Princess Anna Alexandrovna was born in 1739 and was the only daughter of Baron Alexander Grigorievich Stroganov. At the age of 17, she married Prince Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn — their happy marriage lasted for 47 years. After the death of her husband, Anna Alexandrovna opened an almshouse for the widows of soldiers and officers who perished during the war of 1812. The princess also managed the city mansion on Volkhonka street, where the Golitsyn Museum was subsequently opened with a unique collection of paintings, sculptures and crafts, that had been collected by many generations of the Golitsyns. Anna Alexandrovna Golitsyna was awarded the Order of Saint Catherine of the Small Cross, one of the highest awards in Russia for women of noble descent.
The portraits of Anna Alexandrovna were painted by Russian and foreign artists at different times. The most famous paintings were created by Pietro Rotari, Aleksey Petrovich Antropov, Friedrich Kühnel and Fyodor Stepanovich Rokotov.
In the portrait of Rokotov, the princess appears at the age of 38, in the prime of her feminine beauty. Her image is full of depth, harmony and spirituality. Secular portraits of Fyodor Stepanovich Rokotov were always distinguished by mystery, sophistication and special transparency.
The face of the princess is painted with barely noticeable brush strokes. The numerous thin layers of paint convey the tenderness of her skin, the slight uncertainty in the pattern of her lips. Her eyebrows are outlined by a long arched line; her gaze is soft, mysterious and deep. The princess wears a fashionable dress — it is skillfully painted. The brush moves freely and naturally, conveying different shades of greenish-olive tones, the whimsical lace pattern, and the original shape of the bow as the crowning element of the picture.
For a century and a half, the portrait of Anna Golitsyn by Fyodor Rokotov was located in Kuzminki, the Golitsyn family estate. In 1915, together with the entire collection, it was brought to another Golitsyn estate near Moscow, Dubrovitsy, where it was nationalized. The portrait entered the Ulyanovsk Art Museum in 1927.
In the portrait of Rokotov, the princess appears at the age of 38, in the prime of her feminine beauty. Her image is full of depth, harmony and spirituality. Secular portraits of Fyodor Stepanovich Rokotov were always distinguished by mystery, sophistication and special transparency.
The face of the princess is painted with barely noticeable brush strokes. The numerous thin layers of paint convey the tenderness of her skin, the slight uncertainty in the pattern of her lips. Her eyebrows are outlined by a long arched line; her gaze is soft, mysterious and deep. The princess wears a fashionable dress — it is skillfully painted. The brush moves freely and naturally, conveying different shades of greenish-olive tones, the whimsical lace pattern, and the original shape of the bow as the crowning element of the picture.
For a century and a half, the portrait of Anna Golitsyn by Fyodor Rokotov was located in Kuzminki, the Golitsyn family estate. In 1915, together with the entire collection, it was brought to another Golitsyn estate near Moscow, Dubrovitsy, where it was nationalized. The portrait entered the Ulyanovsk Art Museum in 1927.
