Russian artists. VASILIEV F.A. (80 works)

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Portrait of F. A. Vasiliev (I. N. Kramskoy 1871)

Russian painter, landscape painter Fyodor Aleksandrovich Vasiliev was born on February 10, 1850 in St. Petersburg, in the family of a minor post office official. Already a twelve-year-old child, Fyodor Alexandrovich was sent to serve at the main post office. From an early age, having become addicted to drawing, the future artist devoted all his free time from working at the post office to his favorite pastime. The artist’s childhood was overshadowed not only by poverty, but also by the tragic fate of his father, after whose death in 1865 Vasiliev became the support of the family - worries about their daily bread fell on the shoulders of a 15-year-old boy.

Birch grove in the evening. 1867-1869

Vasiliev worked for the restorer of the Academy of Arts P.K. Sokolov and continued his studies in art. Having finally chosen the path of an artist, he enters the drawing school of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, where he communicates with talented youth and is actively involved in creative life. The atmosphere that surrounded the future artist helped him feel and understand the changes that were taking place then in art and in life in general. I. N. Kramskoy, who taught at the school, enjoyed great love and authority, with whom the artist was close throughout his short life. Somewhat later, Vasiliev becomes close to I.I. Shishkin, who becomes an authoritative mentor to the aspiring artist.

Evening. 1869

In June 1867, Shishkin and Vasiliev went to Valaam, where the aspiring artist, previously familiar only with the technical techniques of drawing, learned the peculiarities of the method of working on location. Listening to Shishkin’s advice, the future landscape painter simultaneously expands the range of chosen motifs and techniques for depicting them. He develops a cognitive interest in various natural phenomena. On Valaam, the artist became close to St. Petersburg landscape painters. In 1867, Vasiliev painted several sketches from life, which were exhibited at the Society for the Encouragement of Arts. His best Valaam work is considered to be the sketch “On the Island of Valaam. Stones.” (1868).

Village street. 1868

Images of nature in the artist’s paintings acquired spirituality, special poetry, romanticism and depth of feelings. These features were already defined in the landscapes of 1868 - 69 “Return of the Herd”, “Before the Rain”, in which the artist captured bright and spectacular moments of the life of nature. In these paintings, the painting style is characterized by sonorous accents of color spots and the dynamism of a free brushstroke. The artist’s famous paintings “Village Street” and “After the Storm,” executed at the same time, are firmly connected with the theme of the rural landscape, which was relevant for Vasiliev, and are characterized by a semi-genre plot, a road motif, and a desire to take the content of the painting beyond what is depicted.

Village yard. 1867

Vasiliev is constantly in creative search, not satisfied with what has been achieved. During this period, the artist was greatly influenced by the works of artists of the Barbizon school T. Rousseau, J. Dupre, M. Diaz, who amazed him with the spiritual perception of nature depicted in simple subjects.

Road in a birch forest. 1867-1869

In 1868, the artist submitted the painting “Return of the Herd” to a competition in the Society for the Encouragement of Artists, which was the result of his year-long work. The picture was highly praised.

Dawn in St. Petersburg. 1870

Vasiliev’s further work turns out to be free from any influences; along with the accumulation of experience, the artist matures his own concept of art. The artist wanted to update painting, to free it from conventional techniques. Vasiliev approached this task in his works related to his trip to the Tambov province, where he experienced a feeling of communion with nature, full of vitality and poetic charm. The artist was then in a state of creative inspiration, which he tried to express in his paintings. Admiring the sensual beauty of nature, he strives to show the joy of his spiritual involvement in it. The following paintings from this period are known: “Early Morning”, “After the Rain”, “Evening”, “Village”, etc.

Peasant family in a boat. 1870

In 1870, Vasiliev, together with Repin and Makarov, took a trip along the Volga, as a result of which the drawings and paintings “View on the Volga. Barges”, “Volga Lagoons”, “Winter Landscape”, “Approaching a Thunderstorm”, “Before the Storm”, etc. Here the artist strove for pictorial generalization of the landscape image, tonal unity of the color scheme, and a lyrical experience of nature.

Crimean landscape. 1871-1873

Returning to St. Petersburg, Vasiliev created one of his main works, “The Thaw,” which was presented in the early spring of 1871 at a competition in the Society for the Encouragement of Artists and was awarded first prize. This picture carried great social content; it was entirely imbued with melancholy and sadness, inspired by the artist’s bitter thoughts about the life of the Russian village.

Thaw. 1871

In the winter of 1870, the artist caught a severe cold and was diagnosed with severe lung disease. With the onset of spring, the disease worsened and turned into tuberculosis. At the suggestion of Stroganov, Vasiliev p

spent the summer of 1871 on his estates in the Kharkov and Voronezh provinces. There he continued to work. This period of his work includes: the plein air landscape “Rye”, “Poplars illuminated by the sun”, and the unfinished landscape “Village”.

Sailboats. 1870

Despite Stroganov’s favorable living conditions, Vasiliev did not improve his health. The Society for the Encouragement of Arts gave him funds to travel to Crimea. Even before leaving, Vasiliev was enrolled as a volunteer student at the Academy of Arts and received the title of artist of the 1st degree with the condition of passing the exam from the scientific course. Vasilyev moved to Yalta, taking with him a workbook with sketches of Ukrainian village motifs. In Crimea, based on these sketches and memories, he painted one of his best paintings - the wide epic canvas “Wet Meadow” (1872). The painting, strict in composition, amazes with its freshness, depth and rich internal gradation of color. The image of nature captured by Vasiliev conceals a complex range of feelings, conveying the experiences of the artist himself. This picture deeply worried Kramskoy.

Scenery. Crimea. 1871-1873

Vasiliev spent two years in Crimea; the degree of intensity of his creative life was amazing. Taking forced breaks from work due to illness and completing paintings commissioned from him, which took up more time, in the spring of 1872 the artist mastered the motifs of Crimean nature. In addition to many drawings, he painted two paintings: “Swamp” and “Crimean View”, for which he was awarded a prize from the Society for the Encouragement of Arts in 1872. He begins the painting “In the Crimean Mountains”, works on the canvas “Surf in Yalta”.

After the rain (Spring in St. Petersburg). 1867

Judging by the Crimean landscapes that have come down to us, the artist’s state of mind was close to the nature of the mountainous Crimea, with its austere and sublime appearance. The works of this period are characterized by a sublime idea of the existence of the mountain world. Vasiliev’s last completed work, “In the Crimean Mountains” (1873), is distinguished by the subtlety of color relationships, united by a common grayish-brown tone; the image of nature takes on a shade of heroic grandeur. This painting immediately struck Kramskoy, who, despite some of his comments, considered it a genius.

After the rain. Country road. 1867-1869

Vasilyev’s latest works are “Morning”, “Swamp in the Forest. Autumn”, “Abandoned Mill” are partially unfinished. “Abandoned Mill” is the best example of the kind of pictorial solution that the artist dreamed of. He tried to test in practice his understanding of color. These paintings signified a new stage in the artist’s work, who in a new way connected the meaningful romantic traditions of the 19th century with landscape painting of the second half of the 19th century.

Dawn. 1873

In the spring of 1873, painting classes continued. The artist needed to finish the painting “Dawn” that had been ordered and already paid for, which was a new “type of painting” that the artist dreamed of making, but death did not allow his dreams to come true. Fyodor Alexandrovich Vasiliev died on September 24, 1873.

Rye. 1870

At the posthumous exhibition of his works organized in St. Petersburg, everything was sold out even before its opening. The paintings were purchased by people close to the circle of advanced art. All the works remaining after the exhibition, mostly unfinished, were sold out. Two of the artist's albums were purchased by Empress Maria Alexandrovna.

Rural house. 1863

F. A. Vasiliev was an exceptionally gifted artist, one of the most talented Russian landscape painters. His works are written in shining, rich colors, imbued with a spiritual perception of nature and romantic excitement, poetry and admiration for the sensual beauty of the world. Despite the short duration of his artistic activity, Vasiliev left a deep mark on Russian art.

Old oak trunk. 1867-1869

Vasiliev Fedor Alexandrovich (1850-1873)

Young, strong, having lived as an artist for only five years, having reached enormous heights... he discovered the living sky, he discovered the wet, bright, moving sky and those delights of the landscape, which he expressed in a hundred of his paintings.
Ge N.N.