The National Pushkin Museum displays a watercolor “Moscow. Chudov Palace in the Kremlin” made by Professor Fyodor Andreyevich Klages.

Fyodor Klages (1814–1900) was an artist and architect. He studied under Alexander Bryullov and Mikhail Vorobyov at the Imperial Academy of Arts. Klages graduated from the Academy with a Small Gold Medal for his theater school project. He was an architect’s assistant during the construction of the Mikhailovsky Palace, the Pulkovo Observatory, the Winter Palace, and the palaces of Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna in St. Petersburg.

In 1846–1851, he served as a draftsman in the Commission for the construction of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. He painted watercolors, mainly perspective views of interiors. In 1851, he made a trip abroad, visited Germany, Italy and Greece. In 1861, Klages was awarded the title of academician of perspective painting. In 1864, he became a member of the Academy of Fine Arts as first assistant curator of the museum, and later — curator of the museum and librarian. In 1883, the artist received the title of professor for the painting “Interior View of the Moscow Cathedral of Christ the Savior”.

The sheet shows a view of the Chudov Palace in the Moscow Kremlin. The left part of the composition is occupied by the image of the Small Nicholas Palace, located at the corner of Spasskaya Street and Ivanovskaya Square; behind it are the buildings of the Ascension Convent and the Spasskaya Tower.

The Small Nicholas Palace was built by the architect Matvey Kazakov in 1775–1779 as a residence of the bishop in the Moscow Kremlin. In the late 18th century, the chambers of the Moscow metropolitans were housed there. In 1817, by decree of Emperor Alexander I, the Metropolitan Palace was transferred to the Palace Administration for Grand Duke Nicholas Pavlovich and became known as the Nicholas Palace.

It was there that on September 18, 1826, the meeting of Emperor Nicholas I and Alexander Pushkin took place.