fig.6

Chapter 3 Artistic analysis of the painting

picture horsewoman bryullov portrait

In the last years of his first stay in Italy, in 1832, K. Bryullov painted the famous "Horsewoman" (see ill. 7), gracefully sitting on a magnificent horse.

In the center of the work is a young girl who has returned from a morning walk. The rider at full gallop stops the heated horse. The confident dexterity of the Amazon evokes genuine admiration from the little girl who runs up to the balcony, as if urging the viewer to share her delight.

Excitation is transmitted to a shaggy dog ​​barking fiercely at a rearing horse. The landscape is also agitated with tree trunks tilted by the passing wind. Cirrus clouds are running anxiously across the sky, the rays of the setting sun breaking through the dense foliage fall on the ground in restless spots.

Depicting a young girl - Giovannina and her little friend - Amazilia Pacini, Bryullov created an inspired canvas that glorifies the joy of life. The charm of The Horsewoman is in the immediacy of the revival that permeates the entire scene, in the boldness of the compositional solution, in the beauty of the pre-stormy landscape, in the brilliance of the palette, striking in the richness of shades.

The general silhouette of the rider and the horse forms a kind of triangle - a stable, long-time favorite form of building a ceremonial portrait. This is how many compositions Titian, Velazquez, Rubens, Van Dyck solved. Under the brush of Bryullov, the old compositional scheme is interpreted in a new way. The artist introduces the figure of a child into the picture. The little girl, hearing the stomp of the horse, ran swiftly out onto the balcony and extended her hand through the bars. Both delight and fear for the rider expresses her face (see ill. 8). A note of lively, direct feeling moderates the cold majesty of the portrait, gives it immediacy and humanity. The girl, incomparably more alive than the rider, successfully fits into the work, conveys the mood of sincere childish delight, ease of perception of the world and deprives the portrait of pathos and seriousness, which usually comes from the majestic equestrian portraits of other artists of that era.

Enthusiastic Italians compared Bryullov with Rubens and Van Dyck, wrote that they had never seen an equestrian portrait conceived and executed with such art. This is an exaggeration - from the unusualness of Bryullov's creation. Equestrian portrait has always been front. He inevitably hid a hidden meaning: a rider who saddled and subjugated a hot horse is a man in power. Here is not a commander leading an army into battle, not a conqueror entering a captured capital, not a monarch being crowned king - the girl returned home from a walk.

In this work, Bryullov finally connects the ceremonial portrait and the everyday scene. He himself called the work "Zhovanin on a horse", but for everyone it is "Horsewoman". "Zhovanin on a horse" tells a little about the "Zhovanin" - Jovanina; little Amazilia - admiration, impulse, the charm of childhood.

Bryullov painted a picture with a sense of the fullness and joy of being, admiring the beauty and picturesqueness of the world, with the feeling that lived in him, and which he found in these girls, Jovanin and Amazilia.

In a large canvas, Bryullov managed to organically link the decorative effect of the decision with the veracity of direct observation. "Horsewoman" can rightfully be called a model of a portrait-painting in the art of the first half of the 19th century. It is impossible not to see in this originality of the creative concept an expression of the bold will of the artist, who violates the established traditions. The very appearance of the young horsewoman acquired some conditional generalization.

Exhibited in 1832 in Rome, the portrait of Giovannina caused a lively exchange of opinions. Here is what was said, for example, in one of the newspaper articles published at that time: “The Russian painter Karl Bryullov painted a life-size portrait of a girl on a horse and another girl who looks at her. We don’t remember seeing an equestrian portrait before that, conceived and executed with such skill. The horse... beautifully drawn and posed, moves, gets excited, snorts, neighs. The girl who sits on it is a flying angel. The artist overcame all difficulties like a true master: his brush glides freely, smoothly, without hesitation, without tension, skillfully, with the understanding of a great artist, distributing the light, he knows how to weaken or strengthen it. This portrait reveals in him a promising painter and, more importantly, a painter marked by genius. "

According to the fair opinion of the poet Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy, Blullov was considered "the best painter in Rome." (Pikuleva G. I. /Gallery of geniuses: Bryullov/ - M.: OLMA-PRESS Education, 2004.)

In an article that appeared in the same year, attributed to Ambriosodi, it was said: “If anything can seem incredible, it is that a beautiful rider either does not notice the frenzy of the horse’s movements, or, from excessive self-confidence, does not tighten the bridle at all and does not leans towards her, as perhaps it would be necessary.

Bryullov's "omission", noticed by his contemporaries, was partly explained in the tasks that he set in this period for the art of a large portrait-picture. The creator of the "Horsewoman" could be suspected of inability to convey facial expression, if not for the image of a little girl, in a fit of delight, clinging to the lattice of the balcony. On her pointed face, the play of feelings is so alive that doubts about the brilliant talents of Bryullov the portrait painter immediately disappear. By the beginning of the 1830s, Bryullov took one of the leading places in Russian and Western European art. His fame as an outstanding master of the portrait was secured by the "Horsewoman".

Without a doubt, The Horsewoman is a success. She made a splash among her contemporaries. They talked about her, wrote about her, discussed her, there were rumors around her, versions and assumptions about the personality of the depicted. It was an unconditional hit in the top ten.

"Horsewoman" was purchased for the gallery P.M. Tretyakov in 1893 in Paris, as a portrait of Yu.P. Samoilova. It was believed that she was depicted as a horsewoman.

Later it was proved that this is the same picture that the artist called "Zhovanina on a horse" in the list of his works, and that it depicts two pupils of Samoilova - Giovannina and Amatsilia. This was established by comparing the girls depicted on the "Horsewoman" with them on other Bryullov canvases.

If you can see, if you look at the dated 1834 "Portrait of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova with a pupil of Giovannina and a black child" and "Portrait of Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, leaving the ball with her adopted daughter Amatsiliya" (see ill. 5), begun in 1839 during their arrival in Petersburg.

The reason to be mistaken in who is represented in the image of a horsewoman was given by the artist himself. Although the girl looks younger than Samoilova, who in 1832 was about thirty years old, she seems older than the teenage girl, which Giovannina is depicted next to the countess in Bryullov's portrait of 1834. By the way, this is not the only misunderstanding associated with the definition of the heroine of the Horsewoman.

In 1975, the famous La Scala Opera House published a book dedicated to the outstanding singers whose voices sounded from its stage. "Horsewoman", presented as "Romantic portrait of Malibran" from the Theater Museum "La Scala". The name of Maria Felicita Malibran-Garcia, sister of Pauline Viardot, belongs to one of the brightest legends in the history of opera. Masterfully wielding a marvelous voice, possessing a hot temperament and a gift for acting, combined with an appearance that corresponded to the romantic canon of female beauty - a slender figure, a pale face under blue-black hair and large sparkling eyes, it seemed that she was created to embody the heroines of musical dramas on stage .

An avid horse rider, Maria Malibran died from bruises sustained in a fall from a horse. She was twenty eight years old. The untimely death consolidated the legend that was born during the life of the singer: one Milanese lawyer, who presented the La Scala Theater Museum with an engraving from the painting "The Horsewoman", considered that Malibran was depicted on it.

The director of the Theater Museum, Professor Gianpiero Tintori, said: “I understand that you are embarrassed. When, having arrived in Moscow, I visited the Tretyakov Gallery, I realized that the fair-haired horsewoman (Giovannina was red-haired in life) could not portray the burning brunette Malibran. I talked about this those who selected illustrations for the book, but they only added the epithet "romantic" to the word "portrait", that is, they presented the picture as a kind of fantasy on the theme of the singer's passion for horseback riding.

The picture is filled with emotions and movement. A happy young girl, excited by the walk, the gallop, the wind in her face, sharply reined in her horse, her little friend enthusiastically ran out to meet her - and the excitation of the horsewoman was immediately transmitted to her, intensifying many times in her; the black horse squints, snores, tries to rear up; feeling the mood of the owners, the dogs are worried; the wind bends the tops of the trees; clouds are running across the sky: everything is excited, agitated, alarmed, but this is a joyful excitement, a joyful excitement of happy people.

Giovannina Pacchini in the portrait by Karl Bryullov is shown in a fashionable, rich and elegant costume of a horsewoman, a brocade blouse with puffy elbow-length and narrow sleeves to the wrist, a lace collar, a long skirt below the heels, which reflects the wealth and refined taste of its owner. Neatly curled curls, soft features of the face, only slightly turned to the side, contrast with the movement that filled the whole picture. A light cloud of veil, stretching with the wind. The face of the newly returned rider is calm enough, but not devoid of the pleasure of the trip. (See ill. 9) She holds herself arrogantly and majestically, like a brave commander on the battlefield.

The front legs of the horse raised in running, as if the hind legs are ready to jump; you can almost hear the neighing of a horse and the frightened barking of a dog on the right. The equanimity of such a fragile girl is amazing; without a shadow of effort or fear, she restrains the ardor of a frisky horse, bursting with health, strength and power. The sun plays on the muscles of his black satin body. The swollen nostrils, the open mouth show all the impatience, all the resistance of the rearing horse. The horse is excited, but the rider sits straight and proud, self-confident. All his power is completely subordinated to the young rider, calmly sitting on his back.

Attracted by the clatter of hooves and the neighing of a horse, the little girl on the left who jumped out of the house is also all in motion - her right leg bent at the knee, her hands grabbing the railing of the parapet. Even the static nature of the entrance arch, the parapet and the pedestal, in which the parapet is mounted, is disturbed by the image of pieces of earth flying out from under the horse's feet and sticking to the pedestal. This whole genre picture, as it were, emphasizes the equestrian inner world seething with emotions, but, constrained by the conventions of noble decency, she does not show this in facial expression.

Wild strength, submitting to fragile beauty, tenderness and refinement, dominating power, is one of the favorite motifs of romanticism, the pinnacle of which was the work of Bryullov.

The whole pose of the girl is full of grace and lightness. It seems that she does not even sit in the saddle, but hovers above him, like a light, almost weightless white-blue cloud. A smooth bend of the arm, sloping shoulders, a thin neck give tenderness, smoothness to the figure. The folds of the dress and the developing veil only enhance the effect.

The position of the head and the antique calmness on the porcelain face of the eldest of the Pacini sisters contrasts with the composition of the whole picture, filled with movement and emotions. The Italian idealized type of appearance was considered perfect in the time of Bryullov. Which is not surprising, because a purely realistic image does not always give that touch of romanticism, so beloved by the contemporaries of Karl Pavlovich.

Today, looking at this work, you understand how right the Italian connoisseur of art was who called the young Karl Bryullov a brilliant artist just for this portrait alone. The master boldly combines the warm, delicate tones of the girl's pink dress with the black steel of the velvety black hair of the horse and the white luminous attire of the rider. Bryullov gives a complex harmony of pink-red, bluish-black and white shades. The contrasts of colors are striking, in which red is combined with brown-beige, dark brown, almost black - with bluish-moon, lead-gray - with yellow-blue, white-pink - with blue-black, and black - with yellow .

The painter, as it were, deliberately chooses not close, but contrasting, especially complex in painting, combinations. But each tone is masterfully designed by the master, in many subtle gradations. The painting layer is nowhere overloaded, and this enhances the sound of paint on light ground. Bryullov achieved a special tonal harmony here. There are almost no careless, sluggishly written places in the portrait. The school of the Academy of Arts left its mark on the painting: the figures of a girl, dogs and especially a horse are depicted anatomically accurately.

The combination of textures and light is also skillfully used. Graphic, angular folds of shimmery fabric next to the softness of animal fur. With light, the artist determines the main action and the main characters of the picture. Here, in bright morning light, against the backdrop of a dark garden and monumental stone slabs, the figures of the sisters are snatched out, the animals are slightly less illuminated. On the broken bends of clothes, the light lies in the same bright breaks, like fragments of a broken mirror. And on the moving object itself - a horse, on the contrary, more diffused light. The morning sun plays on his tense muscles, lying on the edges of the smooth, and not chopped as on a dress, curves of the chest, legs and neck, emphasizing their roundness and allowing the viewer to see and feel their rolls and movement.

The work feels space, perspective. The shaggy dog ​​depicted on the canvas helps to create the impression that in the picture space unfolds not only in depth, but also exists in front of the characters. The feeling of depth is further enhanced by the light breaking through somewhere in the distance, through the trees of a dense garden.

Conclusion

Bryullov is vigilant and observant in the study of reality. All his works are distinguished by the brightness and sonority of color, which gives a festive mood to any event. These works are also characterized by the indispensable beauty of the depicted people, which is necessarily accompanied by the beauty of their feelings, actions, movements.

When writing the famous Amazon, not only portrait tasks were of interest to the artist. “If you don’t see beauty in an object and don’t capture this beauty, then there’s no point in indulging in art,” Bryullov believed. It was this thought that became the main theme of The Horsewoman. The artist built his own, partly ideal world on the canvas. The main thing in this world was the feeling of the joy of being, the feeling of the charm of childhood, the happiness of youth, which overwhelmed Bryullov and with which he endowed his heroines. They are depicted with such force of lyrical feelings that the situation, perhaps everyday, appeared poetically transformed. The picture is permeated with violent movement, filled with an extravaganza of colors.

Karl Pavlovich achieved the task set for himself, besides, "The Horsewoman" brought him success and recognition, both at home and abroad.

When The Horsewoman was created, Karl Bryullov was thirty-three years old. Ahead was the triumph of "Pompeii", a series of famous portraits of contemporaries, friendship with Pushkin, Glinka. There was a whole life ahead...

Under the influence of Bryullov's work in Russia, a large group of his followers formed, who used his artistic principles in different ways: some preferred the brilliance of the overall pictorial solution, others preferred deep penetration into the human character, marking the best creations of the great master.

In our time, Bryullov's paintings are recognized as a valuable artistic heritage. They teach us the understanding of beauty, joy and sorrow, happiness and inevitability. They can be called absolute truth. They do not lie, do not pretend, their characters are naive, pure and unattainably beautiful. You can look at them endlessly, see everything new and new, but we are never destined to understand the soul of the person who painted these canvases. A man who lived in a troubled time, an already imperfect world, but portrayed such beautiful and perfect images.

Bibliography

1.Allenova O., Alenov M. / Karl Bryullov / M.: Bely Gorod, 2000.

2.Dolgopolov I. / Stories about artists. Volume 2 / M .: Fine Arts, 1983.

.Leontyeva G. K. / Karl Pavlovich Bryullov / L .: Artist of the RSFSR, 1986

.Leontieva G. K. / Karl Bryullov / M .: TERRA, 1997

.Pikuleva G.I. /Gallery of geniuses: Bryullov/ - M.: OLMA-PRESS Education, 2004.

.Porudominsky V. I. / Life of remarkable people: Bryullov / Young Guard, 1979.

.Stolbova E. / Chronicle of the life and work of Karl Bryullov / Karl Pavlovich Bryullov. Palace Editions, 1999.

.Internet resource free encyclopedia "Wikipedia"

List of illustrations

Il. 1: K.P. Bryullov. "Horsewoman" fragment (1832) Oil.

Il. 2: K.P. Bryullov. Narcissus Looking into the Water (1820) Oil.

Il. 3: K.P. Bryullov. "Italian noon" (1827) Oil.

Il. 4: K.P. Bryullov. "The Last Day of Pompeii" (1830-33) Oil.

Il. 5: K.P. Bryullov. Portrait of "Countess Yulia Samoilova Leaving the Ball with Paccini's Adopted Daughter" (circa 1842) Oil.

Il. 6: K.P. Bryullov. Portrait of the fabulist I.A. Krylov (1839) Oil.

Il. 7: K.P. Bryullov. Horsewoman (1832) Oil.

Il. 8: K.P. Bryullov. "Horsewoman" fragment (1832) Oil.

Il. 9: K.P. Bryullov. "Horsewoman" fragment (1832) Oil.

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Great masterpieces of art are always fraught with great mysteries. Even, it would seem, the most ordinary portrait of a famous person, but it contains so many secrets and mysteries that it gives food for thought to any generation of art historians. Among these paintings is the picture of the famous Russian artist Karl Bryullov "Horsewoman".

At first glance, the picture is nothing special. According to the genre, this is a portrait of a young girl riding a horse returning from a walk, and a little girl enthusiastically meeting her older sister. The scene takes place in the estate of the countess in the outskirts of Milan. The canvas is full of life and joy. Dynamics is created by a horse, which is barely restrained by the reins of a young girl. Her cheeks are flushed and give liveliness to the figure. The little girl looks at her with genuine interest. A shaggy dog ​​jumps for joy nearby. On his collar you can see the inscription “Samoilova”, which at one time misled art lovers, who believe that the portrait of the rider was painted from the countess herself.

However, the researchers, comparing the ceremonial portraits of the countess and the facial features of the girl in the portrait, came to the conclusion that this is still a portrait of the eldest pupil, Giovanina Paccini. This fact is also supported by the fact that in his notes Bryullov calls this portrait "Zhovanin on a horse." This canvas was painted by the artist at the request of his friend and beloved muse Countess Yulia Samoilova for her gallery. It is believed that these are portraits of the young pupils of Samoilova Giovanin and Amazilia Pacchini. However, meticulous art lovers, comparing the facial features of the girls in this portrait and others where they are depicted with their adoptive mother, came to the conclusion that they are different.

It may seem unbelievable, but there are grounds for such an assumption. Around the same time, engravings of this painting appeared in Italy and were considered a portrait of one of the most famous and beloved singers of that time, Maria Malibran, who was the sister of Pauline Viardot.

So, what is this mysterious figure, Maria Malibran?

The girl was born into a musical family, which determined her future fate. Her father was a famous Spanish composer, singer and teacher; mother, sister and brother sang leading roles on the main opera stages in Europe. From the age of six, Maria studied music and singing, the career of an opera singer became her whole life. Beautiful, fragile, tender, with a magical strong voice, she was the favorite of the public. Speaking on stage, she devoted herself entirely to art, not sparing her own life. She sang as she lived. This was later the cause of her tragic death. Maria Malibran died at the age of 28 almost on stage.

Shortly before the tragedy, Maria was seriously injured by falling on a horse: the young woman loved horseback riding and various dangerous tricks. Just a few days after the fall, she stood on the stage, barely able to stand on her feet from unbearable pain, and sang so desperately and soulfully that the audience gave a standing ovation and called her favorite for an encore many more times. After the performance. barely reaching the dressing room, Malibran practically fell unconscious and died. This story gave rise to many romantic ballads about a singer who lived for her art and died at the very peak of her fame to the applause of the public.

So, if there are so many life coincidences, maybe the heroine of Bryullov really was an exalted Spanish prima, a favorite of the public, and the great artist has preserved her image for us.

During your stay in Italy Karl Bryullov painted one of the most mysterious portraits. "Rider" caused a lot of controversy about who the artist actually depicted - his beloved Countess Yu. Samoilova or her pupils Jovanina and Amazilia.

Bryullov's painting was commissioned by his lover, Countess Yulia Pavlovna Samoilova, one of the most beautiful and wealthy women of the early 19th century. Count Y. Litta, the second husband of her grandmother, Countess E. Skavronskaya, left her a huge fortune. Due to a divorce, a scandalous reputation and impudent behavior in a conversation with the emperor, Samoilova had to leave Russia and move to Italy. There she lived in grand style, bought villas and palaces, arranged receptions. She gathered the whole color of Italian society: composers, artists, artists, diplomats. Verdi, Rossini, Bellini, Pacini were frequent guests of the Countess.

Samoilova often commissioned sculptures and paintings for her villas. One of them was a ceremonial portrait made by Bryullov. The Countess's collection was very popular in Italy: art connoisseurs often came to Milan specifically to see her collection of paintings and sculptures.

K. Bryullov wrote The Horsewoman in 1832, at the same time the painting was exhibited at an exhibition in Milan. The Horsewoman was a great success in Italy. The newspapers wrote: “An excellent painter appeared this year with a large oil painting and exceeded all expectations. The manner in which this portrait is executed brings to mind the beautiful works of Van Dyck and Rubens.”

Disagreements about who was depicted in the portrait were created by the artist himself. Samoilova in 1832 was about 30 years old, and the girl depicted in the portrait looks much younger. But she does not look like the young pupils of the countess depicted in other portraits of that time, in particular, in the portrait of Yu. Samoilova with her pupil Giovanina Pacini and a black child, created in 1834.

For 40 years, the painting was in the collection of Samoilova. Shortly before her death, completely ruined, the countess was forced to sell it. In 1893, The Horsewoman was purchased for the Tretyakov Gallery as a portrait of Countess Y. Samoilova. For a long time it was believed that she was depicted as a horsewoman. However, later art historians still managed to prove that the picture is not the countess herself, but her pupils Jovanina and Amacilia, and that this particular work is mentioned in the artist’s personal notes under the name “Zhovanin on a horse”. This version is also supported by the portrait resemblance of Yulia Samoilova depicted in other paintings and her pupils.

Bryullov painted portraits of Countess Samoilova repeatedly, and in all the paintings one can feel his warm attitude towards the posing woman. A. Benois wrote: “Probably due to his special attitude to the depicted person, he managed to express so much fire and passion that when looking at them, all the satanic charm of his model immediately becomes clear ...”.

Jovanina and Amazilia were the adopted daughters of Samoilova, although they were not officially adopted. There is a version that Jovanina is the niece of Samoilova's second husband, opera singer Perry, born out of wedlock. According to another version, both girls were the daughters of the composer Pacini. The Countess had no children of her own, and she took in Jovanina and Amazilia to raise them.

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