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Karl Bryullov, a Russian painter, watercolorist, drawer, and professor of painting at the Imperial Academy of Arts, was born
Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (Brullo), was born on December 12 (23 by the new style calendar), 1799. He was a prominent representative of academic historical and genre painting, as well as a master of ceremonial and chamber portraits. He was also a muralist and a member of several art academies, including the Academies of Fine Arts in Milan, Parma, and St. Luke's in Rome. He held the position of professor at the Florentine and Imperial Academies of Arts in St. Petersburg.
The Bryullov family has French origins. At the end of the 17th century, some of its members, who were Protestant, were forced to flee their homeland due to religious persecution and settled in Germany. In 1773, the Russian government invited Georg Brullo, an ornamental sculptor, and his thirteen-year-old grandson, John Paul's eldest son's son, to St. Petersburg to work at the Imperial Porcelain Factory. This son, Pavel Ivanovich Bryulla (1760-1833), married twice. His second wife, Maria Elisabeth Schroeder, gave birth to six children, including Karl, the second eldest. The eldest child, Alexander (1798-1877), became a famous architect and graphic artist. Ivan (1814-1834), the third child, showed great promise as a painter, but died at the age of twenty. Fyodor, the son of P.I. Bryulla from his first marriage, was a well-known church painter.
Karl Bryullov acquired his first artistic skills from his father, who was a teacher at the Imperial Academy of Arts from 1793 to 1799. At the age of 10, in 1809, the boy enrolled in the Academy with government support. He studied in the classes of historical and portrait painting under A. I. Ivanov and A. E. Egorov. According to his contemporaries, Karl Bryullov attracted attention with his extraordinary talent and brilliantly passed his art classes at the Academy, receiving top marks in almost all exams. While meeting the demands of his academic mentors for correctness and accuracy in drawing, K. P. Bryullov also brought life, grace, and playfulness to his works, breaking away from the classical style. This style of the young artist is clearly visible in his early works such as The Genius of Art, Paris, which earned him a large silver medal in 1817, and Narcissus, which received a small gold medal in 1819.
In 1821, K. P. Bryullov graduated from the Imperial Academy of Arts with a first-degree certificate, a gold medal for his painting, The Appearance of God to Abraham in the Form of Three Pilgrims, and the right to travel abroad to continue his education. However, due to conflicts with the president of the academy, A. N. Olenin, Bryullov lost the right to a pension. He was supported by the Society for the Promotion of Artists, which was founded in 1820 by a group of patrons in St. Petersburg. At the Society's request, Bryullov's brother Alexander was also granted a pension. On August 16 (28), 1822, Karl and Alexander left for Italy to continue their studies. In a decree signed by Emperor Alexander I, their surname Brullo was officially changed to Bryullov.
In May 1823, the brothers arrived in Rome. This period abroad became a time of great creative development for K. P. Bryullov. One of his first independent works, the painting Italian Morning (1823), made a big impression in St. Petersburg. The emperor Nicholas I awarded K. P. Bryullov with a diamond ring and asked him to create a sequel. However, Italian Noon (1827) caused mixed reactions. In particular, the Society for the Encouragement of Artists commented on its pensioner, saying that he had chosen a model with more pleasant than elegant proportions.
In Italy, K. P. Bryullov created paintings depicting scenes from the ancient world, biblical and Russian history, mythology, and allegory. He also painted scenes from Italian life and landscapes. He gained fame for his portraits of prominent Italians and compatriots, but it was his historical painting The Last Day of Pompeii that brought him genuine European recognition. The painting, which was completed between 1830 and 1833, was first exhibited at the Winter Palace and later awarded to the Academy of Arts. Upon its completion, the Emperor summoned the artist to St. Petersburg, where he was appointed as a professor at the Academy. After a triumphant return to Russia in early 1836, K. P. Bryullov continued to create masterpieces that continue to inspire artists and art lovers around the world.
Until 1849, Karl Bryullov lived and worked in St. Petersburg. Inspired by N. M. Karamzin's History, he began working on a painting from Russian history that was supposed to be superior to Pompeii. However, the painting The Siege of Pskov by Polish King Stefan Batory in 1581 (1839-1843) remained unfinished.
Karl Bryullov's reputation as a portrait painter was established in the capital. He painted portraits of N. V. Kukolnik (1836), V. A. Zhukovsky (1837-1838), I. A. Krylov (1839), and the long-term patroness and muse, Countess Y. P. Samoilova and her adopted daughter, A. Pacini (no later than 1842).
In 1847, K. P. Bryullov started working on painting the ceiling of St. Isaac's Cathedral's main dome. He created sketches and managed to finish all the main figures on the ceiling, but the strenuous work in the unfinished cathedral dampened the artist's health. In 1849, K. P. Bryullov, the famous Russian painter, asked for permission to take time off from his work due to health reasons, and went abroad on the recommendation of doctors. He first visited the island of Madeira and then moved to Italy.
He spent the last two years of his life in Rome, at the home of an Italian family, the Tittonis. On June 11 (23), 1852, he passed away at the age of 52 in Manziana, near Rome. His body was transported back to Rome with honor, and he was buried in Monte Testaccio cemetery in the presence of Russian and international artists. A monument was erected at his grave in the form of a sarcophagus, designed by M. A. Shurupov.
Lit.: Ацаркина Э. Н. Карл Павлович Брюллов: жизнь и творчество. 1799–1852. М., 1963; Брюллов Карл Павлович // Русский биографический словарь А. А. Половцова. Т. 3. Бетанкур – Бякстер. СПб., 1908. С. 401–411; Он же [Электронный ресурс]. Режим доступа: https://viewer.rusneb.ru/ru/rsl01002897077?page=403; Брюллов (Брюллов) Карл Павлович // Виртуальный Русский музей [Электронный ресурс]. Режим доступа: https://rusmuseumvrm.ru/reference/classifier/author/bryullov_kp/index.php; Калугина Н. А. Брюллов Карл Павлович // Большая российская энциклопедия [Электронный ресурс]. Режим доступа: https://bigenc.ru/c/briullov-karl-pavlovich-ddd949/?v=8925622.
Based on the materials of Presidnetial Library:
Василий Андреевич Жуковский. Портрет работы К. П. Брюллова (1838). [Открытка]. Л., 1969;
Иван Андреевич Крылов. Портрет работы К. П. Брюллова (1841). [Открытка]. М., [между 1923 и 1933];
Кубасов И. Архив Брюлловых, принадлежащий В. А. Брюллову. СПб., 1900 (доступно в электронном читальном зале);
Лясковская О. Карл Брюллов. М.;Л., 1940 (доступно в электронном читальном зале);
ОР ГРМ. Ф. 22 Оп. 1 Док./Ед. хр. 16. Список портретов, исполненных Брюлловым К. П. [1848] (доступно в электронном читальном зале);
ОР ГРМ. Ф. 22 Оп. 1 Док./Ед. хр. 51. Статьи о картинах Брюллова К. П. из иностранных и русских журналов и газет. 1828–1867 (доступно в электронном читальном зале).