Ivan Kramskoi, a prominent representative of Russian Realism, was born into the family of a clerk in Ostrogozhsk. His parents hoped that their son would follow in his father’s steps and become a clerk, but the boy had a penchant for drawing from a very early age. A self-taught artist, who lived in the neighborhood, taught the young Kramskoi to paint watercolors. Later, the future painter moved to St. Petersburg where he worked at a studio retouching photos, and then entered the Academy of Arts.
In 1863, the young artist and his colleagues at the Academy refused to take part in the painting competition because of the theme chosen by the teachers. They petitioned to choose the topic themselves, but their request was declined. As a sign of protest, 14 students dropped from the Academy. This event came to be known as the “Riot of the Fourteen”. Ivan Kramskoi headed the “revolt” and proposed to create an association of independent artists — a kind of a commune, where painters could support each other and run a common household. The artists rented a spacious room, where each had his own workshop. The idea turned out to be successful: they quickly got commissions, and business went uphill. Soon after the dissolution of the association, there emerged the famous Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions (the Wanderers group). Kramskoi was one of its founders.
In “Portrait of Gavrilov”, the artist created the image of a new man of his time. He portrayed a young man from a social class known as Raznochintsy — people of non-noble origin with higher education. The sitter was one of those young men, who boldly entered public life, literature and art in the “thaw” period of the 1860s, advocating democratic principles and introducing a new look at Russian reality. The artist himself was one of them.
The portrait has a simple composition; the colors are restrained to emphasize the inner world of the model. The light falls on the right side of the face; the man’s outline makes a stark contrast with the dark background. The man has a delicate young face and barely visible hair on his mustache area. Nevertheless, his facial features betray a strong and decisive character. His big intelligent eyes gazing directly at the viewer, his confident posture — everything about the young man denotes a strong inner determination.
In his portraits, Ivan Kramskoi explores the inner world of his models and makes progressive critical statements about reality. In his articles on art, as well as letters, Kramskoi advocated the idea of making the art more democratic, using it as a figurative means of expressing an idea.
In 1863, the young artist and his colleagues at the Academy refused to take part in the painting competition because of the theme chosen by the teachers. They petitioned to choose the topic themselves, but their request was declined. As a sign of protest, 14 students dropped from the Academy. This event came to be known as the “Riot of the Fourteen”. Ivan Kramskoi headed the “revolt” and proposed to create an association of independent artists — a kind of a commune, where painters could support each other and run a common household. The artists rented a spacious room, where each had his own workshop. The idea turned out to be successful: they quickly got commissions, and business went uphill. Soon after the dissolution of the association, there emerged the famous Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions (the Wanderers group). Kramskoi was one of its founders.
In “Portrait of Gavrilov”, the artist created the image of a new man of his time. He portrayed a young man from a social class known as Raznochintsy — people of non-noble origin with higher education. The sitter was one of those young men, who boldly entered public life, literature and art in the “thaw” period of the 1860s, advocating democratic principles and introducing a new look at Russian reality. The artist himself was one of them.
The portrait has a simple composition; the colors are restrained to emphasize the inner world of the model. The light falls on the right side of the face; the man’s outline makes a stark contrast with the dark background. The man has a delicate young face and barely visible hair on his mustache area. Nevertheless, his facial features betray a strong and decisive character. His big intelligent eyes gazing directly at the viewer, his confident posture — everything about the young man denotes a strong inner determination.
In his portraits, Ivan Kramskoi explores the inner world of his models and makes progressive critical statements about reality. In his articles on art, as well as letters, Kramskoi advocated the idea of making the art more democratic, using it as a figurative means of expressing an idea.
