Picture "Italian Noon" by Bryullov: description and photo

For his relatively short creative life, the artist Karl Pavlovich Bryullov created a variety of canvases, among which there are several recognized masterpieces of world painting. Among them, the Italian Noon takes a special place. Bryullov wrote it in 1827, and it is this painting that is most often referred to as the best work of his brush.

Biography of the author: early years

Before proceeding to the description of Karl Pavlovich Bryullov's painting "The Italian Noon", it is worth devoting a few terms to the biography and the work of the author himself. So, Karl Bryullov was born in 1799 in St. Petersburg. From an early age he studied painting and helped his father - Academician Pavel Bryullov - to fulfill various orders. In particular, it is known that he participated in the painting of the Kronstadt Church. At the age of ten, the boy was enrolled in the Imperial Academy of Arts, which he graduated in 1821. And it is known that he received a gold medal for his works in the class of historical painting. For brilliantly completed graduation work, Briullov relied on a trip to Italy on treasury funds, but the President of the Academy, A. Olenin, demanded that the young man postpone his foreign internship for three years. Then Bryullov, who could not find a common language with his new mentor A. Ermolaev, refused to travel and left the Academy.

Italian travel

Despite all the difficulties, the trip abroad was still held. The fact is that at that time in St. Petersburg, the Society for the Encouragement of Artists, whose members were rich patrons of art, acted. They offered the beginning painter to write a few pictures, and in return paid him a trip to Italy, in which he went in 1822 with his brother Alexander Bryullov. On the way, young people visited Riga, several German cities, including Berlin and Dresden, as well as Venice, Verona and Bologna. The final destination of the trip was Rome, where the artist arrived in 1823. There he began work on a customized painting, which was a copy of one of the famous frescoes by Raphael Santi.

Karl Bryullov, "The Italian Noon": the history of creation

Once in Rome, among the masterpieces of ancient art and works of masters of the Renaissance, the artist experienced a real creative upsurge. However, he was keenly interested in the life of the Italian capital and its environs, which did not even remotely resemble the measured life of the Petersburgers. The artist did not remain indifferent to the southern beauty of the Romans. All these impressions inspired him to create the picture "Italian Morning". It was a resounding success and was presented by the Society of Encouraging Artists to the wife of Nicholas I. Soon the painter received an order to create another such painting from the emperor himself. They became "Italian noon." Bryullov brilliantly coped with this work, creating a real masterpiece. Interestingly, some time after writing the canvas, the artist met with Countess Julia Samoilova, who became his muse, whose appearance somewhat resembled the girl depicted in this picture.

Karl Bryullov, "The Italian Noon": a description

As already mentioned, this canvas was created as if in a pair to the already painted picture, which also depicts a beautiful southern woman. However, this canvas is different from the previous one. "Italian noon" (Bryullov created it at the age of 28) depicts a more mature beauty, whereas in the picture written before, we see a very young girl, almost a teenager, who at dawn is washed by cool water from a fountain. To emphasize that the Italian is experiencing a heyday, the artist gave her a magnificent bunch of grapes, filled with juice, as luxurious as herself. By the way, if you look closely, you can see the initials of the master, in the form of Latin letters "SV" on the shirt, barely covering the snow-white chest of the beauty. It is difficult to say to which estate belongs the woman who portrayed Karl Bryullov. "Italian noon" is generally full of mysteries. For example, it is not known who the girl that posed for the artist. Perhaps it was a peasant from the Roman suburbs, but the whiteness of the skin suggests that this person is unlikely to spend days working in vineyards under the scorching rays of the sun.

The further destiny of a cloth

It's hard to believe, but Briullov's painting "The Italian Noon" after being exhibited in St. Petersburg caused a wave of indignation and received a lot of unflattering reviews. The fact is that the model seemed to the critics too simple and devoid of grace. In addition, lovers of painting pointed out that the appearance of the depicted girl is far from the ancient canons of beauty, which in the era of late classicism was considered unacceptable.

Thus, the public rejected the "Italian noon." Bryullov was upset. Moreover, he had to sever his ties with patrons who supplied him with orders for more than one year. He would know then that after only a few decades, reproductions and copies of this canvas will adorn the walls of private houses and public institutions around the world.

Where you can see

Today, lovers of painting all over the world know that the main masterpiece created by Karl Bryullov is "The Italian Noon" (the description is presented above). To see this magnificent canvas, you need to go to the Russian Museum, which is located in St. Petersburg at: Engineering Street, 4. In addition, the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow holds a small copy of this painting, also belonging to the artist's brush.