Fabulously-epic genre of painting: the emergence, artists, paintings

The origin of the fabulously-epic genre of painting is usually attributed to the second half of the 19th century. The emergence of this new trend in art was associated with the increased interest not only of artists, but of the Russian educated public in general, towards the national-original origins of our country.

Cultural situation

At the beginning of the century, between several circles of the intelligentsia, sharp disputes arose regarding the development of our country. Some said that the state belongs to the number of European powers and that it has a common path with development. Others, on the contrary, believed that Russia should follow its own unique and unique path of development, which was sought in the examples of ancient history.

Background of the genre

Such discussions were very fruitful not only for social and political thought, but also for the state of culture in general. Fantastic-epic genre appeared, if I may say so, on the wave of the above-mentioned philosophical trends and trends. At the same time, it became a natural result of the development of Russian fine arts, in which historical themes traditionally occupied one of the leading places. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many artists captured pictures of ancient Russian history on their canvases, which served as an impetus for interest in Russian folk tales, bylinas, and ancient legends. After all, many of the old Russian stories were covered with epic romance, which gave them such an attraction.

Features of compositions

Fantastic-epic genre in the second half of the 19th century took one of the leading places in the fine arts. This new direction had its own characteristics. First of all, most of the images were colorful and expressive. If you recall the most famous works in this genre, they amaze with the richness of the colors and shades. This is explained by the desire of the painters to give the images a plasticity and at the same time attract the attention of the public to them.

Secondly, the fabulously-epic genre was distinguished by its scale and monumentality. This is due to the subjects of the stories. The fact is that the artists, as a rule, chose the object for their paintings heroic stories from the past of the country and very often stopped on those plots of epic stories, which especially corresponded to their ideas. For example, the picture "Three heroes" is distinguished by an unusual seriousness and solemnity. It is made in the spirit of ancient Russian legends and bylinas, glorifying the exploits of the defenders of the Russian land.

Images

The fantastic-epic genre has another characteristic feature that authors working in this direction chose the most expressive images and subjects that somehow reflected the most famous pages of the past, and also transmitted the spirit of the ancient epoch. The most frequent image in the painting of this direction is the hero, the warrior, the defender of the Russian land. For example, the painting "The Knight at the Crossroads" is at the same time a reflection of the old traditions and at the same time shows how the author imagined the era of Ancient Rus. At the same time, the picture has references to folk tales: the canvas is depicted on the canvas, which chooses its own way, reading the inscription on the stone. The combination of the fairytale, epic and historical elements was surprisingly harmonious in this picture. This principle is generally characteristic for Vasnetsov's creativity, which provided his paintings with such popularity.

Fantastic-epic genre in the visual arts took one of the leading places in the national painting. Another image typical for him is the female characters. Especially popular were fairytale heroines, for example, Vasilisa the Wise or the Swan Princess. These female images were the most popular in fairy tales, so it is not surprising that the authors used to address them so often.

Another image is the narrator. For example, one of Vasnetsov's most famous paintings is the canvas "Bayan", which depicts an ancient Russian singer-guslar, telling an old legend to soldiers. Characteristically, it was this hero who became the subject for the image. The appeal to his image is very revealing in the sense that the artists understood that it was thanks to such tellers that these epics, tales and legends reached us.

Connection with music

The fabulously-epic genre of painting in many respects has received an impetus to development due to the fact that during the considered time many composers turned to the Old Russian subjects when writing operas. Of course, the motifs of fairy tales, epics and ancient legends were also present in their works. Very often, artists painted scenery in the appropriate spirit, which contributed to the flowering of the genre in question. As an example of operas of this kind, one can name the musical compositions of Rimsky-Korsakov, who very often turned to historical, epic and fairy-tale subjects. Other composers also attracted these stories in their works (for example, Stravinsky). These works were very popular in the West, which was the impetus for the development of this direction and in painting.

Known canvases

Pictures of the fairytale-epic genre occupy a prominent place not only in a number of works of historical themes, but also in the fine arts in general. In addition to the above works, you should mention canvases devoted exclusively to subjects from ancient Russian folk tales. For example, the picture "Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf" is in this respect a masterpiece. Fabulous and historical elements joined in this work of the author in such a harmonious unity that, looking at it, it is difficult to distinguish between the fabulous and the real.

Another example in this series is the picture by the same author of Alyonushka. It is known that he wrote it from a simple peasant girl, which gives the canvas such brightness and expressiveness. The undoubted advantage of the work of this direction is the fact that in them the motifs of fairy tales, epics and legends had such a lively and expressive coloring that the stories received a historical sound and were perceived as part of the cultural past.

Representatives of

The artists of the fairy-tale genre have world recognition. Their work is a worthy contribution not only to the domestic, but also to the world culture. In addition to Vasnetsov in this line should also specify Bilibin. He became famous for writing drawings on fairy-tale themes. Especially popular are his illustrations to the famous "Tale of Tsar Saltan" by Pushkin. His works differ in brightness and richness of colors, and in appearance look very much like frames from cartoons. In this respect, the author survived his time: his drawings are still used as a standard for creating animations.

Vrubel also turned to fairy-tale subjects. Known for his painting "The Swan Princess", written on the basis of the same tale. The style of this artist is very original and specific and therefore very different from the works of his predecessors. His colors are somewhat blurred and muted, unlike Bilibin's bright drawings.

The meaning of the genre

The fabulously-epic genre (7 class) occupies a prominent place in the educational process at school. Already on the average, students are introduced to the main works in this direction. And they can be shown both in history lessons and in literature. These works help in a visual form to demonstrate both the features of the artist's creativity and the specific character of the ancient Russian society. Very often, based on them, they study everyday life, clothes, dwellings, the culture of those distant times. In addition, at this age schoolchildren very vividly perceive bright images, and therefore the paintings of the above masters should be analyzed in the context of works of Old Russian literature. This was the most important stage in the development of Russian painting, which should be singled out as a separate period in the fine arts.