7 must-see paintings in the Museum of Russian Impressionism
This relatively young Moscow museum is housed in a former storage shop of the Soviet-era Bolshevik Confectionery Factory that was reconstructed by the British architectural firm, John McAslan + Partners. Today you can see how the great Russian masters of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries worked and experimented in the Impressionist style.
1. Konstantin Korovin “In the Park”, 1880
This is an early student-period work by the master, where he painted with strokes so skillfully that he was able to convey the feeling of leaves swaying in the wind.
2. Valentin Serov “The Window”, 1886
Have you ever seen Serov's famous painting “At the Window” where he portrayed his future wife, Olga Trubnikova? If you haven’t, check it out here. This painting is an etude to the portrait, which turned out surprisingly lighter and more voluminous. The canvas is filled with air and the sense of anticipation as he is ready to meet his beloved.
3. Konstantin Yuon “The Gate of the Rostov Kremlin”, 1906
Konstantin Yuon always found inspiration in ancient Russian cities. In this early Impressionist work he depicts an ancient gate from very close up, and the viewer sees the sun's glare playing on it.
4. Mikhail Shemyakin “Girl in a Sailor Suit (Sonechka)”, 1910
Like his teacher Valentin Serov, Shemyakin preferred portraiture to other genres. And while much is known about the girl painted by Serov in his iconic “Girl with Peaches”, we know nothing about this young person in a sailor suit, except her name.
5. Nikolai Clodt “The Overgrown Pond”, 1910
The artist was worried as critics scolded him for utilizing impressionism in his canvases. And yet his intoxicating landscapes of the Russian countryside, with a riot of greenery, are depicted almost flawlessly in this style.
6. Nikolai Bogdanov-Belsky “Summer”, 1911
Each summer the renowned St. Petersburg portraitist, Bogdanov-Belsky, escaped to the countryside to work on what he was most passionate about. This is one example of such flights of inspiration. A painting inside a painting - the landscape can be seen through the window and a room interior.
7. Vasily Polenov “In Crimea”, 1912
The artist traveled to the Crimea region several times. The main reason was for medical treatment, but he also had the chance to compare the natural landscapes and seascapes with the way it had been painted by the great Ivan Aivazovsky, as well as Polenov's student, Isaac Levitan. And so,… he created his own version of Crimea’s magnificent views.
