Antonella Colaninno
The National Art Museum of Latvia collects the most important collection of works of art in the country to 'Within this, the most important is the collection of Latvian art that includes a period of time ranging from the eighteenth century. until today. This collection was formed around the second half of the nineteenth century., With the union of two collections of art in Riga: the Art Gallery, and that of the Kunstverein (the Association in support of the visual arts). For Latvia the nineteenth century. represented a very important historical moment, since the country joined the Russian Empire and the art is a 'iportante iconographic testimony of these great changes taking place. The collection of the Art Museum of Latvia is characterized by its variety, although historically his training game with realist works from the nineteenth and early twentieth century. The Russian painting has always undergone profound influence of culture, related to the history and politics of these territories, ruled by despots and authoritarian regimes, this component of political and social issues with neighbors in folklore and popular culture are typing art Russian, not only for artists who worked at home but also for those who have left the territories east and landed in the West, such as Chagall, in which the component nostalgic for his interpretation is expressed in Vitebsk visionary aspects of popular culture. A 'major exhibition at the Galleria Civica di Palazzo Loffredo said the birth of Russian realism through a century of history, starting from the mid-nineteenth century. until the fifties of the twentieth century, tracing the emergence and spread of Russian realism in the thirties of the twentieth century sfocierà in socialist realism. Realism has not only represented an aesthetic phenomenon, but more about the history and culture; which affected the whole of Europe and that it binds to the events of the great changes of the century. The French realism, for example, binds to the events of 1848 and especially in the three decades that it has anticipated. E'adesso that the revolutionary ideas of 1789 and of the people are the ultimate expression of freedom. E 'socialism and the idea of \u200b\u200bfreedom struggles that move the nineteenth century. This brings great social mobility of artists and intellectuals to focus on these aspects, to reflect on reality, opposed to classicism and romanticism. One who has represented the full reality was Gustave Courbet. The realism was not only linked to the vision of these issues, but put the focus on all aspects of life and the centrality of man. This view of reality was mythologized in the sense that humanity had to take a grandeur that once was exclusively of the old canons and iconographic setting gave way to a "poetry of reality." In the same year, Russia also lived profound changes as a result of government reforms of Tsar Alexander II ascended the throne in 1855. The elimination of censorship, the abolition of serfdom and urbanization of the territory led to a different vision of society especially among the intellectuals indicating a new responsibility social art, claiming the break with the aesthetics and claims the beginning of an aesthetic that looks at the social values \u200b\u200bof a productive society, open to social problems. Among intellectuals began a reform movement, populism. Students working in the country on holidays and taught to the farmers. St. Petersburg was the vital center of this movement, many students, between 1871 and 1873 left the city in the country and began preaching the ideals of progress and the common good that extremes in the late '70s with the idea in fact, to serve the farmers and, above all, to "bring art to the people." The art was the service of man and therefore had to educate not by an aesthetic of beauty for its own sake, but through social aesthetics. Populism was the culmination of a "cultural propaganda" which he considered beauty as a component in the daily lives and therefore the art had to imitate it and do not interpret it. So the art was not an end in itself but was in the service of progress, art to document the history of these years of great change and great cultural revolution that goes by the name of Russian realism, opting for a painting narrative style with great attention to detail. We must say though, that if St. Petersburg was the "pole" progressista, Mosca era invece legata alla tradizione antica; questi due indirizzi del pensiero russo nacquero a seguito dell’invasione napoleonica e spinsero da un lato la Russia verso l’occidentalizzazione, verso l’Europa; e dall’altra la mantennero legata alla tradizione e la proiettarono verso l’area geografica slava. Sul finire del secolo nasceva in Russia un grande interesse verso il paesaggio che, da sfondo scenografico diventava un vero protagonista; si assiste infatti, ad un risveglio della dimensione lirica e mistica; esso diventa la proiezione dell’anima dell’artista e svela spesso sentimenti di malinconia che caratterizzano proprio la raffinatezza di questa pittura di genere. Gli ultimi anni del secolo videro the decline of the Romanov, Alexander III, who reigned from 1881 to 1894 and followed a line repressive unable to channel them into a reformist, was succeeded by Nicholas II (1894-1917) he held the positions reactionary and was executed during the war years together to his family in February of 1917 was decreed the end of the empire with the abdication of Tsar March 15, 1917. This was one impetus for Russian culture that sought to renew starting right at the past, rediscovering the art Russian folklore primitiva.La late nineteenth century thus saw a great revival of Russian culture that expresses itself in social issues through art, historical and moral, to the intimacy landscape and the last to converge all of these tendencies in the Socialist Realism of great political footprint, but also as an expression of a new enthusiasm for life. Moreover we must not forget that the end of the century represents a bridge to modernity, a particular historical moment into which trends romantic, impressionistic, preraffaelitiche, symbolist ... The same Russian painting of the twentieth century comes precisely from the rediscovery of the traditions of 'Russian art with the art trends of the century, especially the French. The experiments in technique and content that characterize the artistic research of the early twentieth century also involve the region of Eastern Europe discovers the sinuous shapes typical of trends Liberty. The populist impulse in St. Petersburg and Moscow ended with the unwinding becomes the hub of new art, possibly because of the recovery of the roots of artistic tradition and folklore that the city had been linked through adherence to a conservative policy . Of realism and moralism of nationalist populism still survive subject or genre. The October Revolution of 1917 had left a trail of great idealism that had nourished the creativity in art, literature and theater. Only in the second half of the thirties he affirms the socialist realism that will last more than fifty years and the painting will become the official art of the state, under the political control and censorship and creativity will serve a reason of state and will be marked by a "severe style", static and austere. Art follows its characters from the design of posters of political propaganda and is distinguished figures in an upright position and strongly hierarchical, which tends to give a psychological reading. Realism is characterized by its attention to the representation of everyday life, social struggle, work and tradition. The prerogative of Russian realism is not the constant search for new forms, experimentation with themes and subjects, and beauty is an essential from the truth. Do not forget the importance of photography as a quest for truth, as the objectification of the image that has greatly influenced European art of the twentieth century, although it has ruled out any aesthetic value that is realized only in the pictorial research. Art and reality are a constant search of a complaint, observation, and acquisition of beauty. The representation of the rural world has social value, the anthropological sense of patriotism and tradition that binds man to the ground, but it also represents the suffering of the Russian people, in the daily lives of this hard work and struggle for the abolition of slavery of glebe.
The landscapes are a recurring theme among the paintings of this important retrospective on realism, "Landscape with Rainbow" (1881) Alexey Savrasov Kondrat'evic lacks lyrical feeling of nature, the composition takes place in the representation of a special light that makes the effects wet and humidity, while the rainbow that stands on the bottom is the only note of color that expresses a certain emotion. Diversa is a work entitled "The Garden" (1880) Artist Isaak Ilyich Levitan , where the landscape is illuminated by sunlight and expresses the poetry of nature. For the landscape architect Ivan Ivanovich Siskin important issue is the forest, here illuminated by the warmth of summer light and made the contrast between light areas and those in the shade. The work "The rush" (1888) of Ilya Semenovic Ostrouchov fully adheres to Russian realism, a realistic landscape with clouds in the background and the hills and the meadow in the foreground. It is a melancholy atmosphere made with a deep sense of poetry. "On the shore of the Sea" is a romantic interpretation of a cliff that you capture the mood and feel the salty showers and splashes of water when the waves breaking on the rocks. It is a landscape of gender for the compositional, for the traditional view of marine and sensitive to the presence of two women who read the symbol of youth and life. "Landscape with train" by Isaak Ilyich Levitan expresses the romance of a beautiful landscape of modernity in which the element is inserted by the locomotive, according to a recurring theme common to most European paintings from the late nineteenth century: think of the paintings of De Nitti. The book "The Wind" by Aleksandr Fedorovich Gaus (1889) expresses the elusiveness of a feeling, a feeling of immediacy, the landscape becomes a symbolist, disperses the consistency of the volumes, the colors because they did not uproot more decorative function. The trees are indistinct shapes, the stretch of water a shapeless stain. There will representation, but of emotional surrender, according to new trends in Russian landscape painting. "Mountain landscape. The Caucasus "(1897) the painter Vasnetsov Apollinary Michajlovic expresses the impressions of a journey made in the Caucasus, during which the artist was impressed by the force of nature, the painting in fact, makes the harshness of the mountains, the suggestion of the peaks snow, the strength and sweetness of a mountain, whose implementation is based on studies from life. Another fine interpretation of the landscape is that of Stanislav Zhukovsky Julianovic titled "Early Spring. (The awakening of nature) "of 1899. The painting is set on the study of light and rarefaction of the air spring is an image in which nature awakens fact, the dry earth begins to be covered with a green blanket on the hill to the left of the viewer, while below a snow patch is all that remains of the winter ice and a small stream of water carries the occasional last snow, while a figure of a man sitting on the steps rests with the elbow resting on the knee. The clear blue sky creates a great brightness punctuated by long shadows that run parallel along the ground. The joy of this awakening is mitigated by the attitude and dreamy melancholy man sitting on the steps. The landscape of the Arcadij Alexandrovich Rylov entitled "River. Subboticha on a gray day "(1909) opens its spaces to the viewer feels that projected in this stretch of river water. The fixity of this landscape conveys a sense of calm curiosity but also, for the stillness of nature and water, on which you can see some slight ripple on the left, surely due to the presence of a small animal. It is a romantic image of a river in the foreground with an open background landscape behind. Here the color has descriptive value, the yield of natural beauty, while also expresses sad emotions. Idea of \u200b\u200bnature as an order, such as force and as an accomplice of relations with the man. "Guys Country "(1930 ca.) painter Nikolai Petrovich Bogdanov-Bel'skij the painting is reproduced on the cover of the exhibition catalog. It is a hymn to peasant children, the tenderness of this age, the joy of children, poverty remains light and grace to these figures that are part of an idyllic landscape. Of particular interest are the landscapes of Nikolai Konstantinovic Rerich, "Himalaya" of 1936 is the result of personal experience: the artist spent the last twenty years of his life. The color and iconography have symbolic value, and there is a natural rendering of the sign or a descriptive use of color, because there is a meaning symbolic, emotional expression of his love for these places. The mountains are the spiritual inclinations of man. The blue and red is unnatural, as if sensing heat, internal energy, the spiritual resource of the artist. Always dedicated to India and spirituality of this land is tempera on cardboard, 1937, entitled "Ladakh". This name indicates a region between India and Tibet that keeps streets and ancient Buddhist monasteries. In the work depicts the stupa, the Buddhist religious buildings, and even here there is the transposition of a real context in an unnatural size. Both works express a size of calm, peace of mind. A major theme of Russian painting of the century is that of work, especially that of the fields, where the element of fatigue is softened by the harmony that binds man to nature, in an atmosphere of celebration and joy. "At work" (1921) Artist Nikolai Petrovich Bogdanov-Bel'skij fully expresses this atmosphere of great penetration between humans and the environment, the balance is given by the elegance of the composition on dense structured series of slender trunks between the which are placed diagonally in two peasant figures of a horse barefoot, framed by two trees in the foreground on the left that beat the rhythm of the gait of horses. "The Russian peasant" by Philip Andreyevich Maljavin of 1925 are figures of dancing women dressed in bright robes as matriosche. The effect of the painting is of great visual impact, achieved through the contrast of the white snowy landscape and strong colors of the clothing and construction background. Still on the theme of the campaign is the painting "Autumn Festival in the Country" (1914) by Boris Michajlovic Kustodiev. It is a strong framework that portrays aspects of Russian folk tradition in the typical use of strong colors. Always tied to the theme of work in the fields but with social implications is the opera "The Sower" (1888) artist Grigory Grigorievich Mjasoedov. The work in fact, reflects the democratic realism of those years which emphasizes the positive figure of the People. The farmer walks toward the viewer with natural elegance, sunlit, self-possessed and cultivated the land and is the symbol of the exaltation of the peasant labor and nature. The turn of the century Russian painting shows particular attention to the female figure, both in traditional portraiture, which in portrait situations. The "Portrait of Olga Simanovskaja" (1920) Boris Michajlovic Kustodiev Simanovskij portrays the wife of famous painter and collector of works by Russian artists. The woman has round shapes with the red face ed i lineamenti delle tipiche donne russe. La critica russa l’ha definita la”Gioconda russa”per la posa ruotata leggermente di fianco, per lo sguardo e il sorriso appena accennato rivolti verso lo spettatore e per il paesaggio collocato dietro alle sue spalle. Diverso è il “Ritratto di Aleksandra Suvalova”del 1920, dell’artista Il’ja Efimovic Repin, una carissima amica del pittore che la ritrasse in una fase particolare della sua vita, depresso e malato a causa della guerra. La posa non è accademica ma sciolta, i lineamenti più naturali e l’uso del colore libero e morbido. “Ritratto della figlia dell’artista”(1916) di Viktor Michajlovic Vasnecov ritrae la bellezza spirituale di questa donna dipinta su uno sfondo en plein air con abiti semplici ed un grande cappello sul capo. “Ritratto di donna”del 1895 di Nikolaj Kornilievic Bodarevskij è un’immagine tipica dell’arte europea del secondo ottocento, soprattutto nella pittura impressionista. Non c’è alcuna intenzione psicologica, ma la volontà di ritrarre una luce interiore, un fascino ingenuo privo di malizia. La purezza di questa figura femminile è sottolineata dal bianco dell’abito, ornato da pizzi, rasi e merletti. L’ambiente naturale e luminoso del fondo sottolinea l’atmosfera assolata dell’estate da cui la giovane donna si protegge con un ombrello. Diversa è l’impostazione dell’opera “Ritratto di Zinaida Mamontova” (1890 circa) del pittore Konstantin Alekseevic Korovin. La giovane donna era la figlia del podestà di Mosca, esperto collezionista d’arte. L’opera si inserisce all’interno di una nuova tendenza dell’arte russa di fine secolo: quella di cercare un ideale di bellezza femminile nel contemporaneo, ma che interpreta la donna sotto un profilo interiore tipico della pittura russa. E’un ritratto di impostazione impressionista in cui sia la forma che il colore sono resi con libertà e leggerezza. “La cucitrice”(1898) è un ritratto di ambientazione dell’artista Klodt. Una giovane donna pensosa seduta ad una macchina da cucire di fronte ad una finestra è un elemento romantico popolare anche agli artisti russi. Il romanticismo qui assume una vena di tristezza, di una donna che svolge in solitudine il suo lavoro e che rappresenta una solitudine esistenziale di chi, nel piccolo mondo del proprio lavoro artigianale, deve confrontarsi con una realtà in cambiamento, che si industrializza sempre di più. Le fabbriche sullo sfondo oltre la finestra sono il segno dei tempi moderni che portano ad una crisi di valori e di identità. “Dolore inconsolabile”(1883) di Ivan Nikolaevic Kramskoj è una delle quattro varianti della versione definitiva; esprime la tragedia di un dolore privato, quello del pittore per la perdita dei due figli piccoli. Infatti, la protagonista del dipinto ha le sembianze della moglie di Kramskoj; è un’opera di grande realismo e di grande tragicità quasi teatrale, in cui il dramma privato diventa dramma universale. Teatrale è l’espressione afflitta della donna, il suo gesto disperato mentre si aggrappa al tendaggio, le stesse calate delle tende richiamano quelle di un sipario di palcoscenico. Il motivo della sofferenza fisica e della malattia interiore è presente anche in Vasilij Dmitrievic Polenov, nel dipinto “Al capezzale della malata”; lo sguardo dell’artista non è estraneo al dolore della protagonista, ma partecipe e commosso per la perdita personale di alcune persone care. Il sentimento della morte è presente non solo nella resa della tematica, ma anche nella scelta coloristica e compositiva e using a soft light that illuminates precisely the bedside of the dying woman, a light that slowly fades, a life that is taking place. Very interesting are the psychological portraits: the "Portrait of Konstantin Stanislavsky" in 1938, the artist Nicolai Ul'janov Pavlovic, the "Portrait of Academician Nikolai Zelinskij (1950) by Petr Ivanovich Kotov, and finally to Kuz'ma Sergeevich Petrov-Vodkin, titled "Head of a girl on a background of still life" (1935). Also interesting are the paintings with a social and political, which emphasizes the importance of everyday phenomena, "Latvian Market" (1955) Pimenov Yuri Ivanovich does not want to emphasize a description of the details, as it is a narrative of the individual elements, through color and light, typical of the friendliness of the market, as it is rightly pointed out by the group of characters in the right background, someone wanted to see an assonance with the "Vucciria Guttuso. "Time for lunch in Donbass" (1935) by Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Dejneka is a peculiarity in the socialist realism, because it rarely represented a body completely naked. There is an underlying message clearly value the importance of sport as an aspect suggestive qualifying Soviet man and his healthy life, a moment of relaxation di un gruppo di ragazzi che corrono nel mare, in contrasto con l’incedere frenetico del progresso, rappresentato dalla locomotiva e dalle industrie sullo sfondo. La rappresentazione dei nudi, benché stilizzati, e rappresentati da un rigore di forma, esprimono una grazia notevole e un vigore composto; la tensione dei muscoli è mitigata dalla eleganza della postura. “L’ultimo percorso della spia”(1925), di Nikolaj Alekseevic Kasatkin rappresenta un triste episodio della rivoluzione russa di Mosca del 1905. Una spia viene imprigionata e condotta alla fucilazione. Le sagome nere dei personaggi in primo piano mentre sullo sfondo un incendio investe le strade; il fragore delle fiamme viene enfatizzato dal contrasto dei rossi e dei neri and the whirlwind of smoke and flames. Two works are perhaps the most representative among those exposed, "the painter of icons" of 1906, the artist Klavdij Vasilyevich Lebedev representing an icon painter at work hunched over his workbench, including papers, books, colors, and pigments, such as an eggshell into a small bowl. It is a farmer artist with long hair and white beard, wearing a long robe and sash. The light from above illuminates the bench in the shade and let the artist emphasizing meditation and concentration. Of realism is the rendering of the face and hands that clearly characterize even his mature age. Finally, "Lilacs" (1951) by Petr Petrovic Konkalovskij is a striking still life of freshly cut flowers, with bright colors collected in a transparent vase resting on a table. In the flowers there all the force of nature, the liveliness of their colors and the delicacy of the composition.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: CATALOG OF THE EXHIBITION "Truth and Beauty Russian realism" paintings from the National Art Museum of Latvia Riga by Laura Gavioli.
EDITIONS MARSILIO
