Aivazovsky House Museum in Feodosia

The greatest Russian artist-marine painter of Armenian origin - Ivan (Hovhannes) Konstantinovich Aivazovsky - was born, lived for a long time and died in Feodosia, where he was buried in the courtyard of the St. Sargis Church. His love for his native city was boundless, and throughout his life he made generous donations for his improvement and development of infrastructure. However, the main gift of the artist to his fellow countrymen was the museum of Aivazovsky in Feodosia.

Prehistory

For the first time, the exhibition hall, located in one of the wings of the mansion, where the artist lived with his family, opened for the first time in front of the audience, at the end of the 1840s. Then, everyone could see a meeting consisting of 49 canvasses that were expected to be sent to exhibitions in various European countries and to St. Petersburg. In 1880, a gallery was built to the mansion, designed by Aivazovsky himself, which became the first museum in Russia by an artist. It was very popular, and among holidaymakers in Crimean resorts it was considered a good way to visit Feodosia in order to get acquainted with the work of the world-famous seascape. The gallery in the house of Aivazovsky during his lifetime also functioned as a concert hall, where well-known musicians and actors often performed. Thus, thanks to the artist in the late 19th century, Feodosia became the center of the cultural life of the Crimean peninsula, where foreign travelers aspired to get there.

History of the museum

A few years before his death, in 1900, Aivazovsky decided to leave the gallery to his native city. After the revolution, the building was located for a while in the building, and part of the collection was plundered or destroyed. Fortunately, soon the gallery received the status of a state museum and began to be protected by the state. During the war years, the museum's collection was saved at the cost of incredible efforts, sending to evacuation to Yerevan. There, the paintings were placed in the building of the National Gallery of Armenia and returned to their native walls after the liberation of the Crimea from the invaders. At the moment the house-museum of Aivazovsky in Feodosia is considered one of the most famous cultural institutions of the Crimea. Several tens of thousands of tourists visit the gallery every year.

Aivazovsky Museum in Feodosia: a collection

Today the gallery houses more than 12,000 paintings and various exhibits. Among them, more than 400 works by Ivan Aivazovsky, so the Theodosia Museum has the world's largest collection of works by the artist.

Among the most famous works of the great seascape that are exhibited there are such masterpieces of painting as "Ship" Maria "on the North Sea", "St. George Monastery", "Sea. Koktebel, Sevastopol raid, etc. After visiting the museum of Aivazovsky in Feodosia, one can also see the picture "Among the waves" measuring 282 by 425 cm, which is the artist's largest painting.

Structure

Although the main thing that attracts the museum of Aivazovsky in Feodosia is paintings by the master, there you can see also canvases of Western European artists and other interesting exhibits related to the family of the great seascapes.

The exposition consists of three parts:

• Large exhibition hall;
• The house of IK Aivazovsky and his family;
• Home of the artist's sister.

In turn, in the house there are 2 halls for temporary exhibitions, an exposition "The Special Pantry" and one more, dedicated to the work of IK Aivazovsky.

No less interesting works can be seen in the house of the artist's sister. In particular, there are exhibited paintings of Western European artists of the 17-19th centuries and a collection of paintings by the master on biblical subjects.

The house of Ivan Aivazovsky's family

Having left abroad in 1840 among other distinguished graduates of the Academy of Fine Arts, Aivazovsky only achieves recognition in Europe in a few years and returns to Theodosia as a very wealthy man. This allows him to build a house for his seven in the Italian style. Soon on the embankment there is a chic mansion for those times, where, along with the rooms of the household and the reception rooms, there are workshops and an exhibition hall. As already mentioned, today the house is part of the Aivazovsky Museum, and there, among other things, there is a special room-safe, where valuable items belonging to the artist and his family are exhibited. Also in the house of the painter there is a unique photo archive, in which family photos taken at the end of the 19th century are presented.

Catherine Konstantinovna's House

In Armenian families it was always customary to settle in the neighborhood with relatives. Therefore, next to the house of Aivazovsky in the mid-19th century, his sister, Katarine (Catherine), settled. The mansion belonging to her has survived to this day and today is part of the museum of the famous seascape. There are works by European artists, mostly dedicated to the sea. In addition, the canvases of Ivan Aivazovsky painted on biblical and religious themes are exhibited in the House of the Sister. This part of the museum's collection is particularly interesting, since it is known less than the painter's marinistic works. But Aivazovsky, whose brother (Gabriel Konstantinovich) was the archbishop and one of the professors of the Armenian Academy of Monk-Mkhitarists in Venice, had a particularly fervent attitude towards Christianity. Among the biblical works that can be seen in the House of the Sister, you can note the following: "Walking on the Waters", "Last Supper", "Baptism", "Prayer for the Cup", etc.

"To Alexander's death"

In the house of her sister there is an exhibition of one painting. This is a painting very uncharacteristic for the artist called "To the death of Alexander". Aivazovsky wrote it in days of mourning for the emperor-peacekeeper, who died from diseases caused by trauma, received during a railway accident. There is a mystical legend connected with the picture, to which the viewer begins to believe, standing for several minutes before the canvas executed in sinister dark tones. It is interesting that the artist himself never exhibited this work, and it has not been seen for almost 100 years.

Monument to Aivazovsky

The native city always appreciated the charitable activity of the artist. In particular, those who come to the museum of Aivazovsky in Feodosia, whose photo is adorned with almost all the tourist avenues dedicated to the Crimea, can see a monument to the great seascapes. It is installed in the courtyard of the painter's house, and on his pedestal there is engraved the inscription: "Theodosius to Aivazovsky." In addition, the city has several other monuments that residents of the city dedicated to their world-famous countryman.

The address and mode of operation of the Aivazovsky Museum in Feodosiya

A rare tourist who visits the southeast coast of the Crimea leaves without seeing the masterpieces of the great seascape. To get to the Aivazovsky Museum in Feodosia, you need to go to Galleries Street (buildings 2 and 4).

Working hours:

• On Tuesday from 10:00 to 13:00;
• From Monday to Sunday (Wednesday - closed) - from 10:00 to 17:00.

During the summer period, the gallery is open from 9:00 to 20:00.

Now you know what the Aivazovsky Museum in Feodosia is like. The address of this most important landmark of the Crimea is also known to you, so when you are on the peninsula, be sure to visit the world-famous gallery. You will surely get great pleasure from contemplating the masterpieces of world art stored there.