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Portrait of Life Hussar Colonel Evgraf Vasilyevich Davydov

Orest Adamovich Kiprensky • Painting, 1809, 162×116 cm
$54.00
Digital copy: 3.1 MB
3534 × 4920 px • JPEG
116 × 162 cm • 77 dpi
59.8 × 83.3 cm • 150 dpi
29.9 × 41.7 cm • 300 dpi
Digital copy is a high resolution file, downloaded by the artist or artist's representative. The price also includes the right for a single reproduction of the artwork in digital or printed form.
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About the artwork
Art form: Painting
Subject and objects: Portrait
Style of art: Romanticism
Technique: Oil
Materials: Canvas
Date of creation: 1809
Size: 162×116 cm
Artwork in selections: 26 selections
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Description of the artwork «Portrait of Life Hussar Colonel Evgraf Vasilyevich Davydov»

“Portrait of Colonel E.V.Davydov” - a picture of the early Kiprensky, one of the brightest examples of the romantic trend in Russian painting.

The problem of attribution: which of the Davydov brothers wrote Kiprensky?

For more than a hundred years, it was assumed that Denis Davydov, a poet of the Pushkin Pleiad, depicted in the portrait, became famous for his partisan activities during the Napoleonic Wars. This happened due to the fact that after the death of Kiprensky in Italy, his canvases were brought to Russia by sea, and the accompanying very superficial inventory of the picture was simply referred to as “The Portrait of Davydov in a Hussar's Uniform”. The inertia of public perception immediately linked the image to the most famous of the Davydovs - Denis.

In 1948, art historian Esfir Atsarkina noticed that in the author's “Register” of paintings, the surname was accompanied by initials: “E.V.Davydov”. There was an assumption that in the portrait we see Evdokim Vasilyevich, the younger brother of Denis Davydov. But even this attribution, despite the complete coincidence of the initials, was not confirmed: Evdokim served as a cavalier and, for this reason, could hardly be depicted in a hussar uniform.

Meanwhile, the Davydov brothers also had a cousin, Evgraf Vladimirovich Davydov, who by 1809, the time of writing the picture of Kiprensky, already had the rank of colonel of the Hussars. From 1962, this attribution is considered indisputable, despite attempts from time to time to prove that the hero of Kiprensky is still Denis Davydov.

Artistic originality of the “Portrait of EV Davydov”

The large, almost human growth, ceremonial portrait of the brave hussar reflects the need of Russian society during the period of opposition to Napoleon in the personality of a strong and heroic, real defender of the Fatherland. Hussar Colonel, written against the background of a typically romantic pre-storm landscape, is full of courageous grace. His pose is confident and careless: his right hand is on his belt, his left hand is on his saber hilt; solemn and spectacular color range with active contrasts of white, red and black and gold glitter of metal.

The mood of the canvas as a whole is elevated and major, but Kiprensky does not strive for the external "expletive" pathos characteristic of his contemporary Theodore Gericault (cf., for example, "Wounded Cuirassier" or "The officer of the horse rangers of the Imperial Guard"). For Kiprensky, it is more important to reveal the character of the hero, emphasizing not so much his courage and military honor, as if taken for granted, but also his living mind, rich inner life, which is read on the face of the colonel.

Author: Anna Yesterday
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