Vasily Nikitich Meshkov was born into a family of a baker. He was destined to become a baker or, as his mother wanted, a priest. However, she noticed his interest in drawing and sent her son to a monastery to a familiar abbot who was engaged in icon painting.
The future painter became an assistant: he copied parts of the face from the originals — noses, eyes, and lips. Mikhail Nikolaevich Gorshkov, a talented artist from Yelets, who graduated from the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, saw these drawings. On his advice, Vasily was sent to the icon-painting workshop of the Zadonsky Monastery.
Later, Mikhail Gorshkov prepared the boy for the exams to the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Thanks to his mentor, Vasily brilliantly passed the drawing exam and was admitted to the school as a non-matriculated student.
While studying in Moscow in the mid-1880s, the young artist was greatly influenced by the Wanderers. Vasily Nikitich was faithful to the traditions of the Russian realistic school to the end and was never interested in fashion trends.
In 1889–1890, he studied at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. Portraiture became one of the main genres of his work. The works of Vasily Meshkov were distinguished by a deep understanding of the inner world of his characters. This is also true for the “Portrait of the Yelets Abbess of the Znamensky Convent”.
The restricted color palette is based on various shades of black, which determines the main content of the picture. From a very young age, Vasily Nikitich was familiar with monastic life; he understood people who renounced the joys of life and devoted their lives to high spiritual service.
A black koukoulion frames the abbess’s puffy face, and she seems to gaze into a world far from the earthly one. Old hands mechanically sort out the rosary. Shining pectoral crosses contrast with her black robe. One of the crosses suits her rank of the abbess, and the second one, apparently, was received as a reward for a long work inspired by God. The Red Cross badge stands out as a symbol of mercy on the left side of the chest of the mother abbess.
The future painter became an assistant: he copied parts of the face from the originals — noses, eyes, and lips. Mikhail Nikolaevich Gorshkov, a talented artist from Yelets, who graduated from the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, saw these drawings. On his advice, Vasily was sent to the icon-painting workshop of the Zadonsky Monastery.
Later, Mikhail Gorshkov prepared the boy for the exams to the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Thanks to his mentor, Vasily brilliantly passed the drawing exam and was admitted to the school as a non-matriculated student.
While studying in Moscow in the mid-1880s, the young artist was greatly influenced by the Wanderers. Vasily Nikitich was faithful to the traditions of the Russian realistic school to the end and was never interested in fashion trends.
In 1889–1890, he studied at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. Portraiture became one of the main genres of his work. The works of Vasily Meshkov were distinguished by a deep understanding of the inner world of his characters. This is also true for the “Portrait of the Yelets Abbess of the Znamensky Convent”.
The restricted color palette is based on various shades of black, which determines the main content of the picture. From a very young age, Vasily Nikitich was familiar with monastic life; he understood people who renounced the joys of life and devoted their lives to high spiritual service.
A black koukoulion frames the abbess’s puffy face, and she seems to gaze into a world far from the earthly one. Old hands mechanically sort out the rosary. Shining pectoral crosses contrast with her black robe. One of the crosses suits her rank of the abbess, and the second one, apparently, was received as a reward for a long work inspired by God. The Red Cross badge stands out as a symbol of mercy on the left side of the chest of the mother abbess.
