Artist Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin biography. Shishkin Ivan biography. The works of the young Shishkin, created during his years studying at the Academy, are marked by romantic features, but this was rather a tribute to the dominant tradition

In 1832, on January 25, in the city of Elabuga, Vyatebsk province, a son, Ivan, was born into the family of the merchant Shishkin Ivan Vasilyevich. At the Kazan gymnasium future artist received his first education.

After 4 years of study, Ivan Shishkin enters the Moscow School of Painting. In 1856, after graduating from college, he decided to continue his studies in St. Petersburg and entered the Academy of Arts.

During the year of study within the walls of this institution, the artist not only masterfully mastered academic drawing, but also was engaged in painting in the suburbs of St. Petersburg.

The year 1860 was significant for Shishkin when he received an important award - the gold medal of the Academy. He had received awards before, but they were not of such significance.

While traveling, Shishkin visited Munich and Zurich, where he had the opportunity to study in the workshops of famous artists. Thanks to the work "" the artist was awarded the title of academician.

Outside of Russia, Shishkin perfectly draws works with a pen, which deserves great attention from foreigners who were amazed by the unprecedented talent of the Russian artist.

Some of the drawings were placed in the Düsseldorf Museum, where they were placed level with the works famous artists Europe.

In 1864, the painter Shishkin returned back to Russia, because... Outside his homeland, it did not seem possible for him to paint a Russian landscape. He travels a lot around home country in search of picturesque places.

Artist enough a large number of dedicated his works to the pine forest, among which the most famous are considered to be - "Pine forest ", "Morning in a pine forest" , "" , "Stream in the Forest".

His paintings were presented at exhibitions, as well as at the Association of Traveling Exhibitions. In 1873, Shishkin received the title of professor at the Academy of Arts, and for a short time he was in charge of the educational workshop.

Ivan Shishkin married only in 1977, the artist Olga Antonova-Lagoda became his wife. Their home is often visited by his colleagues and friends.

Shishkin's most striking painting "" was created by him in 1889. This picture is permeated with the morning air of the forest, you can feel the wilderness untouched by man. The popularity of this picture is still unchanged, which is why this work art has no equal.

The artist's final work is a canvas "" , created by him in 1898. This painting demonstrates the talent and skill accumulated by the artist throughout his life.

“A school of man”, “a milestone in the development of Russian landscape” - this is how contemporaries wrote about Shishkin. I propose on this day to remember our, without a doubt, National treasure, look at the paintings again, read about this person and look through old photographs.

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was born on January 25 (13th old style) 1832 in Yelabuga (Vyatka province) into a poor merchant family. His father, Ivan Vasilyevich, rented a mill and traded grain, but besides this, he was passionate about history and archeology, developed and implemented a water supply system in Yelabuga, wrote manuals and books, and used his own money to restore the ancient tower of the city.

Shishkin's father, Ivan Vasilievich. Portrait of V.P. Vereshchagina

It was the father who encouraged the development of a creative streak in his son - he praised him for his success in drawing, studied wood carving with him, and eventually sent him to study at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where young Ivan got into the professor's class portrait painting A.N. Mokritsky, who noticed young man talent as a landscape painter, and helped him develop in the right direction, which Shishkin later recalled with gratitude.

I.I. Shishkin, self-portrait, 1854

While studying at the school, Shishkin was interested in the question of why Italian or Swiss landscapes (including those performed by our artists) are so captivating with their color and richness; is it not possible to achieve the same by painting native spaces. And this “nationality” turned out to be as appropriate as possible “here and now”: at the same time, other artists increasingly began to turn to everything Russian, and writers did not lag behind. And realism began to be valued and enjoyed success.

View on the island of Valaam, 1858

Shishkin worked on his paintings with such diligence that sometimes it seems that every blade of grass and every leaf was not left unattended by him, and often with such precision that it could be used as an illustration in a botanical atlas.

Young walnut shoots, 1870s

Burdocks, 1878

Of course, there were and are those who say that emotions are lost behind such thoroughness, they called him a “photographer” and a “copyist,” but time puts everything in its place: how many people in our vast expanses do not know the name of Shishkin, even if they are completely far from art? Are there many people who don’t know the author of “that picture with the bears” or “that field with rye”? Shishkin's landscapes have long ceased to be just a phenomenon in art; they are inextricably linked with Russian nature, they are as if it itself.

Before the Storm, 1884

Hut, 1861

Autumn forest, 1876

Landscape with a lake, 1886

In the wild north..., 1891

Foggy morning, 1885

Kama near Elabuga, 1895

Road in the Rye, 1866

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin is deservedly called an excellent draftsman. He did not part with a pencil, and everywhere he made sketches of everything that seemed interesting to him, be it a broken tree branch, clouds or a dried leaf.

Landscape with carts, early 1870s

Stream in the forest

Summer in the field (Shepherd with his flock), early 1860s

Forest river, 1893

Trees in the field. Bratsevo, 1866

Village, 1874

Letter from Shishkin to his parents with a sketch, 1858

By the way, he received his first awards for drawing as a student. Imperial Academy arts, where he entered after graduating from college. His successes were repeatedly noted with medals, and upon completion, along with the Big Gold Medal, Shishkin was awarded a three-year trip abroad. True, he left only 2 years later; he was much more occupied with his native place, and he spent time hugging a travel album, making sketches from life.

View of Elabuga, 1861

Abroad, he worked in Germany, the Czech Republic and Switzerland.

I.I. Shishkin in Dusseldorf, photograph, 1864/65

Despite all the European beauties, he was drawn home; he wanted to paint Russian nature. Although, it should be noted, on this trip he created the painting “View in the vicinity of Dusseldorf”, for which he was awarded the title of academician.

View in the vicinity of Dusseldorf, 1865

Dresden. Bridge of Augustus, 1862

Beech forest in Switzerland, 1863

Swiss landscape, 1866

Upon his return, he travels around Russia and becomes a member of the Association of Mobile art exhibitions along with Repin, Kramskoy, Vasnetsov, Surikov and others. At this time, Shishkin finally formed a recognizable style, in which there is no place for romanticization, but there is the beauty of nature in itself, and in the late 60s he wrote one of his most famous works- “Noon in the vicinity of Moscow.”

Noon in the vicinity of Moscow, 1869

The artist is madly in love with the forest, regularly going into the wilds from the very early morning, and working tirelessly on sketches and sketches. It should be noted that in his paintings the forest is always majestic, and even solemn.

Forest guardhouse, 1892

Pinery, 1895

Winter in the Forest (Rime), 1877

Birch Grove, 1878

Oak Grove, 1887

Meadow at the edge of the forest. Siverskaya, 1887

Edge of a deciduous forest, 1895

I.I. Shishkin with peasants, photograph, 1890

Often in Shishkin’s paintings nature has truly epic power, and people or animals do not appear too often. It is also a well-known fact that the bears on the canvas “Morning in pine forest"(1889) was written not by Shishkin, but by his friend, the artist Konstantin Savitsky, whose signature from the painting was removed by its acquirer Pavel Tretyakov.

Morning in a pine forest, 1889

Shishkin also has a lot of works in which he focuses not on the scale, space, power of nature, but, on the contrary, on something small, on its individual components - weeds, ferns, tops of pine trees, etc.

Tops of pine trees, 1890s

Flowers by the fence, mid-1880s

Snitch-grass. Pargolovo, 1884

Herbs, 1892

In 1873, having painted his next painting, “Forest Wilderness,” at the age of 41, Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin received the title of professor at the Academy of Arts.

Forest wilderness, 1872

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was a very fruitful artist; they say about such people that he “worked tirelessly.”

I.I. Shishkin at work on the painting “Mordvinov Oaks”, photograph, 1891

Ivan Kramskoy. Portrait of I. I. Shishkin. 1873

In one sketch, Shishkin wrote: “Expansion, space, land, rye, God's grace, Russian wealth." And, probably, something similar flashes through the minds of most people when looking at his famous painting “Rye” (1878).

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was married twice. His first wife was Evgenia Aleksandrovna Vasilyeva, the sister of another talented Russian landscape painter Fyodor Vasilyev, through whom he met her, immediately falling in love with the girl. Three children were born in this marriage, but both sons died at a young age, and their mother survived them for a short time. Shishkin took the loss hard, and only 7 years later he married for the second time. His second wife was the artist Olga Antonovna Lagoda, who died a month and a half after the birth of their daughter. Until the end of Shishkin’s life, Olga’s sister Victoria took care of his two daughters and himself.

(1832-1898) Russian artist

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was consummate master Russian landscape painting. He was called the artist of the Russian forest, “a man-school,” “a milestone in the development of Russian landscape.” However, his art was perceived differently. Some critics called Shishkin an artist-photographer, implying the limited spirituality in his work.

At the end of his life, the artist experienced a completely unfriendly attitude not only towards his art, but also towards himself personally, which accelerated his death. However, time has put everything in its place. Ivan Shishkin remained in cultural history Russia as a great Russian artist, in whose paintings his love for life, for the land, for people was expressed with utmost clarity.

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was born in the ancient Russian city of Elabuga into a merchant family. His father Ivan Vasilyevich was deeply respected by his fellow countrymen. He himself sold bread, but was interested in technology and history, was fond of archeology and was even elected a corresponding member of the Moscow Archaeological Society. In 1871, the Moscow Synodal Printing House published a book by Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin about the history of the city of Elabuga, and even earlier he prepared the manuscript “The Life of the Elabuga merchant Ivan Vasilyevich Shishkin, written by himself in 1867.” For many years, Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin kept notes in notebooks about the most important events that took place in the city and in family of origin. He called them “Notes of various sights.”

Everything in the house was controlled by Ivan Vasilyevich’s wife, Daria Romanovna, who supported a strict patriarchal way of life. The future artist was brought up in this respectable and cultured family.

The boy grew up surrounded by nature and was very impressionable. In addition to reading, since childhood he loved drawing most of all, for which he was sometimes called “dauber” in the house.

The father wanted to give his son a good education, hired him private teachers, sent him to a men's gymnasium in Kazan. He was going to send him along the merchant line, but, noticing that Ivan did not show any interest in this matter, he left him to choose his own occupation.

In 1852, Ivan went to Moscow and entered the School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. From his youth, he chose the motto for himself: “Education, work, love of studies” - and steadily followed it.

Already at the school, Ivan Shishkin finally chose his path in painting - Russian landscape and nature in all its diversity. Shortly before graduation, the young painter painted one of his most remarkable paintings, “Rime,” which was highly praised by artists.

In January 1856, Ivan Shishkin entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, but studied without interest. At that time, Nicolas Poussin and Claude Lorrain were considered the main masters of landscape painting at the Academy. Their paintings were amazing majestic landscapes, which their imagination inspired them. Shishkin sought something else. He wanted to write wildlife, which does not need decoration. “The most important thing for a landscape painter is a diligent study of nature,” he wrote in his student notebook back in Moscow, “as a result of which paintings from life should be without imagination.” Subsequently, many critics noted that Ivan Shishkin was a real researcher of nature and knew “every wrinkle of the bark, bend of the branches, combination of leaf stems in bouquets of herbs...”. Already at the Academy, he began to gradually develop his own system of painting, in which he intuitively sought to establish the national in the landscape.

In 1857, Ivan Shishkin received a small silver medal at the exam for two paintings - “View from the outskirts of St. Petersburg” and “Landscape on Fox Nose”. The artist was filled with the brightest hopes for the future. His pride was also flattered by the fact that the Academy’s management sent students with him to the summer sketches that he conducted in the village of Dubki near Sestroretsk.

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was a deeply religious person, so it is not surprising that he was attracted to Valaam with its special atmosphere of piety. Moreover, the island was famous for its picturesque nature. In 1858, Shishkin visited Valaam for the first time. He brought from there many sketches and pen drawings and at the end of the year he received a second academic award - a large silver medal for landscape painting “View on the Island of Valaam.” Now this painting is kept in the Kiev Museum of Russian Art. At the same time, Ivan Shishkin exhibited his paintings in the halls of the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. They were bought, and the artist received his first big money.

Throughout his studies at the Academy, Ivan Shishkin received academic awards, which gave him the right to freely choose a job for the summer. He once again visited Valaam, where he finished big picture"Cucco." This was the name of one of the tracts on the island. He got a lot for it gold medal, and the leadership of the Academy sent the artist abroad.

Ivan Shishkin spent more than a year abroad, visited many cities in Germany, traveled to the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Holland, and other countries. He went around all the most famous European museums, I visited artists’ workshops and did not find anything instructive there for myself. Only the art of the Dutch and Belgian artists somehow reconciled Shishkin with abroad. He worked a lot there, too, and went out on sketches, although the alien nature did not particularly inspire him.

However, in February 1865, Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin presented three of his drawings at a permanent exhibition in Düsseldorf. They were a success. One of the magazines even published an article about the young Russian artist. In April of the same year, Shishkin again participated in the exhibition, and his drawings were received with even greater enthusiasm. The artist received an offer to exhibit them in Bonn, Aachen and Cologne.

Soon Ivan Shishkin returned to his homeland. He received a certificate from the Academy of Arts to practice “landscape painting from life to different cities Russia" and went to his place in Yelabuga.

Returning to St. Petersburg, Ivan Shishkin became close friends with the newly organized Artel of Artists, headed by Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy, which united young Russian artists who rejected the academicism of the old school of painting. Shishkin ardently supported their ideas, although his first work, which he wrote upon returning to his homeland, “Swiss Landscape,” still bore the imprint of the academic traditions that he had absorbed during his years of study. However, his subsequent works and, in particular, the sketch “Noon. Neighborhoods of Moscow. Bratsevo" marked the birth of a new style for the artist. Starting from this work, the poetic principle comes to the fore in Shishkin’s work. Three years later he will return to this sketch and paint the painting “Afternoon”. It will be the first painting by the artist that I purchased famous collector Russian painting P. M. Tretyakov.

At the same time, something else happened in the artist’s life. an important event. He married Evgenia Alexandrovna Vasilyeva, and soon they had a daughter, Lydia.

A landscape class was created especially for Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin at the Academy of Arts, where he began teaching. For his commitment to Russian nature, he was called the “king of the forest”.

In 1870, Russian artists created a new association - the Association of Art Traveling Exhibitions, the idea of ​​which was proposed by G. G. Myasoedov. Ivan Shishkin enthusiastically supported this initiative and signed the charter of the Partnership. IN next year Their first exhibition took place, to which he presented his painting “Evening”. Then he set to work new job“Sosnovy Bor” for a competition at the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts. It received first prize and was purchased by Tretyakov for his gallery.

Over the next few years, Ivan Shishkin's life turned out to be full of adversity. My father died, and then his little son Vladimir. My wife was sick. Shishkin was tired, but continued to work. In February 1873, for the painting “Wilderness”, he received the title of professor. In May of the same year, he prepared and himself printed his first album of etchings.

However, tragedies continued to haunt the artist. In 1874, his wife died, leaving Ivan Shishkin with two children - daughter Lydia and one-year-old son Konstantin, who also died soon. The heavy losses turned out to be too much for Shishkin to bear. He started drinking for a long time I couldn’t work, then I took up photography.

In the end, the habit of work won out. Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin began to paint again and at the fourth exhibition of the Peredvizhniki in 1875 he presented his new paintings “Spring in a Pine Forest” and “First Snow”.

Trying to overcome severe depression, the painter spends a lot of time in society, meeting with friends. He was friendly with Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, a famous chemist, in whose house the famous “Mendeleev Wednesdays” took place. Many famous artists, writers, and composers visited there. Here Ivan Shishkin met his future wife Olga Antonovna Lagoda. She studied at the Academy of Arts, but then left there and began studying with Shishkin.

In the fall of 1878, Ivan Shishkin, together with other artists, traveled to Paris to the World Exhibition. In the same year on traveling exhibition His painting “Rye” was presented, which took first place. Everyone recognized that it was the biggest event in artistic life Russia.

Like many other Russian artists, Shishkin was in confrontation with the Academy of Arts. He himself had not worked there for a long time. “This is a den in which everything more or less talented perishes, where students are developed into clerks,” he said. He instilled in his students a different view of art: “Work as your heart desires, do not constrain yourself with these recipes. Study the living body."

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was very demanding of his students, sometimes even harsh, but he was no less demanding of himself. His working day began at nine o'clock in the morning and sometimes ended at two in the morning. Every year the artist painted several paintings, which were distinguished by high skill and an amazing sense of love for Russian nature.

However, trouble struck again in Ivan Shishkin’s personal life. Soon after the birth of their daughter, the second wife of the artist O. A. Lagoda-Shishkin unexpectedly died. The new loss shocked him, but this time the artist did not drown out the mental pain with alcohol and continued to work.

His painting “Kama”, sent to an exhibition in Kyiv, aroused great interest, a real pilgrimage was made to it, and there was a quarrel between buyers.

After some time, another painting by Ivan Shishkin, “Polesie,” will cause the same excitement. It has not been completely preserved to this day. In the Kiev Museum of Russian Art you can see only its right side. Another fragment of the painting is kept in a private collection. However, Shishkin later repeated it in a smaller size for one of his admirers. It is now in Moscow, in a private collection.

The skill of Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin is becoming generally recognized. Many of the artist’s works and, in particular, such as “Pines illuminated by the sun”, “Edge”, “Black Forest”, “Fern”, are called pearls of Russian art and true masterpieces.

In 1886, the third album of etchings by Ivan Shishkin was published. He sent several sheets from it to Paris, where his etchings were called “poems in drawings.”

At the XVII traveling exhibition, Shishkin’s new painting “Morning in a Pine Forest” was presented, which has an interesting story. The author wrote it together with another artist - K. Savitsky. He depicted bears. At first it bore the signatures of both artists, but Tretyakov, who bought it and was very critical of Savitsky, ordered his name to be obscured. So this painting is still on display only with Shishkin’s signature.

The artist was always concerned about the state of Russian art. IN last years life, he advocated the reorganization of the Academy of Arts, hoping to revive the Russian art school. However, not all artists supported this idea, and therefore his relations with other members of the Association of Traveling Exhibitions became complicated. They considered the reform of the Academy to be an empty matter and accused Shishkin of apostasy.

In November 1891, a retrospective exhibition of works by Ivan Shishkin, written over forty years, opened in the halls of the Academy of Arts. It featured 300 sketches and more than 200 drawings. And three years later, Shishkin became the professor and head of the landscape workshop of the Higher Art School at the Academy of Arts. Together with him, other famous artists returned to the Academy and began teaching there - Ilya Repin, A. Kuindzhi, V. Makovsky. With their arrival, a spirit of creativity reigned at the Academy, but this idyllic relationship did not last long. Intrigues that had been extinguished for a while were resumed, and feuds began between the artists. It got to the point that Arkhip Kuindzhi called Ivan Shishkin’s method harmful to painting.

In the end, Shishkin could not stand the open hostility of his former friends and resigned. In 1897, the artist was again offered to take the place of head of the landscape workshop, but by that time he was already unwell, his heart often failed him, and he had to work in fits and starts.

In the same year, Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin wrote his last job - « Ship Grove", which was a great success.

The Tsar bought it, adding another Shishkin painting to his art collection. The artist decided to paint new picture- “Red Forest”, but in March 1898 he died right in front of his easel.

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin was buried at the Smolensk cemetery in St. Petersburg.

Artist Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin The greatest landscape painter, an amazing master of painting forest landscapes, and to this day he remains the undisputed leader in Russian landscape painting in creating an incredible number of canvases with forest views. A true connoisseur of forest vegetation, colorful shapes of tree trunks, velvety foliage, forest glades with bright grass illuminated by the sun's rays through the trees, picturesque stumps overgrown with moss and surrounded by various mushrooms. The artist Shishkin, like no one else, saw in the nature of the forest all the hidden beauties in wild overgrown places where the human foot has rarely set foot.

For the first time in Russian fine art, the artist was able to masterfully show all this unprecedented beauty in his works.

Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin - biography. The artist Shishkin was born in 1832 in a small town on the banks of the Kama River in Yelabuga, in the Vyatka province, into the family of a poor merchant. At the age of 12, he was accepted to study at the first Kazan gymnasium.

Studying at the gymnasium did not last long, feeling his calling to fine arts Ivan Shishkin, having not completed his studies at the gymnasium to the 5th grade, left it and entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in 1852. having studied there until 1856, young artist accepted into the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg, learning the necessary skills from Professor S. M. Vorobyov.

Of course, they didn’t really like Shishkin at the academy educational topics and a young artist in free time was content with writing life studies in the vicinity of St. Petersburg, sometimes he went to write sketches on the island of Valaam. All this greatly helped Shishkin develop the abilities of the young master, recognizing in pencil drawings the shapes of tree branches, bushes with foliage, which were later reproduced in sketches.

Behind pencil drawings in the vicinity of St. Petersburg he was awarded two small silver medals, and later in 1859 Ivan Shishkin deservedly received a small gold medal for beautiful landscape in the vicinity of St. Petersburg. Inspired by his successes, Shishkin persistently worked a lot, revealing great knowledge in himself, fascinated by the places on Valaam and Kukko, he created works for which in 1860 he was awarded a large gold medal and deserved a retirement trip abroad.

In 1862, Shishkin went abroad for the first time, visiting Munich, Zurich, Geneva and Dusseldorf, where he painted a painting in the Outskirts of Dusseldorf, for which Shishkin was subsequently awarded honorary title academician

Also abroad, he skillfully draws drawings with a pen and deserves great attention from foreigners, who were very surprised and shocked by the hitherto unprecedented talent of the draftsman Shishkin. Some of these drawings were placed in the Düsseldorf Museum on a level with the works of famous European artists. But Shishkin was homesick for his homeland and Russian places, he understood that it was impossible to paint a Russian landscape abroad, and in 1865 he returned to Russia.

In Russia, the artist again joins artistic circles, attends exhibitions and artels of artists. Working closely with drawings and sketches, by 1867 he created a magnificent work, the painting Felling Wood. Shishkin, accurately noticing the features of the Russian landscape, created a number of works in 1869, the painting At Sunset, while living in the Bratsevo estate, he created a beautiful summer landscape Midday. Neighborhoods of Moscow.

1870 Ivan Shishkin joins the artel of Peredvizhniki artists under the leadership of I. Kramskoy. becoming a lifelong member of the founders of traveling exhibitions of artists who did not agree with the academic foundations of that time.

Shishkin, faithful to his work, continues to be creative, creating new canvases and exhibiting new paintings at a traveling exhibition: Evening, Pine Forest, Birch Forest and the painting Wilderness, very well appreciated by his contemporaries, many positive feedback Prakhov A. V. wrote for this painting. For this work, Ivan Shishkin was awarded the honorary title of professor in landscape painting. in 1878, the master again shocked everyone with his new landscape Rye, at the 6th traveling exhibition. The work had a lot of positive reviews.

In 1877, Ivan Shishkin married the artist Olga Antonova Lagoda, their beautiful house We are very visited by his colleagues and friends, where there were feasts and parties.

In 1883, Shishkin painted a painting with a large and luxurious oak tree in a valley, the painting was called Among the Flat Valleys.

In 1884, a very airy landscape with a vast panorama was called by the artist Forest Distances.

1887 painting Oak Grove in which Shishkin masterfully conveys the state of mighty oak trees with thick wriggling branches, dynamic shadows and gentle rays of the sun.

In 1889, Ivan Shishkin creates one of his brightest paintings, this painting

Morning in a pine forest, the picture is saturated with morning forest air, there is a feeling of virgin forest wilderness, the picture is popular to this day and probably this Shishkin masterpiece has no equal.

In the 90s, the artist created a number of paintings, some of them beautifully depicting the wilderness of the forest in the vicinity of Oranienbaum In the forest of Countess Mordvinova. Peterhof.

Shishkin accurately conveyed the state of rainy weather in the painting Rain in an Oak Forest, based on a poem by M. Lermontov unusual picture In the wild north, commissioned by P.P. Konchalovsky, a lonely snow-covered pine tree stands towering against the backdrop of a moonlit night.

In 1898, the artist painted his new work, Ship Grove, one might say this is the final work of the master, which demonstrates all the talent and skill of the great artist accumulated throughout his life. Shishkin, like his colleague Kramskoy, died as an artist, right at the easel while painting his next new painting, this happened in March 1898, he left his descendants his very rich heritage.

Many of his paintings gained enormous popularity not only among his contemporaries, these paintings are still known today big circle admirers of his works.

The works of I. I. Shishkin became classics of national Russian landscape painting and gained enormous popularity. Today, images of his landscapes can be seen in many places on various reproductions, gift wrapping, souvenir boxes and even candies with famous bears, all this speaks of Great love people to his great creativity.

Many landscape artists study from Shishkin’s paintings; many people are always fascinated by his works. Reproductions of it famous landscapes every child knows. Of course, the matter cannot do without critics and some critical contemporary artists clearly opposing the photorealism of the artist, but this is all from the evil one or comes from ignorance of the work of the great master and not the inability to create anything close to that.

Shishkin Ivan Ivanovich (1832-1898) - the most famous Russian painter and graphic artist who depicted nature in all its glory. The variety of the creator’s works is amazing: in his paintings you can find steppe and forest-steppe, coniferous landscapes not only of the expanses of Russia, but also of other countries. It is popular both in our country and throughout the world.

Ivan Shishkin: biography

This outstanding man was born into a merchant family and lived ordinary life before school years. As you know, Shishkin was unable to study at a regular school, so he dropped out and went to art school. From there he entered the university in St. Petersburg, where students were taught not only painting, but also architecture and sculpture. Such a base had a very good influence on the development of young Shishkin’s abilities. However, the study assignments turned out to be not enough for the artist, and he spent his free time from classes in the open air.

Shishkin's independent practice

Plein air is painting on outdoors. Artists created on the street in order to create light, atmospheric paintings, in contrast to the idealized paintings that were created in workshops (with the help of imagination). Ivan Shishkin also took part in plein airs. The biography of this person consists of constant travels to different corners world to learn how to draw different landscapes.

Shishkin went for walks with paints or graphic materials (pencils, charcoal) and wrote about the area of ​​St. Petersburg. Thanks to this habit, the young man quickly improved his skills in depicting shapes and details.

Soon the merits of the young painter were noticed in educational institution, and the artist Shishkin received many medals for these works. The pictures became more realistic and he made fewer mistakes. Soon the young man became one of the most famous artists in Russia.

"Afternoon in the vicinity of Moscow"

This picture is very light and bright. The first thing that catches your eye is the contrast of sky and field, blue and yellow flowers. The artist (Shishkin) allocated more space for the sky, probably because the sheaves are already very bright. Most of the picture is occupied by gray clouds. You can find many shades in them: emerald, blue and yellow. The field is separated from the sky only by a thin strip of bluish horizon. In this distance you can see the hills, and a little closer are the dark blue silhouettes of bushes and trees. Closest to the viewer is a spacious field.

The wheat is already ripe, but wild, unseeded land is visible to the left. The riot of burnt grass stands out against the background of the yellowish mass of ears and creates an extraordinary contrast. In the foreground we see the beginning of a wheat field: the artist arranged reddish, burgundy and dark ocher strokes so that the depth of these sheaves is felt. Along the road that runs between grass and field, the artist Shishkin depicted two figures. You can tell from the clothes of these people that they are peasants. One of the figures definitely belongs to a woman: we see a scarf tied on her head and a dark skirt.

"Pines illuminated by the sun"

Ivan Shishkin wrote many amazing works. He loved to depict the pine forest most of all. However, it is worth paying attention to other paintings: they are not devoid of beauty and sometimes turn out to be much more interesting than more famous paintings.

Pines are one of the eternal themes in the work of such an artist as Shishkin Ivan Ivanovich. The play of light and shadow is especially noteworthy in this landscape. The sun is shining from behind the artist; it is midday or late afternoon. In the foreground are two tall pine trees. Their trunks stretch so strongly towards the sky that they do not fit into the picture. Therefore, the tree crowns begin only in the middle of the picture. Although the trunks are not very old, moss has already grown on their bark. From the sun it appears yellowish and gray in some places.

The shadows from the trees are very long and dark, the artist depicted them almost black. Three more pine trees are visible in the distance: they are arranged compositionally so as not to distract the viewer from the main thing in the picture. The color scheme of this work is warm and consists mainly of light green, brown, ocher and yellowish shades. This palette evokes joy and a feeling of peace in the soul. All this is diluted by several cool shades, which Shishkin skillfully distributed throughout the picture. We see emerald shades on the top of the pine crowns and on the left in the distance. Thanks to this combination of colors, the composition looks very harmonious and at the same time bright.

"Landscape with a Lake" (1886)

This painting is one of the few by Shishkin that depicts water. The artist preferred to paint the thick of the forest, in contrast to the light vegetation in this work.

The first thing that attracts attention in this work is the lake. The surface of the water is painted in great detail, so that you can see light ripples near the shore and precise reflections of trees and bushes.

Thanks to the clear light blue and in some places purple sky, the water in the lake seems very clean. However, ocher and greenish inclusions give the impression that this lake is real.

Foreground of the painting

In the foreground is a green bank. The small grass is so bright that it seems acidic. Near the very edge of the water, she gets lost in the lake, here and there peeking out from its surface. In the contrasting grass, small wildflowers are visible, so white that it seems as if they are glare from the sun on the plants. To the right, behind the lake, a large dark green bush interspersed with bright light green shades sways in the wind.

On the other side of the lake on the left, the viewer can make out the roofs of several houses; there is probably a village next to the lake. Behind the roofs rises an emerald, dark green pine forest.

The artist (Shishkin) chose a very correct combination of light blue, green (warm and cold), ocher and black.

"Dali"

Shishkin’s painting “Dali” exudes something mysterious, the landscape seems to be lost in the sunset. The sun has already set, and we see only a light streak of light on the horizon. Lonely trees rise in the right foreground. There are many plants around them. The greenery is very dense, so almost no light breaks through the bushes. Closer to the center of the canvas there is a tall linden tree, which bent over from the weight of its branches.

The sky, as in other paintings, occupies most compositions. The sky is the brightest on the canvas. The gray-blue color of the sky turns into light yellow. Scattered light clouds look very light and dynamic. In this work, Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin appears before us as a romantic and a dreamer.

In the foreground we see a small lake that goes into the distance. It reflects dark stone and faded ocher and yellow-green grass. In the distance there are purple, gray hills, not very high, but noticeable.

Looking at the picture, you are filled with a feeling of sadness and comfort. This effect is created thanks to the warm shades that the artist Shishkin used in his work.

Ivan Shishkin is one of famous painters and graphs that depicted nature. This man was truly in love with the forests, groves, rivers and lakes of Russia, so he worked on them until the smallest details in his works. Using Shishkin’s paintings you can not only describe the climate of Russia, but also study the basics of plein air painting. The artist mastered both oil paints and graphic materials perfectly, which is quite rare among creative people. It is difficult to name people who painted nature as well as the artist Shishkin. This man's paintings are very naturalistic, contrasting and bright.