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Andrey
Ivanovich Dyer

Russia • 1820−1892

Studied in the Petersburg art Academy and was to become a painter. However, the first self-employment daguerreotype determined the fate of the young artist. In 1849, Denyer graduated from the Academy, and two years later in the St. Petersburg passage opened "Daguerreotype by artist Denyer". The artist has applied to portrait photography the knowledge gained at the Academy. The daguerreotype, the Denyer was doing a little. He quickly mastered the process macrochelodina pictures is only out of habit Atelier continued to be called the daguerreotype institution.

 

The share of A. I. Denyer fell the difficult task - to achieve recognition of photography in the closest, it seemed, irreconcilable enemies of the latter-day rival of the arts - his friends and recent teachers. Professor of the Academy of arts had harsh words about the photo and did not recognize her even help for painters. Prominent academician F. A. Bruni, for example, refused even to be photographed. The efforts of A. Denyer hostile at first, the attitude to photography began to change for the better, his Studio began to visit artists and graphics.

 

A. Denyer would not tolerate rude retouching used in the Studio professionals, and instructed retouch artists. A Retoucher's Studio was famous in the future painter, portraitist I. N. Kramskoy. A. Denyer instructed him to work on the most difficult portraits and groups. Young Kramskoy was known as "the God of retouching".

 

Artists retouchers were revived in the work of photographic workshops: we discussed the form of the composition, Recalling the experience of beautiful portraits, and was interested in finding lighting when shooting. Experience has proved useful in painting. So, doing retouching, I. Kramskoy acquainted with the possibilities of transfer chiaroscuro face shapes, fabrics, costumes, details of the situation.

 

A. Denyer was one of the first in Russia reproductional paintings painting. And here he played an artist with a delicate taste. It can be assumed that the Denyer, the artist, was both a witness to and participant in conversations about directions in painting. It is in this time, in 1863, a group of graduates who have been denied the choice of free themes for contest work, left the Academy of fine arts. They are headed by I. Kramskoi merged in the "St. Petersburg artel of artists". Five years later, Kramskoy was considering a plan to create a photographic Studio at the farm. Young Russian photography has developed near the forefront of realist painting.

 

Appreciating A. Denyer as a portrait painter, some painters have used his images. I. Kramskoy wrote often commissioned portraits from photos. Good knowledge of painter visual possibilities of photography can be seen on many of his works, for example, the portrait of the sculptor M. Antokolsky — it "photographically" transferred chiaroscuro.

 

Widely known was the portrait of Taras Shevchenko in a fur coat with fur cuffs and wing cap work A. Denyer. This picture was considered so typical for the prisoner in this way that I. Kramskoy wrote his portrait of the poet for the art of Tretyakov gallery. According to experts, and a photo I. Kramskoy, Denyer achieved more similarities than other artists-painters, who wrote of Ivan Nikolaevich.

 

"Auxiliary sheets" for future portraits ordered Denyer and painter S. Zaryanko. Zaryanko advised Denyer to create this method of shooting or printing, to obtain images having less sharpness of outline.

 

And to the Denyer photographers resorted to different techniques to obtain the desired softness of the pattern. One during exposure, slightly turned the camera lens with the inserted elongated aperture, the other is the diaphragm itself, and others were doing a flick for the camera. Effects was rough. The Denyer first had to be satisfied with printing from a negative to strong light by putting a negative on paper with photographic emulsions, and reverse. Zaryanko was happy, Denyer - no. He has perfected the technique. Took images on two plates of different thickness and printed a picture with both negatives of different density, which was created on the imprint of the softness of the contours. This technique is especially handy when they began to print pictures of a large size. He softened, "Protocol sharpness" in the portraits, which caused a lot of attacks on light painting. The technique is called "method of Denyer".

 

In 1865, when there was still phototypes and zincographs means of reproduction of images in printing, A. Denyer has taken the album of photographic portraits of "famous people in Russia." Out twelve editions of the album. Each elegant photographic record, somewhat reminiscent of a family album of business cards. A lot of leaves given to the portraits of writers. Placed portraits of travelers, scientists, doctors, artists.

 

A. Denyer is an expert on the Russian and international photo exhibitions. In his Studio was the photographers, the explorers of the new technique of photography. He was one of the first started shooting ethnographic scenes in the pavilion was one of the first photographers of Russia, demonstrated their international exhibitions.

 

A. Denyer actively supported all the new and creative in photography, which became his life.

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