Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin in the village of St.

"Pushkin in the village Mikhaylovsky"well known to viewers of school textbooks and anthologies, written by Nikolai GE in 1875, the year in St. Petersburg, in the Wake of the resounding success of his other historical paintings "Peter I interrogates Tsarevich Alexei in Peterhof". GE was not too fond of the genre of historical painting, but if I took a picture, the material is always picked very carefully. And fate went to meet him, sending discover rare and necessary circumstances.

Once in the house of the academician and mineralogist Pyotr Arkadyevich KochubeyNikolai GE got acquainted with Tatyana Borisovna Semechkin, nee Danzas. She was a native niece of Konstantin Karlovich Danzas – fellow of Pushkin Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum and the second in his duel with Dantes. I must say that many friends GE noted its peculiarity: so contagious artist was able to talk about their plans, clearly describe the idea and the details of its execution that listening was often disappointed when saw the finished painting – in a verbal transfer of Kye, she seemed brighter and more brilliant. So at lunch Kochubei GE enthusiastically told me what the picture is about the arrival of Puschin, Pushkin in Mikhailovskoe, but complained that all the existing portraits of Pushkin and in vivo, and later – seem unconvincing. The best of themthe works of Orest Kiprensky, GE even copied, but still not satisfied. T. B. said that she kept the last autograph of the poet – a note written before the duel, and there are several portraits of Pushchino and a death mask of Pushkin, made in two copies. Kyo asked permission to visit a new friend and finding out more about the archive, and during one of his visits niece of Danzas even gave the artist Pushkin's death mask.

The next challenge for GE was a reliable picture of the situation: he didn't want in the picture was something "fictional". Everything has to be "really" – as it was during the poet's life. But since the death of Pushkin had passed almost 40 years, and with a visit Pushchino Pushkin in the village for nearly half a century; the house in St. Michael during this time was rebuilt, repaired, changed its interior. However, the thrust of GE found a way out here. Brother of the artist, Grigory Nikolaevich GE, says: "At the Mikhailovsky elders sent him to Trigorskoye, venerable contemporaries of the poet, Mr. Zham Kern. One of those old ladies at the signified time attracted special attention to Pushkin, and now both keep fond memories of it. And here Nikolay Nikolaevich, first saw Ms. Kern housekeeping and domobranstvo 20 years, secondly, he detailed what changed in Michael's house. Nicholas saw that some of the stuff from the furniture, the situation, the former Pushkin. In short, with the help of g-GE f Kern received a full opportunity precise playback in my conversation with the Pushchino Pushkin in St. Michael".

Critic Vladimir Stasov, who wrote a detailed biography of GE, says that audiences and critics took the picture too cold, too obviously "Pushkin in Mikhailovskoe village of the" inferior quality performance of "Peter the great interrogating the Tsarevich Alexei". Public opinion agreed on the fact that the GE "better zamyslivaet than takes"and Sam GE, disillusioned by the crushing reviews, and flaccid reviews, I decided not to return to the historical genre and soon after experiencing an ideological crisis, forever left to live in a remote farm in Chernihiv Ivanovskoye. It is known that the painting wished to purchase the poet Nikolai Nekrasov (now it is Kharkiv art Museum). 18 years later, shortly before his death, GE wrote in his workshop on the farm of the author's copy of "Pushkin in the village of Mikhailovskoye" and gave her son the poet with a dedication signed "Grigory Alexandrovich Pushkin from Nikolay GE". This version of the painting now can be viewed at the Russian Museum of A. S. Pushkin (Saint-Petersburg).

Author: Anna Yesterday