Ivan Kulikov was famous as a portrait painter and a painter of scenes from everyday life. He made friends with the artist Lukian Popov in Saint Petersburg. They both were born far from large cities: Ivan Kulikov was born in Murom and Lukian Popov, near Orenburg. They both came to Saint Petersburg to study at the Drawing School of the Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts and later entered the Imperial Academy of Arts in different years. They lived together for some time renting a small room and suffered from lack of money.
Portrait of the Artist L.V. Popov
Creation period
1904
Dimensions
67,5x51 cm
67.5 х 51 сm
67.5 х 51 сm
Technique
Canvas, oil
Collection
Exhibition
0
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Ivan Kulikov
Portrait of the Artist L.V. Popov
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Lukian Popov wrote to Ivan Kulikov in one of his letters:
Have a look at our teachers, how they made their way in the world and you will see that none of them were alone, they formed a group. What do Popov, Kustodiev, Kulikov or others mean if each of them is alone? Nothing! But if they are together, you know, they have a chance.
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Ivan Kulikov painted Lukian Popov’s portrait in 1904 when they already had graduated from the Imperial Academy of Arts, received their artist qualification and returned from their trips to the country.
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Portrait of Writer E.N. Chirikov, 1901. Source: wikipedia.org
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Most probably, the portrait was painted during one of the meetings of old friends in Saint Petersburg.
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Portrait of Architect V.A. Shchuko, 1902. Source: wikipedia.org
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Portrait of Artist V.V. Belyashin, 1901. Source: wikipedia.org
The portrait of Lukian Popov matches other paintings of Ivan Kulikov created at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1901, the artist painted, in his expressive and dynamical manner, the Portrait of the Artist V.V. Belyashin and the Portrait of the Writer E.N. Chirikov, and one year later, created the Portrait of the Architect V.A. Shchuko. Ivan Kulikov was generous in using black color for all those paintings in order to create a proper background for the expressive faces of his models.
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Ivan Kulikov mastered quick painting of portraits in 1901-1903 when he worked with Boris Kustodiev on the monumental work Ceremonial Sitting of the State Council on May 7, 1901. Ilya Repin directed the painters. The painting measures 4 m in height and almost 9 m in width and features dozens of portraits full of small details and peculiarities. At that time, Ivan Kulikov brought to perfection his special technique, the dynamic and precise brush stroke.
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Ceremonial Sitting of the State Council on May 7, 1901, Marking the Centenary of its Foundation, 1903.
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Ivan Kulikov did not try to convey the individuality of the models or depict their deep emotions in his portraits. He was focused at their expressive features and outer beauty. He painted Lukian Popov as a reserved and withdrawn person looking away absent-mindedly.
On the contrary, Lukian Popov tried to convey an internal condition of a person while paying less attention to painting techniques. His portraits used to convey the psychological state of the characters, for example, in the paintings Grief or Flooded Meadows.
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Lukian Popov, Flooded Meadows, 1908.
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Painting women and young girls, the artist depicted their wisdom and gentleness, typical ‘women’s’ features from his point of view. It can be illustrated, for example, by the painting Woman with a Ring.
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Orenburg Regional Museum of Fine Arts
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Portrait of the Artist L.V. Popov
Creation period
1904
Dimensions
67,5x51 cm
67.5 х 51 сm
67.5 х 51 сm
Technique
Canvas, oil
Collection
Exhibition
0
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