“Portrait of Countess Maria Sergeyevna Buturlina, née Gagarina” was created by the Scottish artist Christina Robertson and entered the collection of the Voronezh Art Museum in 1928. Before that, the portrait was stored at the State Tretyakov Gallery.
Maria Sergeyevna Buturlina was a lady-in-waiting of the Imperial Russian Court. Her parents were Prince Sergey Gagarin, a Privy Councillor, senator, and member of the State Council, and Varvara Pushkina, Dame of the Order of St. Catharine. At the age of 25, Maria married Count Sergey Buturlin, a member of an old noble family. In this portrait, Maria Buturlina is depicted one year after getting married. She and her husband had five children who, according to their contemporary, “were brought up in a Russian manner, that is, they were unruly, undisciplined, and disobedient in the extreme, but also very kind, especially Sergey, the eldest son and the mother’s favorite.”
The portrait demonstrates some of the distinctive features of Robertson’s art. The painter depicted the clothes and hairstyles very meticulously and idealized her sitters. She combined the popular portrait templates of that period with a faithful depiction of the sitter’s face. Her portraits often included dogs, parrots, flowers, and details of the interior of wealthy houses.
Christina Robertson was born in the seaside town of Kinghorn in Scotland. She studied painting at the London studio of her uncle George Sanders and soon proved herself to be a talented portrait and miniature painter. At the age of 33, Christina Robertson became the first honorary woman member of the Royal Scottish Academy.
Christina Robertson became famous in Russia for her portraits that were printed in magazines. She first came to Saint Petersburg in 1839 and was hired by the Court of Emperor Nicholas I. She took commissions from Russia’s most famous aristocratic families, including the Houses of Orlov-Davydov, Baryatinsky, Yusupov, Kurakin, Belosselsky-Belozersky, and Buturlin.
Christina Robertson created full-length portraits of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, the wife of Nicholas I, and their three daughters — Grand Duchesses Maria, Olga, and Alexandra. For her work, she was made an honorary associate member of the Imperial Academy of Arts.
Maria Sergeyevna Buturlina was a lady-in-waiting of the Imperial Russian Court. Her parents were Prince Sergey Gagarin, a Privy Councillor, senator, and member of the State Council, and Varvara Pushkina, Dame of the Order of St. Catharine. At the age of 25, Maria married Count Sergey Buturlin, a member of an old noble family. In this portrait, Maria Buturlina is depicted one year after getting married. She and her husband had five children who, according to their contemporary, “were brought up in a Russian manner, that is, they were unruly, undisciplined, and disobedient in the extreme, but also very kind, especially Sergey, the eldest son and the mother’s favorite.”
The portrait demonstrates some of the distinctive features of Robertson’s art. The painter depicted the clothes and hairstyles very meticulously and idealized her sitters. She combined the popular portrait templates of that period with a faithful depiction of the sitter’s face. Her portraits often included dogs, parrots, flowers, and details of the interior of wealthy houses.
Christina Robertson was born in the seaside town of Kinghorn in Scotland. She studied painting at the London studio of her uncle George Sanders and soon proved herself to be a talented portrait and miniature painter. At the age of 33, Christina Robertson became the first honorary woman member of the Royal Scottish Academy.
Christina Robertson became famous in Russia for her portraits that were printed in magazines. She first came to Saint Petersburg in 1839 and was hired by the Court of Emperor Nicholas I. She took commissions from Russia’s most famous aristocratic families, including the Houses of Orlov-Davydov, Baryatinsky, Yusupov, Kurakin, Belosselsky-Belozersky, and Buturlin.
Christina Robertson created full-length portraits of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, the wife of Nicholas I, and their three daughters — Grand Duchesses Maria, Olga, and Alexandra. For her work, she was made an honorary associate member of the Imperial Academy of Arts.
