History and culture: The exhibition “Russian noble portrait of the XVIII – XIX” in Petrozavodsk

September 5, 2014 in the Museum of Fine Arts of the Republic of Karelia (Petrozavodsk) is opened the exhibition “Russian noble portrait of the XVIII – XIX”.

The exhibition, prepared by the State Pushkin Museum (Moscow) and represented in the halls of the Museum of Fine Arts of the Republic of Karelia, is a continuation of a large exhibition project, which provides a unique opportunity to residents of many cities in Russia to meet with a collection of the Pushkin Museum, the collections of which count more than 158 000 units of storage. A significant place takes the leading genre in the fine art of the second half of the XVIII - first half of XIX century. The basis of the collection consists of images of faces of Pushkin's time, as the long-term collecting activity of the museum was aimed at creating a portrait gallery of the poet's contemporaries. Many of them are memorial: they were transferred to the State Pushkin Museum of family gatherings, and this is their enduring value.

Visitor meets a beautiful chamber and formal portraits of the Russian nobility of the XVIII - XIX centuries. Along with the works of well-known Russian and foreign masters, it was composed of works of serf artists. No less significant is the number of persons documented in portraits: from statesmen and military leaders to Moscow and St. Petersburg beauties, ladies, dandies and officials. Among the portraits of Pushkin's contemporaries in the exhibition are the images of his friends and social acquaintances, women in different years instilled in him strong sense and glorified in his poetry.