Vrubel Mikhail Alexandrovich - Russian artist of the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. The Symbolist painted gloomy and tragic paintings that are difficult to confuse with the works of other artists.
His most famous works are The Lilac of 1900, The Swan Princess of 1900, The Sitting Demon of 1890.
Mikhail Vrubel is a brilliant colorist, blue and gold are fighting on his canvases. The artist lived in the same way as he painted his paintings - vividly, with intrigue, causing the audience a feeling that the catastrophe is very near.
He drank alcohol and often remained penniless in his pocket. Vrubel was a real eccentric - he could walk in Kiev in stockings and was not afraid to say that Repin had no talent for drawing.
The artist tried to put his views into each picture, adding something unusual to them, so his works are considered the property of Russian culture.
In our rating are presented Vrubel's most famous paintings - a brilliant and vibrant artist and one of the pioneers of symbolism, with photographs and names.
10. Portrait of a son
Mikhail Alexandrovich had a son in 1901, the boy was given the name Savva. A father, full of joy, saw artistic talent in his son, and told his family that Savva was looking unusually and intently.
In the portrait of the artist, Savva is depicted sitting in a stroller woven from a rod. He sits leaning on pillows made of thin fabric. Behind the flowers in a variety of colors - yellow-white, lilac-white.
A scarf with peas helps the viewer to focus on the face of the boy. He has blond hair, big eyes, a gaze that was seen by his father ...
Savva had a vice - bifurcated upper lip, and Vrubel does not hide it in his picture. The boy has a sad look, there is a lot of grief in his eyes ...
As if Vrubel knew that Savvushka would not be in this world for long, he died in 1903 from pneumonia.
9. The girl on the background of the Persian carpet
The painting depicts the 13-year-old daughter of the owner of the Kiev loan office - Manya Dakhnovich.
Vrubel returned to Kiev after a trip to Italy, and immediately set to work. The picture is contradictory, which is characteristic of the character of the artist - in one hand, Manya holds a dagger, and in the other a delicate pink rose.
The painting reflected the artist’s addiction to the subtle nuances of color combinations, to iridescent stones.
At the loan office of businessman Dakhnovich, Vrubel admired the stones and studied the sparkling and overflow of rubies and diamonds.
In 2018, Ukropost issued a stamp worth 5 hryvnias, and it depicts the painting “A Girl Against the Persian Carpet” and signed: “Vrubel Mikhailo Oleksandrovich”.
8. Pan
The picture "Pan" refers to the "fairy cycle". Vrubel initially called her “Satyr,” and critics renamed it.
The canvas depicts a creature from a Russian fairy tale protecting wealth. Behind this creature, the viewer sees the evening landscape, the moon illuminating the area, thin-bore trees.
The main character of the picture looks like a fairy goblin, in his hand he holds a flute - an attribute of shepherds, so that with the help of sounds he collects the wandering animals.
His eyes are keen, but kind. He monitors everything that happens, the goblin guards the swamps, but does not harm people.
Mikhail Alexandrovich read the book "Saint Satyr" by Anatoly Franz, and was inspired to create the painting "Pan", which was written in just a few days.
7. The Pearl
Vrubel received a gift from Voloshin - a sparkling sea shell, and it is believed that she inspired him to create a picture.
The gift reminded the artist of the sea - he imagined sounds, smells, and then transferred his fantasies to the canvas. But to do this was not so simple - the sink sparkles, overflows, and Vrubel had to create overflows in his work. He used different colors - pink, purple, blue, green.
The artist depicted a larger sea shell and populated it with inhabitants - sea princes. “Pearl” is one of Vrubel’s latest creations; he worked on the painting for a long time, while searching for magic and warmth.
6. Lilac
Mikhail Vrubel saw a lilac bush in the Chernigov province, which hit him so much that he decided to paint a picture.
The viewer sees a miracle - on the canvas depicts a nymph driven by a pan, she is in a shelter behind lilac bushes.
The artist depicted a riot of colors around the nymph, not giving the viewer a clear image. He loved nature, and thanks to this he was able to convey the mesmerizing beauty of lilac blossomsoccupying a large half of the picture.
The twilight depicted on the canvas conveys the mystery of the female figure. Looking at the picture, you can understand that everything is interconnected in it, the girl appears to emerge from the kingdom of nature.
5. Six-winged Seraphim
When the picture was painted - Vrubel was already sick and was in the hospital of V.P. Serbsky.
The Six-Winged Seraphim was inspired not only by the Prophet, a poem by Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, but also by dreams filled with madness.
The viewer sees in the picture of God's messenger - the lamp burns, the sword is raised ... Seraphim looks impartially, firmly - he is the executor of the Higher powers.
The technique of execution resembles a stained glass sign illuminated from the outside. The work was written in oil paints - it is full of symbolic details, and conveys Vrubel's intellect - his education, knowledge of the topic.
Most importantly, the artist did not lose his bright mind and brilliant logic, suffering from a serious illness.
4. The demon defeated
From the cycle "Demons" this picture became the last. On it, the artist depicted the appearance of an angel, the godless fighter, who was defeated - he collapsed onto rocks from heaven and turned from an angel into a demon. His body became weak, helpless, and his wings spread.
Most likely, Vrubel wanted to convey the idea that the demon cannot be defeated, but a broken image was obtained. The picture conveys the burning of a human character, its fall.
The artist was obsessed with his painting, and even when it was already hung out in the gallery, he came with brushes and continued to paint it, not paying attention to the visitors.
Despite the disease, Vrubel did not abandon the desire to create.
3. Tamara and the Demon
The painting "Tamara and the Demon" - one of the artist’s illustrations that he painted for Lermontov’s poem “Demon”.
The following decorations are visible in the picture - a bed, carpets, which, it seems, have no end and edge, a girl lies, and her long black hair is braided in braids - Tamara covers her face with her hands.
The demon is sitting next to her and trying to look into her eyes. His hair is dark, almost black, long and curly, and his eyes are stern, as are his facial features.
The demon is the personification of the eternal struggle of the human spirit, which is tormented by spiritual wanderings - he is overcome by doubts.
2. The Swan Princess
One of the most mysterious works of the artist. The Swan Princess became the backdrop for the opera, which is called The Tale of Tsar Saltan. The whole family of Mikhail Vrubel was connected with this production - his wife played the role of the Tsarevna, and the artist had to create costume designs.
The artist was very interested in the theme of his painting - fabulousness, a combination of what does not combine, attracted the masters, as well as natural principles - warm and cold, light and dark.
The image of the Princess was not written off from his wife - the artist created the character from his fantasies. It’s impossible to look away from Tsarevna’s gaze! It is as if he was calling everyone to share a magical moment with her.
1. The demon is sitting
When Vrubel was in Moscow and was visiting Savva Mamontov (a Russian entrepreneur), he painted a picture in the workshop, which was given to him by the owner of the house.
According to the artist, he was thinking about creating a painting back in Kiev after the opera of one Russian composer - Rubinstein's “Demon” and Lermontov’s poem. The artist spoke the following words about the Demon: “A demon is not only an evil spirit, he is also imperious, majestic”.
In his picture, the viewer sees the Demon sitting in the middle of the mountains - he is sad, and his hands are clasped.
Some believe that Vrubel’s paintings “Demons” took the artist’s life, could this be true? If you look at his images in the paintings, it becomes obvious - all over the world there is no more mysterious.