Artist Kramskoy unknown. Mystical paintings by Russian artists
The painting “Unknown” by Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy was painted in 1883.
This is a half-length portrait of a young woman sitting in a stroller.
The lady is dressed in the latest fashion of the 1880s: a velvet beret, at that time such berets were called “Francis”, reminiscent of the headdress in the painting of aristocrats of the 16th century - the same shape, the same ostrich feather attached with a gold agraph with pearls.
A heavy knot of dark hair on the neck. The coat, by association with the general’s overcoat, is called “Skobelev”, it is clearly expensive cloth,
trimmed with sable fur and dark blue silk ribbons.
The muff is also trimmed, which was fashionable then, with sable and dark blue silk ribbons. On his hands, to match the general attire, are dark blue kid “Swedish” gloves and on his left hand is a massive gold bracelet.
When analyzing this work, critics often attribute to the woman the properties of “The Lady of the Camellias,” arguing that it depicts a certain lady of the demimonde, an expensive kept woman, or perhaps an actress enjoying patronage. This is motivated by the fact that the lady is defiantly fashionably and expensively dressed.
At that time, the nobility, experiencing an economic crisis, did not have the opportunity to dress like this, and in general, strict adherence to fashion was a characteristic of the “nouveau riche”, people who came to high society thanks to money, and not origin.
Composition
The first thing the viewer sees is a dark spot of the silhouette of a woman in a stroller. The composition is such that it resembles a close-up film frame. Very unusual for that time.
The second is a light transparent background - the contours of the Anichkov Palace.
Presumably, the stroller is located on the Anichkov Bridge.
The shift in scale creates a completely unexpected effect - the face becomes the main thing in the picture. The first thing we see is the eyes! A distant, sad, slightly arrogant look.
The source of light, the direction of the shadows, the warmth and density of tone indicate that the figure was painted in a studio, and the landscape was painted on location. The atmosphere of winter St. Petersburg is conveyed absolutely masterfully.
History of creation
The history of this work - Kramskoy called it not a “portrait”, but a “picture” - is contradictory. The author left no comments, letters, diary entries, accounts or donations related to this painting.
A sketch written for the painting was recently found in the private collection of Dr. Dusan Friedrich in Czechoslovakia in the city of Prague.
It is known that the person who posed for the same sketch was not a professional model, but someone’s acquaintance, who by chance ended up in Kramskoy’s studio and served as a model for him and several of his colleagues for a full-scale study.
One of the participants, a colleague at TPVC, writes about this episode in his memoirs. It seems that this model is depicted in the sketch for the painting.
The sketch is written in the same color and from the same perspective, but the facial features are not so correct, the hairstyle is different, the expression is different, harsher.
There are several different versions of the creation of this work. One of them is a portrait of Kramskoy’s deeply beloved daughter, Sophia, also an artist with a tragic fate.
It is also assumed that this is a commissioned portrait of Ekaterina Dolgorukova, the morganatic wife of Emperor Alexander II, who remained with the artist after the death of the emperor.
There is a version that says that this is a portrait of Matryona Savvishna, who, as a maid on the Bestuzhev estate, charmed the young Count Bestuzhev with her unusual beauty - he married her and brought her to St. Petersburg, where the artist met her.
One of the attractive and quite probable theories is that the painting depicts Varvara Turkestanova, a Georgian princess. Ivan Nikolaevich saw her cameo portrait, learned about her tragic fate, and this inspired him to create the painting.
Resonance
The painting was first shown at the 11th exhibition of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions, where it had the effect of a bomb exploding. The composition, plot and mood of this piece did not correspond at all to either the concept of the Partnership or the ideas of that time about what was permitted.
Tretyakov initially refused to purchase it, but eventually bought the work despite not exhibiting it for many years.
Under Soviet power and during the period of democratization of society, this work is presented in the Tretyakov Gallery as one of the most popular works by I.N. Kramskoy, symbolizing Russian culture.
All these theories do not clarify the real identity of the "Unknown". Perhaps this was precisely the task of the artist, who painted a collective image of a woman of his time.
“Unknown” is a painting by the Russian artist Ivan Kramskoy, recognized far beyond the borders of the author’s homeland. A masterpiece created by a little-known portrait painter became known throughout the world.
Painting "Unknown"
There is no doubt who painted the painting “Unknown”. The author of the work is the artist Ivan Nikolaevich. The information regarding the girl depicted on the canvas remains a mystery. The creator did not leave comments, diary entries, or any other information. One version says that the portrait of the unknown Ivan Kramskoy is the prototype of the artist’s beloved daughter Sofia. The girl died at a young age. The event caused mental anguish for the talented creator.
The history of the creation of Kramskoy’s painting “Unknown” includes several theories regarding the woman’s person. Matryona Savvishna, who worked as Count Bestuzhev’s maid, may have become the master’s model. Another version is that the master created the portrait, inspired by the tragic fate of the Georgian princess Varvara Turkestanova.
The world saw the mysterious lady on canvas on March 2, 1883 (opening of the 11th exhibition of the Association of Art Traveling Exhibitions). The canvas became a real sensation, causing genuine delight among the general public. Tretyakov had a slightly different opinion. The gallery owner refused to purchase the canvas.
The peak of popularity falls on the period of the USSR. During democratization, the portrait is exposed to visitors to the Tretyakov Gallery. The author of the painting “Unknown” subsequently became popular thanks to this work.
Interesting factors about the painting “Unknown” by Kramskoy are as follows:
- has a bad mystical reputation;
- was in private collections for a long time;
- temporary owners acquired personal problems after the acquisition (wife left, house burned down, bankruptcy, death);
- the author suffered from the canvas (after the completion of the work, the artist’s 2 sons mysteriously died);
- until 1925 the painting was abroad (private collections).
Description of the picture
It is better to begin an artistic description of Kramskoy’s painting “Unknown” with a portrait of a mystical stranger. A beautiful young woman sitting in a stroller appears. The lady looks sophisticated and elegant.
The head is decorated with a velvet beret called “Francis”. Headdresses of this kind can be seen in portraits of nobles of the 16th and 17th centuries. Under the cap we see a large head of dark hair. The coat is made of expensive cloth, decorated with sable fur and dark blue silk ribbons. Outerwear is associated with the general's overcoat, which was worn by the aristocrats of that time. From this we can assume the woman’s high origins.
The beauty's dark face is slightly covered with blush. Large eyelashes, plump lips, and a playful half-smile convey the femininity of the heroine. In fact, work is the standard of femininity.
The eye is drawn to the muff that the stranger is holding. The product is decorated with sable fur and variegated blue ribbons. The hands are covered with gloves, complementing the range of dark blue colors of the lady's robes. The left hand is decorated with jewelry. We see a huge gold bracelet.
The background is the outlines of Anichkov Palace, shrouded in light fog on a frosty winter morning. It can be assumed that the carriage is located on the bridge leading to the palace. The image (like a film still shot in close-up) is quite unusual for works of the era. The heroine's face comes to the fore, attracting the viewer's attention. The eyes are clearly visible, the gaze is distant, sad, a little arrogant.
Critics who refute the fact of Ivan Nikolaevich’s depiction of his daughter are inclined to argue that the beautiful lady has the properties of the “Lady with Camellias.” Presumably the woman is a wealthy kept woman or an actress under the patronage of influential individuals. The nobility of that time was in deep decline. Purebred ladies did not allow themselves such expensive outfits due to savings. Dressing according to the latest fashion trends was a distinctive feature of women who got into high society thanks to big money.
The play of shadows, the fall of daylight, the tones of clothing, the outlines of the figure indicate that the work was created in several stages. The image of the main character was painted from a model in the studio. The exhibition of winter St. Petersburg is also depicted from life.
The image of a mysterious stranger has mystical properties. The owners who owned the canvas faced bitterness and loss. At one time, Tretyakov refused to purchase the canvas because he considered the painting uninteresting for the viewer. Since then, a streak of failures began in the lives of the owners of the work of art. It all ended when the canvas found its permanent place, ending up in the Tretyakov Gallery.
Category "Unknown" by KramskoyIn 1883, Kramskoy completed this “strange” painting and called it sharply, defiantly, “Unknown.” The mystery has tormented those who look at this painting for almost more than 160 years. Who is this woman? A secret sealed with seven seals. Kramskoy did not say a word or a hint about her either in his diaries or in his numerous letters.
This is perhaps Kramskoy’s most famous work, the most intriguing, remaining to this day incomprehensible and unsolved. By calling his painting “Unknown,” the clever Kramskoy forever attached to it an aura of mystery.
Contemporaries were literally at a loss. Her image evoked concern and anxiety, a vague premonition of a depressing and dubious new thing - the appearance of a type of woman who did not fit into the previous system of values. “It is unknown who this lady is, decent or corrupt, but a whole era sits in her,” some stated.
In our time, Kramskoy’s “Unknown” has become the embodiment of aristocracy and secular sophistication. Like a queen, she rises above the foggy white cold city, driving in an open carriage along the Anichkov Bridge. Her outfit - a “Francis” hat, trimmed with elegant light feathers, “Swedish” gloves made of the finest leather, a “Skobelev” coat, decorated with sable fur and blue satin ribbons, a muff, a gold bracelet - all these are fashionable details of a women’s costume of the 1880s years, claiming expensive elegance. However, this did not mean belonging to high society, rather the opposite - the code of unwritten rules excluded strict adherence to fashion in the highest circles of Russian society.
Critics called the young woman in furs with an arrogant expression “the fiend of big cities.” The picture was seen as having an accusatory meaning. However, in the heroine’s face one can see not only arrogance, but also sadness and hidden drama.
History of a possible prototype:
Other versions:
It is also believed that the artist’s wife, Maria Pavlovna Yaroshenko, posed. The portrait of Kramskoy’s niece (his older brother’s daughter) is also similar in face... Or maybe it’s just a collective image.
It is assumed that
in 1878, Emperor Alexander II became a father, he had a daughter, but his daughter was not born to him by the legitimate empress, but by his last and ardent love, Catherine Dolgorukaya. Therefore, Kramskoy kept the secret. Ekaterina Mikhailovna and her children were not recognized by the emperor's relatives. She expressed a desire to Kramskoy to indicate the place she should pass by in the stroller in the picture. This is Anichkov Palace, where the emperor’s heir and his family lived.
Kramskoy worked on the portrait for a long time and redid it many times. Two years passed and... the customer of the portrait, Emperor Alexander II, was killed. The meaning of the work was lost. Dolgorukaya and her children were sent abroad.
The portrait sadly stood in the studio and only three years after the death of the emperor, in 1883, the artist exhibited the painting at a traveling exhibition, calling it “Unknown”...
Compare: is Ekaterina Dolgorukaya similar to “Unknown”
One of the most outstanding works of the Russian school of painting of the second half of the 19th century is the painting “Stranger”. Kramskoy painted it in 1883. The painting was first presented to the public in the same year at the exhibition of the Itinerants in St. Petersburg. Its original name is "Unknown". After the public saw her, many rumors immediately appeared. Who is the young lady that Ivan Kramskoy depicted in the picture? It was not possible to obtain an exact answer to this question until today. The study of the artist’s diaries and personal correspondence also failed to clarify the situation: Kramskoy never mentioned the identity of the woman who became the main character of his most famous work.
Search for the prototype of an unknown girl
There are several versions about whose image the painting “Stranger” conveys. The description of the appearance of the Kursk beauty peasant woman Matryona Savvishna, who became the wife of the nobleman Bestuzhev, most closely matches the heroine of the canvas. Some researchers of Kramskoy’s work believed that the model posing for him while painting was his daughter Sofia. Some art critics were of the opinion that the prototype of the girl from the canvas was Anna Karenina, others attributed her resemblance to Nastasya Filippovna Barashkova, the heroine of Dostoevsky’s novel “The Idiot.” At the beginning of the 20th century, the young lady from the picture began to be associated with Blok’s gentle and mysterious “Stranger.”
Critics rating
Many of Kramskoy’s contemporaries believed that the painting “The Stranger” was painted with the aim of exposing the moral foundations of society, which could not serve as an example to follow. Art critic V. Stasov called the beauty on canvas “a cocotte in a stroller.” According to N. Murashko, the canvas depicted a “dear camellia,” that is, a woman of easy virtue. Describing “The Stranger,” critic P. Kovalevsky called it “one of the fiends of big cities.”
Description of the young lady
What is the painting "The Stranger"? Kramskoy depicted a beautiful young woman riding in an open carriage along the Anichkov Bridge. The young lady, looking regal against the backdrop of snowy St. Petersburg, is dressed expensively and fashionably. The artist describes all the details of the stranger’s elegant wardrobe with special care. A luxurious coat with blue satin ribbons, trimmed with sable furs, a hat with feathers, gloves made of the finest leather, a gold bracelet - all this reveals her as a wealthy woman.
The beauty's gaze, framed by fluffy eyelashes, is arrogant, contempt for others slides through it. But at the same time, in her eyes you can read the uncertainty characteristic of all people who depend on the world in which they live. Despite the dismissive attitude, the girl is very beautiful, graceful, and attracts admiring glances. The unknown young lady clearly did not belong to high society. The manner of dressing in the latest fashion, as well as painted lips and heavily penciled eyebrows indicate that she was most likely the kept woman of some noble gentleman.
Czech find
Approximately 60 years after the painting of “The Stranger,” a sketch for this painting was accidentally discovered in one of the private Czech collections. In it, the young lady is dressed in a dark closed dress, her hair is tied up in a high hairstyle. The woman depicted in the sketch bears a striking resemblance to the “Stranger,” but her gaze shows even more contempt for those around her. Kramskoy portrayed the beauty as arrogant and smug, giving her facial expression a certain caricature. From the sketch it is clear that the master had long been nurturing the idea of creating an incriminating portrait, ridiculing the vices of society.
Rumors about the curse of the painting
It is not only the mystery of the image of the main character that attracts art lovers to the painting “The Stranger.” The artist created a truly mystical work, because for decades it has attracted troubles and failures to its owners.
Having painted the canvas, Kramskoy invited Tretyakov to buy it for his gallery, but he refused, being sure that portraits of beautiful women can draw strength from a living person. "Stranger" found shelter in private collections, first in Russia, then abroad, but it brought misfortune to all its owners. A curse hung over Kramskoy himself: a few months after the picture was released, his two sons passed away one after another.
After long travels in 1925, the mysterious “Stranger” returned to Russia and finally took its place in the Tretyakov Gallery, where it remains to this day. Since then, she has stopped bringing misfortune to others. Admirers of Kramskoy’s work are confident that if the painting had initially ended up in Tretyakov’s collection, then it would not have gained notoriety, because that’s where it should have been from the very beginning.
Fine art has always been considered closely related to the mystical sphere. After all, any image is an energetic imprint of the original, especially when it comes to portraits. It is believed that they are able to influence not only those from whom they are written, but also other people. You don’t have to look far for examples: let’s turn to Russian painting of the 19th – early 20th centuries.
The mysticism of the portrait of Maria Lopukhina
The delightful beauties who gaze at us from the paintings of great painters will forever remain just like that: young, charming and full of vital energy. However, the true fate of beautiful models is not always as enviable as it might seem at first glance. This is very easy to see from the example of the famous portrait of Maria Lopukhina, painted by Vladimir Borovikovsky.
Maria Lopukhina, descended from the Tolstoy count family, immediately after her own wedding (she was 18 years old) posed for Vladimir Borovikovsky. The portrait was commissioned by her husband. At the time of writing, Maria looked simply gorgeous. Her face radiated so much charm, spirituality and dreaminess... There could be no doubt that a long and happy life awaited the charming model. It is an incomprehensible fact, but Maria died of consumption when she was only 23 years old.
Much later, the poet Polonsky would write “Borovikovsky saved her beauty...”. However, immediately after the death of the young beauty, not everyone would have shared this opinion. After all, at that time there was talk in Moscow that it was the ill-fated portrait that was to blame for the death of Maria Lopukhina.
They began to shy away from this picture, as if from a ghost. They believed that if the young lady looked at her, she would soon die. According to some reports, the mysterious portrait killed about ten girls of marriageable age. They said that Mary's father, a famous mystic, after his daughter died, lured her spirit into this painting.
However, almost a hundred years later, Pavel Tretyakov was not afraid and acquired this visual image for his own gallery. After this, the picture “calmed down.” But what was it - empty gossip, a strange coincidence of circumstances, or is there something more hidden behind the mysterious phenomenon? Unfortunately, we most likely will never know the answer to this question.
Ilya Repin - a thunderstorm for sitters?
It is unlikely that anyone will argue that Ilya Efimovich Repin is one of the greatest Russian painters. But there is one strange and tragic circumstance: many who had the honor of being his sitters soon died. Among them are Mussorgsky, Pisemsky, Pirogov, and the Italian actor Mercy d’Argenteau. As soon as the artist took up the portrait of Fyodor Tyutchev, he also died. Of course, in all cases there were objective reasons for death, but here are coincidences... Even the hefty men who posed for Repin for the canvas “Barge Haulers on the Volga” are said to have prematurely given their souls to God.
"Barge Haulers on the Volga", 1870-1873 However, the most terrible story happened with the painting “Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan on November 16, 1581,” which in our time is better known as “Ivan the Terrible Kills His Son.” Even balanced people felt uneasy when looking at the canvas: the murder scene was painted too realistically, there was too much blood on the canvas that seemed real.
The painting exhibited in the Tretyakov Gallery made a strange impression on visitors. Some cried in front of the picture, others fell into a stupor, and others suffered hysterical fits. And the young icon painter Abram Balashov cut the canvas with a knife on January 16, 1913. He was sent to a mental hospital, where he died. The canvas was restored.
"Ivan the Terrible kills his son", 1883-1885 It is known that Repin thought for a long time before taking on the film about Ivan the Terrible. And for good reason. The artist Myasoedov, from whom the image of the Tsar was painted, soon in anger almost killed his young son, who was also called Ivan, like the murdered Tsarevich. The image of the latter was based on the writer Vsevolod Garshin, who subsequently went crazy and committed suicide by throwing himself down a flight of stairs...
A murder that never happened
The story that Ivan the Terrible is a son-killer is just a myth.
It is believed that Ivan the Terrible killed his son in a fit of anger with a blow to the temple from his staff. Different researchers give different reasons: from a domestic quarrel to political friction. Meanwhile, none of the sources directly states that the prince and heir to the throne was killed by his own father!
The “Piskarevsky Chronicler” says: “At 12 o’clock in the night of the summer of November 7090 on the 17th day... the death of Tsarevich John Ioannovich.” The Novgorod Fourth Chronicle reports: “In the same year (7090) Tsarevich John Ioannovich reposed at Matins in Sloboda.” The cause of death has not been announced.
In the 60s of the last century, the graves of Ivan the Terrible and his son were opened. There were no damages characteristic of brain injury on the prince’s skull. Therefore, there was no filicide?! But where did the legend about him come from?
Antonio Possevino - Vatican representative in Russia during the times of Ivan the Terrible and the Great Troubles Its author is the Jesuit monk Anthony Possevino (Antonio Possevino), sent to Moscow as an ambassador from the Pope with a proposal for the Orthodox Church to come under the authority of the Vatican. The idea did not meet with support from the Russian Tsar. Possevin, meanwhile, allegedly became an eyewitness to a family scandal. The Emperor was angry with his pregnant daughter-in-law, the wife of his son Ivan, for her “indecent appearance” - either she forgot to put on a belt, or she put on only one shirt, when she was supposed to wear four. In the heat of the moment, the father-in-law began to beat the unfortunate woman with a staff. The prince stood up for his wife: before this, his father had already sent his first two wives to the monastery, who could not conceive from him. John the Younger was not unreasonably afraid that he would lose the third one - her father would simply kill her. He rushed at the priest, and in a fit of violence he struck with his staff and pierced his son’s temple. However, except for Possevin, not a single source confirms this version, although later other historians, Staden and Karamzin, readily picked it up.
Modern researchers suggest that the Jesuit came up with the legend in retaliation for the fact that he had to return to the papal court “without a slurp.”
During exhumation, remains of poisons were found in the bone tissues of the prince. This may indicate that John the Younger died from poisoning (which was not uncommon for those times), and not from being hit by a hard object!
Nevertheless, in Repin’s painting we see precisely the version of filicide. It is performed with such extraordinary verisimilitude that you can’t help but believe that this is exactly what happened in reality. Hence, of course, the “killer” energy.
And again Repin distinguished himself
Self-portrait of Repin Once Repin was commissioned to create a huge monumental painting, “The Ceremonial Meeting of the State Council.” The painting was completed by the end of 1903. And in 1905, the first Russian revolution broke out, during which the heads of the officials depicted on the canvas fell. Some lost their posts and titles, others even paid with their lives: Minister V.K. Plehve and Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, former governor-general of Moscow, were killed by terrorists.
In 1909, the artist painted a portrait commissioned by the Saratov City Duma. He had barely finished the work when Stolypin was shot dead in Kyiv.
Who knows - maybe if Ilya Repin had not been so talented, the tragedies might not have happened. Back in the 15th century, the scientist, philosopher, alchemist and magician Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim wrote: “Beware of the painter’s brush - his portrait may turn out to be more alive than the original.”
P. A. Stolypin. Portrait by I. Repin (1910) Mystical painting “Stranger” by Ivan Kramskoy
The picture miraculously survived two periods of mass interest in itself, and in completely different eras. For the first time - after being written in 1883, it was considered the embodiment of aristocracy and was very popular among the sophisticated St. Petersburg public.
Unexpectedly, another surge of interest in the “Unknown” occurred in the second half of the 20th century. Apartments were decorated with reproductions of Kramskoy’s work cut out from magazines, and copies of “The Unknown” were one of the most popular orders from artists of all levels. True, for some reason the painting was already known under the name “Stranger,” perhaps under the influence of Blok’s work of the same name. Even “Stranger” candies were created with Kramskoy’s painting on the box. Thus, the erroneous title of the work finally “came to life.”
Many years of research into “who is depicted in Kramskoy’s painting” have not yielded results. According to one version, the prototype of the “symbol of aristocracy” was a peasant woman named Matryona, who married the nobleman Bestuzhev.
“The Stranger” by Ivan Kramskoy is one of the most mysterious masterpieces of Russian painting.
At first glance, there is nothing mystical in the portrait: the beauty is riding along Nevsky Prospect in an open carriage.
Many considered Kramskoy’s heroine an aristocrat, but a fashionable velvet coat trimmed with fur and blue satin ribbons and a stylish beret hat, coupled with penciled eyebrows, lipstick and blush on her cheeks, mark her out as a lady of the then demi-monde. Not a prostitute, but clearly the kept woman of some noble or rich man.
However, when the artist was asked whether this woman existed in reality, he just grinned and shrugged. In any case, no one has ever seen the original.
Meanwhile, Pavel Tretyakov refused to purchase a portrait for his gallery - perhaps he was afraid of the belief that portraits of beauties “suck the strength” out of living people.
Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy The “Stranger” began traveling to private meetings. And very soon she gained notoriety. Its first owner's wife left him, the second's house burned down, and the third went bankrupt. All these misfortunes were attributed to the fatal picture.
Kramskoy himself did not escape the curse. Less than a year after the creation of “Unknown,” his two sons died one after another.
The “damned” picture went abroad. They say that there she caused all kinds of trouble to her owners. In 1925, “The Stranger” returned to Russia and nevertheless took its place in the Tretyakov Gallery. Since then, no further incidents have occurred.
Maybe the whole point is that the portrait should have taken its rightful place from the very beginning?
