This photograph of Maxim Gorky was taken in Sorrento, Italy, by the photographer Amedeo De Luca. The Russian writer spent almost 20 years in Europe. In 1905, Gorky left the Russian Empire because of his extreme pro-revolution stance. The writer was received with great cordiality and honor in Naples and was called “the symbol and intellectual beginning of the revolution”. For seven years Gorky lived on the island of Capri, where he was visited by Ivan Bunin, Feodor Chaliapin, Leonid Andreyev, and Vladimir Lenin.
After some prolonged traveling and searching for a more permanent place to stay, Maxim Gorky came to Sorrento. In February and March of 1928, photographer Amedeo de Luca took a series of pictures of the writer in his study, on the balcony of the villa, and with his son Maxim and granddaughter Marfa. The talented photographer was able to convey the character of the Russian thinker, humanist and enlightener of the 20th century, who had experienced and survived a lot throughout his life.
Gorky sent this photo to Kazan with autographs on the front and reverse sides of the photo: “M. Gorky”; “To the group of Kazan local historians. M. Gorky. 25.02.28.” It was addressed to young pioneers of school No.3, who, under the guidance of historian and local history expert Nikolay Filippovich Kalinin, sent a letter to Gorky on February 13, 1928, asking him to mark the memorable places of his youth on the enclosed map of Kazan. The writer fulfilled their request and also offered to send them his books.
That same year Gorky came back to his homeland and visited Kazan, where he met with the citizens and received an album with photos of the places that he had marked on the map — the places in the “half-Tatar city” where he used to live and work. The album is now housed in the Alexey Gorky Museum Apartment in Moscow. The photo opens the exhibition “Writer — Era — Hero. Gorky’s Life and Creative Journey” at the Maxim Gorky and Feodor Chaliapin Museum in Kazan.
Gorky lived in Sorrento for nine years, until May 1933. He rented a two-story villa called Il Sorrito on the rocky promontory of Capo di Sorrento, far from the bustling resort center. Those were some of the writer’s happiest years, they brought him peace and inspiration. In one of his letters, Gorky noted that he lived in Sorrento because he had pain in his lungs and nothing and no one could interfere with his work there. In Italy, Gorky wrote “The Artamonov Business”, three volumes of “The Life of Klim Samgin”, “Fragments from My Diary”, plays, essays and memoirs. Gorky never lost touch with Russia: he followed all events through newspapers and magazines and learned the news from his extensive correspondence.
