Picture "Evening Bell" (Levitan II)

It happens that representatives of other nations and religions are better able to describe the essence of the Russian soul and character than the Russians themselves. In the history of art there is a lot of evidence. For example, the picture "Evening ringing." Levitan II was a Jew by birth, but considered himself a true Russian artist.

II Levitan. Biography pages

Isaak Ilich Levitan (1860 - 1900) - the largest Russian landscape painter of the second half of the XIX century. He was born in a small town in Lithuania, but in the early 1870's his parents moved to Moscow, where they soon died, leaving their four children without means of subsistence. All his life, Isaak Levitan was in need, he led a very modest working life.

In 1873 he became a student of an art school, deciding to follow in the footsteps of his older brother - the artist. Teachers of Isaac were AK. Savrasov and V.D. Polenov. Savrasov highly valued the talent of his pupil, foretold to him the fame of the French landscape painter Corot, but his location only harmed him. Teachers of the school disliked Savrasov and decided to recoup on his pet, refusing Levitan to receive the title of artist. He was given a diploma, where the specialty was listed in the graph: the drawing teacher. It happened in 1885.

In 1898 Levitan himself became a teacher of that school. He did a lot to create a House of Landscapes - a huge workshop, the doors of which were open to all Russian landscape painters. Levitan taught his wards not only to draw, but to love nature. He told them that flowers on landscapes should smell like flowers, not paint.

Isaak Levitan died on August 4, 1900. His legacy is huge, he wrote almost 1,000 canvases. Levitan - an artist whose paintings adorn collections of famous museums, especially many of his works in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Features of creativity

Levitan is called one of the founders of the so-called "landscape of mood". On its canvases elements of nature are depicted with high certainty, at the same time they have incredible psychological saturation, reflecting the movements of the human soul. People in the artist's paintings appear extremely rarely, but the author himself, his attempts to unravel the secrets of the universe are always present.

Often the works of Levitan depict churches, chapels, monasteries. They are harmoniously discharged into the surrounding natural landscape, they form a single whole with it. To describe such paintings introduced a special term - "church landscape". Even during his studies, Levitan wrote a number of paintings in this genre, among them "Simonov Monastery". Faithful to the "church landscape" the artist remains and in later years. Picture "Evening ringing", Levitan wrote it in 1892, is considered one of the best on this subject.

Many creative people were inspired by autumn. Pushkin and Tyutchev devoted this time of year their best lines. Levitan also more than once confessed his love for this time. He created more than 100 autumn landscapes. They are all different in colors and moods.

The artist reaches the peak of his skill in the late 80's - early 90's, we can say that it was at this time that Levitan was an artist. Paintings written during this period, brought him all-Russian fame. Among them are paintings "Over the Evening Rest", "Vladimirka", "Evening Bells".

Picture "Evening Bell" (Levitan II): description

The painting is written in the style of "church landscape". It depicts the Krivozersky Monastery, located near the town of Yuryevets, on the other bank of the Volga. In 1890, the artist captured the same monastery in the painting "Quiet abode." The new version reflected a different view of the familiar landscape.

If in the "Quiet Cloister" the artist directs the viewer's view into the interior of the picture, to the oak grove, to the monastery hiding there, then in the "Evening Bell" the river rises to the forefront. She looks away up the diagonal, to the horizon, to the beautiful sunset sky. This composition brings more dynamics. This feeling reinforces the ferry with people depicted in the center of the river.

Description of the picture "Evening ringing" will be incomplete, if not to mention the high bell tower towering above the forest and the river. Church domes, looking upwards, symbolize people's desire for light and holiness. But the vertical of the monastic buildings does not contrast with the diagonal of the river. The whole picture is imbued with the spirit of harmony and peace.

The composition of the painting by I. I. Levitan "The Evening Bell"

The painting "Evening Bell" (Levitan II, 1892) is an image of a monastery surrounded by an autumn forest. The author seems to invite the viewer to visit the bright, devoid of all evil world. A special comfort gives him soft colors: white walls of monastic buildings, pink-golden clouds floating on the bright sky, greenery of forests, highlighted by yellow autumn strings. The calm surface of the river reflects these colors, doubling the impression.

It is believed that to understand the beauty of nature, to notice the greatness of Russian temples of Levitan taught his teacher - Alexei Savrasov. But the seeds of foreign knowledge and experience can only take root on fertile soil. Levitan had a sensitive soul and a keen eye, able to see the beautiful in the usual. The picture "Evening ringing" to that bright confirmation.