Vasily
Grigorievich Khudyakov

Historical, portrait and genre painter, he began to study at the Stroganov school of technical drawing in Moscow, where a year and a half has passed in the Moscow school of painting, sculpture and architecture. Here his closest mentor was Professor F. S. Zavyalov , who invited him to his assistants in painting the Saints of the Anteroom in the Kremlin Palace.

Even when he was at the Moscow school, H., for sending in the Imperial Academy, was awarded her a silver medal.

In 1848 he moved to St. Petersburg and entered volnoprihodyaschim student at the Academy, but hastened to take the certificate for the title of a free artist, which entitled him to the said medal, and after that lost the opportunity to compete for gold medals.

In St. Petersburg he wrote mainly portraits and images for private orders and in 1851 for the portrait of the rector of architecture A. I. Melnikov (located in the conference hall of the Academy) was recognized as an academician.

After they were done, over the portraits of different persons and images for the Church of the Tula cadet corps and other churches picture: "Finnish smugglers" (located at the Tretyakov gallery in Moscow), "the Persecution of Christians in the East" (purchased by Emperor Nicholas I for gift the Greek king Otto) and "battle of Kulikovo" (purchased by Mr. Khludov , in Moscow). In 1857, H. went to Italy, where he spent, living mainly in Rome and Naples for four years - as long as the Moscow society of art lovers, in 1860, did not call him for the position of teacher in the local school of painting, sculpture and architecture. In the same year, written in Italian, by count G. A. Kushelev-Bezborodko picture of the Roman national life "Game balls", the Academy elevated H. to the rank of Professor. In Moscow, he did not stay long and returned to St. Petersburg, he was with his works on academic exhibitions until his death, which followed from cholera. Among these works deserve to be mentioned: "Herodias with her daughter, waiting for the head of Saint John the Baptist" (1861), "Secret visit" (1862), "Candiotti in anticipation of the arrival of the steamer Arkadion" (1867) and "the Kazan Queen of Suyumbeka leaving Kazan" (1870). H. did not have especially resourceful imagination, but it was a fine draftsman and colorist, though somewhat florid, but knowing how much to play and achieve great relief shown.

However, the last of his paintings is much weaker than those that are written in Italian and the first time after returning from her. His works are in public collections, we can point to some sketches, painted in oil-colours and two watercolors: "Russian artists at the carnival in Rome" and "Preaching in the Italian Church," in the Museum of Emperor Alexander III , in St. Petersburg, on the aforementioned "Finnish smugglers", the film "the tombs" and "a Study in Olevano, near Rome", in the Tretyakov gallery in Moscow.