Peredvizhniki artists brief biography. Vasily Perov short biography. The great legacy of a brilliant artist

Soon after Vasily was born, his father was fired from service, so the boy had to move a lot from city to city. In 1842, he suffered from smallpox, as a result of which he was left with poor eyesight.

From 1843 to 1846 he studied at the district school in the city of Arzamas. In 1846 he began attending the Arzamas art school, but was unable to graduate. In 1852 he entered the Moscow School of Painting.

In 1862, Vasily married Elena Shanes. Immediately after the wedding, they left for Europe and settled for several years in Paris.

In 1869 he founded the Moscow group of Peredvizhniki, and was a member of the board for a long time. In 1872, Perov married a second time - to Elizaveta Druganova.

The most important paintings: “Hunters at a halt”, “Seeing off the dead man”, “The last tavern at the outpost”, “Troika”, “Birdcatcher”, “Rural religious procession at Easter”, “The arrival of the chief”, “Tea drinking in Mytishchi”, “ Dirty", "Fisherman", "Drowned Woman", "Sleeping Children".

He died on May 29, 1882 from consumption. The artist was buried in the Danilov Monastery, but later the remains were transferred to the Donskoy Monastery in Moscow.

The greatest artist, known since childhood, is Vasily Grigorievich Perov (originally Baron Kridener) - one of the founders of genre painting.
As a teacher, V.G. Perov left the best memories of himself in all his students. His views, which he pursued in his teaching activities, are clearly expressed in one place in his story “Our Teachers,” where he, among other things, says: “To be a complete artist, you need to be a creator; and to be a creator, you need to study life, you need to educate the mind and heart, educate not by studying official models, but by vigilant observation and exercise in reproducing types and their inherent inclinations... With this study, you need to adjust your sensitivity to perceive impressions in such a way that not a single object rushes past you without being reflected in you, as in a clean, correct mirror... An artist must be a poet, a dreamer, and most importantly, a tireless worker... Anyone who wants to be an artist must become a complete fanatic, living and feeding on art and art alone.”

Self-portrait, 1851

Vasily Grigoryevich Perov (surname given at birth - Vasiliev; December 21, 1833, Tobolsk - May 29, 1882, Kuzminki village, now within the city of Moscow) - Russian painter, one of the founding members of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions.

V.G. Perov was the recognized leader of the Moscow painting school, which was the avant-garde of Russian realistic art in the 60s of the 19th century. In the circles of the intelligentsia he was even called the “Pope of Moscow,” thereby emphasizing that just as the Pope dictates laws from the Vatican to the entire Catholic world, Perov from Moscow dictated laws to the entire Russian artistic world.

Vasily Grigorievich Perov was the illegitimate son of Baron Georgy Karlovich Kridener. Despite the fact that soon after the boy’s birth his parents got married, Vasily had no rights to his father’s surname and title. For a long time, official documents indicated the surname “Vasiliev”, given by the name of the godfather. The surname “Perov” arose as a nickname given to the boy by his literacy teacher, an ordinary sexton, who recognized his student with this nickname for his diligence and skillful use of a pen for writing.

Yaroslavna's cry

V. G. Perov completed a course at the Arzamas district school and was sent to the art school of A. V. Stupin (also in Arzamas). In 1853 he entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where he studied with M. I. Scotti, A. N. Mokritsky and S. K. Zaryanko. In 1856 he received a small silver medal for a sketch of a boy’s head submitted to the Imperial Academy of Arts.
Subsequently, the Academy awarded him other awards:

a large silver medal for the painting “The Arrival of the Stanovoy for Investigation” (1858),

small gold medal for the painting “Scene at the Grave”

and “Son of a sexton, promoted to the first rank” (1860),

a large gold medal for the painting “Sermon in a Village” (1861).

Having received, along with a large gold medal, the right to travel abroad at public expense, Perov went to Europe in 1862, visiting a number of cities in Germany, as well as Paris. This period includes paintings depicting European scenes of street life (“Seller of Figurines”, “Savoyard”, “Organ Grinder”, “Beggars on the Boulevard”, “Musicians and Onlookers”, “Rag Pickers”).

Holiday in the vicinity of Paris (Montmartre), 1863-1864

Orphans in a cemetery, 1864

An organ grinder in Paris 1864

Parisian rag pickers

Songbook seller

Having returned to Moscow ahead of schedule, from 1865 to 1871 Perov created the paintings “The Next Ones by the Pool”, “Monastery Meal”, “Seeing Off the Dead Man”, “Troika”, “Clean Monday”, “The Arrival of the Governess at the Merchant’s House”, “The Art Teacher” ", "Scene by the Railway", "The Last Tavern at the Outpost", "Birder", "Fisherman", "Hunters at a Rest".

One Incorrigible, 1873

To the pawnshop, 1867

In 1878 he painted the painting “Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane”, in 1880 “The First Christians in Kyiv”. In 1866 he received an academician's degree, and in 1871 he received a professorship at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Around the same time, he joined the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions.

Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, 1878

The first Christians in Kyiv, 1880

V. G. Perov is also known as an outstanding master of portraiture.

Self-portrait 1870

Portrait of A.I. Kridener, artist's mother 1876

Portrait of Elizaveta Egorovna Perova, the artist’s wife, 1868

Portrait of Elena Perova, ne Scheins, the artist's first wife

Portrait of N.G. Kridener, the artist’s brother

The artist died of consumption in a small hospital near Moscow on the territory of the Kuzminki estate (now this is the territory of Moscow). He was buried in the monastery cemetery in the Danilov Monastery. His ashes were reburied in the monastery cemetery in the Donskoy Monastery. The exact date of reburial has not been established. A tombstone by sculptor Alexei Evgenievich Yeletsky was installed at the artist’s new grave.

"The Path of Glory and Sorrow of Vasily Perov" (VIDEO)

Portrait of the composer Anton Rubinstein, 1870

Vasily Grigorievich Perov - Portrait of F.M. Dostoevsky

Portrait of Vladimir Ivanovich Dahl 1872

Portrait of I.S. Turgeneva 1872

Portrait of the playwright A.N. Ostrovsky

Portrait of Avdotya Kuznetsov, 1870

Portrait of the poet Apollo Maykov, 1872

"Nikita Pustosvyat" Dispute about faith 1881

Procession in the village, 1861

Wanderer 1870

Janitor giving the apartment to his lady, 1878

Pugachev's court 1875

Tea drinking in Mytishchi, near Moscow, 1862

Wanderer in the field 1879

Amateur 1862

Botanist, 1874

A college girl's visit to her blind father. 1870

Dovecote

A stranger's welcome

Postage stamps of the USSR, 1956

Postage stamps of Russia, 2009

175th anniversary of the birth of the Russian artist Vasily Perov (1834-1882)

Vasily Grigorievich Perov’s brief biography and interesting facts from the artist’s life are presented in this article.
Brief biography of Vasily Perov
Artist Vasily Perov was born on December 21, 1833 (January 2, 1834) in Tobolsk, in the family of Baron Georgy Kridener.
He received his first skills in painting and drawing at a district school in the town of Arzamas, where he entered. In 1853, Vasily came to Moscow and began studying at the school of sculpture, architecture and painting.
For his sketch of a boy's head, Perov received a small silver medal in 1856. And 2 years later he received a large silver medal for the painting “The Arrival of the Police Officer for Investigation.”
Over the years of studying at the school, he works a lot. And his work was rewarded with a small gold medal in 1860 for the following works - “Scene at the Grave”, “First Rank - Son of a Clerk”. A year later, Vasily received the institution’s highest award - a gold medal for his work “Sermon in the Village.”
Since 1862, he travels to France and Germany, fascinated by local street life, paints the following paintings - “Savoyard”, “Seller of Figurines”, “Organ Grinder”. Returning to his homeland in 1864, he joined the rhythm of Moscow and created new masterpieces. The paintings of Vasily Grigorievich Perov from this period are especially interesting and critical. Among them are “The Monastic Meal”, “Seeing Off the Dead Man”, “The Arrival of the Governess at the Merchant’s House”, “The Bird Catcher” (for this picture he received the title of professor), “The Fisherman”, “Hunters at a Rest”.
Vasily Grigorievich Perov, holding the rank of professor, has been teaching since 1871 at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where he once studied. Being critical of the rules of the academy, he joins the ranks of the Itinerants. Exhibiting with his paintings, the professor receives many praises from writers and colleagues.
The artist sometimes paints portraits. He painted portraits of Bessonov, Borisovsky, Pisemsky, Rubinshteinov, Pogodin, Kamynin and Dostoevsky. Vasily Grigorievich tried himself as a writer. He was published in the magazine “Bee”, describing some situations from life and memories.
Works of a later period are significantly inferior to previous works. And life presented the artist with many “surprises”. First his beloved wife died, then he buried his two eldest children. In 1874, Perov fell ill with consumption. At that time, she was not treated with known medications. The disease progressed all the time. And on June 10, 1882, Vasily Grigorievich died, unable to withstand the torment of the disease.
Vasily Grigorievich Perov interesting facts
He was an illegitimate son, therefore he bore the surname Vasiliev, the surname of his godfather. One day, a grammar teacher gave him the nickname Perov, since his student had excellent command of the pen. But the nickname grew on him so strongly that it became his surname.
In 1862, Perov married Professor Ryazanov’s niece, Elena Sheinitz. Unfortunately, the artist’s family life was very tragic: his wife died in 1867, followed by the death of their two eldest children. Only son Vladimir survived. Only 5 years later, Vladimir Grigorievich the artist married a certain Elizabeth for the second time.
In his youth Perov was a cheerful and cheerful person. But in the last years of his life, the artist became an irritable and suspicious person.
He was one of the founders and members of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions.
Vasily Perov was called “a true singer of sorrow.” This nickname stuck to him due to the fact that the constant characters in the artist’s paintings were tired peasants, cold, hungry, or mourning their deceased relatives.

Vasily Grigorievich Perov (1833-1882) – artist, one of the founding members of the Association of Traveling Exhibitions.

The artist's surname "Perov" comes from the nickname given to him by his grammar teacher for his use of a pen for writing letters. Vasily Perov was the illegitimate son of Baron Georgy Karlovich Kridener. After his birth, his parents got married, but he was denied the rights to his father’s surname and title.

The Golden Age of Vasily Perov
Perov's "Golden Age" began in 1860. At the end of the 1850s, the public was tired of mythological and "biblical" painting, and the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts was forced to start awarding medals for "bast shoes and homespuns." In 1860, Vasily Perov received a small gold medal for “First Rank”. Pavel Tretyakov wrote to him: “Take care of yourself for the service of art and for your friends.” He later received a large gold medal for "Preaching in a Country Church." Tretyakov bought many paintings by Perov from this period.

In the early 1870s, the artist was experiencing a creative crisis. Perov's paintings no longer attracted everyone's attention. Delight from the artist’s first works gave way to bewilderment. Pavel Tretyakov wrote about Perov after viewing the exhibition in 1875: “What pathetic things Perov has, what a wonderful transformation of talent into positive mediocrity.” Kramskoy echoed him: “Four years ago Perov was ahead of everyone... and after Repin’s Burlakov he is impossible.”

The crisis was partly explained by the death of his wife in 1869, and partly by fellow Wanderers.

Biography of Perov

Vasily Perov.
Self-portrait 1851

V.G. Perov.
Self-portrait 1870

1833. December 21 - from the provincial prosecutor Baron Georgy Karlovich Kridener and a native of Tobolsk A.I. Ivanova had an illegitimate son, Vasily. Soon the parents got married, but Vasily did not receive the rights to his father’s surname and title.

1842. Perov’s father received the position of manager of Yazykov’s estate in Sablukovo, Nizhny Novgorod province. Here Vasily suffered from smallpox, which left him with poor eyesight for the rest of his life.

1843. Perov studied at the Arzamas district school.

1846. Study at the Arzamas art school A.V. Stupina. Perov did not finish school due to a conflict with one of his students.

1852. Arrival of Vasily Perov in Moscow.

1853. Admission of the Moscow School of Painting and Construction. School teacher E.Ya helped him survive in Moscow. Vasiliev, who settled Perov with him and took fatherly care of him. Vasily Perov graduated from college under the guidance of S.K. Zaryanko.

1856. Small silver medal of the Academy of Arts for “Portrait of Nikolai Grigorievich Kridener,” brother of Perov.

1857. Large silver medal for the painting “The Arrival of the Police Officer for Investigation.”

1860. Small gold medal for the painting “First Rank”.

1861. Move to St. Petersburg. A large gold medal and the right to travel abroad as a boarder for the painting “Sermon in a Village.” Scandal over the painting "Rural Procession at Easter". The artist Khudyakov wrote to Tretyakov: “And other rumors are circulating that they will soon make a request to you from the Synod: on what basis are you buying such immoral paintings and exhibiting them publicly? The painting (“Priests”) was exhibited on Nevsky at a permanent exhibition, where is it from? and was soon removed, but still she raised a big protest! And Perov, instead of Italy, would not end up in Solovki.”

1862. Painting by Perov "Tea Party in Mytishchi". Autumn - marriage to Elena Edmondovna Shanes. December - Perov and his wife went abroad as a boarder at the Academy of Arts. After visiting Berlin, Dresden and Dusseldorf, he arrived in Paris.

1863-1864. For two years Perov lived and worked in Paris. Having received permission from the Academy for an early return to continue boarding in Russia, he returned to Moscow and settled in the house of his wife’s uncle, F.F. Rezanova.

1865. V.V. Stasov: “Perov created one of his best paintings: “The Funeral of a Peasant.” The painting was small in size, but great in content... Perov gave the complete abandonment and loneliness of the peasant family in its grief.”

1867. For the paintings "Troika" and "The Arrival of a Governess at a Merchant's House" written a year earlier by V.G. Perov was awarded the title of academician. The painting "Troika" was purchased by P.M. Tretyakov.

1868. The Academy of Arts extended Perov's boarding allowance for two years. Birth of son Vladimir.

1869. Together with Myasoedov, who came up with the idea of creating the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions (TPHV), Perov organized the Moscow group of Itinerants and was a member of the board for seven years. Death of his wife.

1870. For the paintings “The Wanderer” and “Birdcatcher” Perov was awarded the title of professor by the Academy of Arts.

1871. At the 1st exhibition of the TPHV, Perov showed the painting “Hunters at a Rest”. Appointment of V.G. Perov as a teacher at the Moscow School of Higher Painting in the place of the deceased S.K. Zaryanko. Painting portraits commissioned by Tretyakov.

1872. Marriage to Elizaveta Egorovna Druganova.

1873. Trip to Nizhny Novgorod, to the Volga, to the Orenburg province. A severe cold while hunting, the process begins in the lungs.

1874. Perov based on the plot of the novel by I.S. Turgenev "Fathers and Sons" painted the painting "Old Parents at the Grave of their Son". Creative crisis.

1877. Leaving the members of the TPHV. Collaboration in the magazine "Nature and Hunting". Publication of stories in the Art Magazine.

1881. End of the year - deterioration of health due to typhus and pneumonia.

1882. Vasily Perov died.

Failed Partnership
In 1871, the first exhibition of Peredvizhniki artists took place. For almost a year, Vasily Perov and Grigory Myasoedov selflessly accompanied her. They did not even demand reimbursement of the cost of the train tickets. It was assumed that the accompanying persons would be alternate members of the Partnership. However, not everyone could afford it, and those who could, preferred to paint. The St. Petersburg branch, bypassing the Moscow one, hired an escort. There were other grievances and disagreements. V.G. Perov, being the treasurer of the Moscow branch, made a slight inaccuracy in the report. A scandal broke out. Perov performed the duties of treasurer, again selflessly. To justify himself, he hired an accountant at his own expense.

In 1877, Vasily Grigorievich Perov left the Partnership. In a statement, objecting to the expansion of the Partnership, he wrote: “... I am completely convinced and think: where there are many gathered, there, of course, you can expect a lot of good, and even worse, which is what happened, as I heard, with the artel artists that once existed in St. Petersburg." Kramskoy’s reaction was harsh: “God is the judge of Perov - we can do without him.”

In 1871-1882 V.G. Perov taught at the School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. According to the memoirs of his student M.V. Nesterov "in the Moscow school of painting... everything lived by Perov, breathed him, bore the imprint of his thoughts, words, deeds."

Vasily Perov was especially friendly with Alexei Savrasov. Together they created the Association of Itinerants and worked at the School of Painting. Both left the school in 1882.

Paintings and portraits of Perov
Perov's paintings, written in the genre of everyday painting, are a story about the daily life of the people around the artist. Sometimes this is an illustration of a holiday, sometimes of a holiday, but more often of everyday difficulties and ordeals. Over the years, Perov's irony and humor gave way to satire directed against the clergy and merchants. About the subjects of Perov’s paintings, critic V.V. Stasov wrote: “A whole gallery of Russian people living peacefully in different corners of Russia.”

Many paintings by Perov P.M. Tretyakov bought them immediately after their creation. Others ended up in the Tretyakov Gallery after 1925 during the nationalization of private collections.

Painting "Rural religious procession" painted by Perov in 1861. At the same time it was exhibited at the Academy of Arts, but the very next day it was removed from the exhibition at the request of the authorities. The press reported that the painting “disappeared from the exhibition for reasons beyond the artist’s control.” The work was transported to the exhibition of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts in St. Petersburg. A scandal broke out here too. Critic V.V. Stasov remarked: “Such satire bites painfully.” The painting was removed, and at the exhibition in its place a card appeared with the inscription “Acquired by P. M. Tretyakov.” The patron bought the painting, despite the warning that the author, instead of traveling abroad, could end up in the Solovetsky prison for blasphemy.

Painting "Tea drinking in Mytishchi, near Moscow" written by V.G. Perov in 1862 by order of the city administration. And although the painting was commissioned, it was painted as accusatory and acutely social and made a huge impression on the Moscow public. The painting “Tea Party in Mytishchi” was purchased for the private collection of K.T. Soldatenkov. Later, after 1925, during nationalization it ended up in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Painting "Monastery Meal" , written by Perov in 1865, was finalized over eleven years. It remained a satire on the clergy. Although this is grotesque, according to the author, the typical characters and precisely depicted details of the picture should have convinced the viewer of the authenticity of what was depicted.

Painting "Troika" ("Workshop apprentices carrying water") written by Perov in 1866. This is one of the most piercing works in terms of emotional impact about the terrible existence of the poor in Russia at the end of the 19th century. “The whole life is told in their rags, poses, exhausted eyes,” wrote critic Stasov about Perov’s painting “Troika.” She immediately received universal recognition among her contemporaries. The painting was one of two works for which Perov was awarded the title of academician. But the highest praise for the artist was the purchase of a painting by P.M. Tretyakov immediately after the exhibition.

Painting "Hunters at rest" written by Perov in 1871 for an exhibition in Europe. P.M. immediately bought it from the exhibition. Tretyakov. In 1877, the author's second version was written for Alexander II. Now this painting is in the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. They say that there is a third author’s version, which was kept for a long time in the Nikolaev Regional Museum as a copy. Perov was a passionate hunter, so the topic of hunting was familiar to him. The three men in the picture were doctors in Moscow life. The artist based the narrator in “Hunters at a Rest” on the Myasnitskaya police station doctor D.P. Kuvshinnikova. Later, in 1892, he and his wife, the owner of a popular in Moscow in the 1880-1890s. literary salon, became the prototypes of Chekhov's story "The Jumper".

Painting "Birdcatcher" Perov wrote it in 1870 and received the title of professor for it. From a scene that the artist accidentally saw in the forest, a very poetic work turned out. The landscape for the painting “Birdcatcher” was painted by friend and colleague Alexey Savrasov
Myasnitskaya, 21. In 1853-1861. Vasily Perov studied, and from 1871 he taught and lived at the MUZHVZ.

Tverskaya, 30. Since 1864 V.G. Perov lived in an apartment that occupied a corner attic. Here he wrote "Funeral of a Peasant".

A great Russian artist, no less a great teacher, who raised more than a dozen truly great painters.

Art acted in all the grandeur of its true role: it painted life, it “explained” it, it “pronounced its verdict” on its phenomena.

Vladimir Stasov

Biography of the artist Vasily Grigorievich Perov

Self-portrait

Artist Vasily Grigorievich Perov was born in December 1833. His father, the artist Baron Georgy (Grigory) Karlovich Kridener, at that time served as a prosecutor in the godforsaken Siberian province, and his mother, Akulina Ivanova, was a Tobolsk bourgeois. At the time of Vasily’s birth, his parents were not married and the shameful “illegitimate” label stuck to the little man for many years.

Literally a few months after the birth of the child, the parents got married, but the baron could not transfer either the surname or the title to his son. So Vasya became Perov - the boy received this nickname from his first teacher, a sexton, who admired the student’s elegant handwriting. And the nickname subsequently became the surname of the illegitimate child.

It is reliably known that Vasily Perov was assigned to the burghers of the city of Arzamas. Why Arzamas?

Baron Kridener was a man with a very unrestrained tongue - he loved caustic and caustic jokes, and he did not mince his words. He joked about the governor and lost his job as a prosecutor - the family moved to Arkhangelsk. In Arkhangelsk, daddy wrote satirical poems about the Arkhangelsk provincial administration - he had to go to St. Petersburg, then to the Livonian provinces, Samara and Arzamas. In Arzamas, the family settled with relatives.

During the period of Arzam's life and existence, Baron Kridener received the position of manager of Yazykov's large estate, which implied the acquisition of permanent residence on the estate. Vasily was sent to a private school in Stupin (in Arzamas) and the boy attended painting classes twice a week. Three months later, the training ended - the older comrades invited 13-year-old Vasenka to a name day with a certain local beauty, and after the party the cab driver brought home a completely drunk “painter”. This was the end of Perov's training - mother was categorically against such studies.

And a few months later, the baron once again lost his position - he could not restrain himself and made a caustic joke. The family moved to relatives in Arzamas and this sad event allowed Vasily Perov to continue his studies in painting - his mother agreed to let the “child” go to school, since he was now under constant supervision.

In 1852, Vasily Perov arrived in Moscow, and in 1853 he entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in the class of the famous artist and teacher Vasiliev, who immediately noted the great talent of the new student. This teacher settled with him a student who had nowhere and nothing to live on, surrounded him with truly fatherly care and gave his favorite additional painting lessons.

Already during his studies, in 1856, Vasily received his first silver medal for the “Portrait of Nikolai Grigorievich Kridener, the artist’s brother” submitted to the Academy of Arts. There would be many more medals, but the artist remembered that first medal with special warmth until the end of his life. Although this work was also closely connected with the painting traditions of the outgoing 19th century, it was precisely this work that became the first significant milestone in Perov’s work.

In 1857, the painting “The Arrival of the Stanovoi for the Investigation” was painted.

Arrival of the police officer for investigation

For this work, the artist was awarded the Big Silver Medal, and critics delivered a unanimous verdict - a “direct heir and successor of Fedotov” appeared in Russia:

The young artist picked up the brush that had fallen from Fedotov’s hands... and continued the work he had begun, as if all the false Turkish women, false knights, false Romans, false Italians and false Italians, false Russians, false gods and false people had never existed in the world.

The artist’s next notable work was the painting “Scene at the Grave,” which Perov painted under the direct supervision of E. Ya Vasiliev.

Scene at the grave

The public and critics liked the picture, but Perov himself was dissatisfied with this work and called it too artificial and rather far-fetched in composition.

The first paintings of the artist Vasily Grigorievich Perov

In 1860, for the painting “First Rank. The son of a sexton, promoted to collegiate registrar,” the artist Perov was awarded a small gold medal by the Academy of Painting.

First rank. The son of a sexton promoted to collegiate registrar

The artist received the right to participate in the competition for the Big Gold Medal and moved to St. Petersburg. In the capital, in 1861, the paintings “Sermon in the Village” and “Rural Procession at Easter” were painted.

Rural religious procession at Easter

Sermon in the village

For his sermon, Perov received a Big Gold Medal with the right to travel abroad as a pensioner, and the second work was rejected by the Academy and... acquired for his gallery by P.M. Tretyakov. Regarding this acquisition, V. Khudyakov wrote to the patron:

And other rumors are circulating that they will soon make a request to you from the Holy Synod; On what basis do you buy such immoral paintings and display them publicly? The painting (“Priests”) was exhibited on Nevsky at a permanent exhibition, from where, although it was soon removed, it still raised a big protest! And Perov, instead of Italy, would like to avoid ending up in Solovki.

The debate flared up heated and not at all funny: the famous critic V. Stasov praised the artist for his sincerity and everyday truth, as if he noticed the types, and another critic, M. Mikeshin, said that such paintings kill high true art, humiliate real painting, since it shows unsightly sides of life.

In 1862, Perov wrote “Tea Party in Mytishchi.”

Tea drinking in Mytishchi, near Moscow

This is a picture of contrast, a picture of opposition: an obese, idle, gluttonous monk on the one hand, and a disabled soldier, a true servant of the fatherland, who begs for alms. And also a guide boy, whom it is impossible to look at without tears.

A scandal broke out again, which could have ended very badly for Vasily Perov... The artist quickly got married to Elena Sheins and almost immediately, being a pensioner of the academy, left for Europe.

Perov lives in Germany for some time and then moves to Paris. And he desperately misses being abroad - he misses Russia for inspiration.

I dare to ask the Council to allow me to return to Russia. I will try to present the reasons that prompt me to ask for this: living abroad for almost two years and despite all my desires, I could not complete a single picture that would be satisfactory - ignorance of the character and moral life of the people makes it impossible to achieve the end of none of my work.

Nevertheless, Vasily Grigorievich works a lot, paints several very interesting paintings, and regularly writes petitions asking for permission to return to his homeland.

In Europe, the paintings “Seller of Figurines”, “Organ Grinder”, “Savoyard”, “Rag Pickers”, “Musicians and Onlookers”, “Beggars on the Boulevard” were painted.

Holiday in the vicinity of Paris

Songbook seller

Parisian rag pickers

Organ Grinder

Parisian organ grinder

In the end, the artist’s requests to return to Russia were satisfied - permission for an early return was received. The Perov family returns to Moscow and the young settle in the house of the uncle of the artist’s wife F.F. Rezanova.

For competitions held by the Moscow Society of Art Lovers and the Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, Perov painted the paintings “Seeing the Dead Man” and “Another by the Pool.” Both films were awarded first prizes. And with these paintings a new stage in the artist’s work began, which was later defined by art critics as painting “about the humiliated and insulted.

Seeing off the deceased

Another one by the pool

Clean Monday

Famous critic V.V. Stasov, having seen these works of the artist, wrote:

Perov created one of his best paintings in 1865: “Village Funeral”. The painting was small in size, but great in content... Art appeared here in all the grandeur of its true role: it painted life, it “explained” it, it “pronounced its verdict” on its phenomena. ...This funeral is even bleaker and sadder than Nekrasov’s in the poem “Frost the Red Nose.” There, the coffin was accompanied by his father, mother, neighbors and neighbors - no one at Perov’s. Perov gave complete abandonment and loneliness to the peasant family in its grief.

After “Village Funeral”, the artist painted pictures about the hard life of ordinary people in Russia: “Troika”, “Arrival of a Governess at a Merchant’s House” and “Scene at the Postal Station”. Vasily Grigorievich organized the image in such a way that the characters in his paintings seemed to look at the viewer. They look with silent reproach, without condemnation, doomed and bitter. Art critics note that this appeal to the viewer will be characteristic of a number of Perov’s works of that period.

Arrival of the governess to the merchant's house

For the paintings “A Governess’s Arrival at a Merchant’s House” and “Troika,” Vasily Grigorievich was awarded the title of academician, and the painting “Troika” was purchased by P.M. Tretyakov for his gallery.

At the World Exhibition of 1867, the artist’s paintings “Seeing the Dead Man,” “Amateur,” “Troika,” “First Rank” and “Guitar Player” were presented, which were very highly appreciated by foreign art lovers.

Amateur

Guitar player

T. Tore-Burger wrote:

He is Russian both in his choice of subjects and in the manner in which he understands and interprets them.” In the same year, Perov sent four paintings to the academic exhibition: “Clean Monday”, “The Drawing Teacher”, “The Drowned Woman”, “The Mother of God and Christ by the Sea of Life” and received the title of academician.

Drowned woman

Drawing teacher

Christ and the Mother of God at the Sea of Life

The Academy of Arts, in 1868, decided to extend Vasily Perov’s pension for two years “for outstanding services.” In the same year, the artist received first prize at the competition of the Moscow Society of Art Lovers for the painting “Scene by the Railway”

Scene by the railway

Art critics noted the incredible accuracy of the artist in conveying the expressions on the faces of the men who saw the locomotive for the first time.

The last tavern at the outpost

Self-taught janitor

The artist continues to paint genre paintings, but devotes more and more time to painting portraits, in which he tries to identify new perspectives for the portrait art of that time; to show on an artistic canvas not only the material concreteness of a person, but also his inner world, his spirit. Perov stated:

Whatever the type, whatever the face, whatever the character, it is the peculiarity of the expression of every feeling. A deep artist is recognized by studying and noticing all these features, and therefore his work is immortal, truthful and vital.

By order of P.M. Tretyakov, “Portrait of the Writer A.F.” was painted. Pisemsky". And for “Portrait of V.V. Bezsonova" the artist was awarded the first prize of the MOLCH.

V.V. Bezsonov

F.F. Rezanov

In 1869, Perov actively participated in the creation of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions and became a member of the board of this creative organization.

In 1870, for the paintings “The Birdcatcher” and “The Wanderer,” Vasily Grigorievich was awarded the title of professor at the Academy of Arts.

Bird catcher

Wanderer

In the seventies of the nineteenth century, in Perov’s work, along with painting portraits, simple everyday subjects occupied a special place. The artist presented the paintings “Hunters at a Rest” and “Fisherman” for the first exhibition of the TPHV.

Hunters at rest

In 1871, the artist received a teaching position at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture instead of the deceased S.K. Zaryanko.

In 1871–1872, Perov, commissioned by Tretyakov, painted a number of portraits of Russian writers, scientists, statesmen and merchants.

Portrait of the writer V.I. Dahl

Portrait of F.M. Dostoevsky

Portrait of A.N. Ostrovsky

A.N. Maikov

I.S. Kamynin

M. Nesterov wrote:

What about his portraits? This “merchant Kamynin”, which contains almost the entire circle of Ostrovsky’s heroes, and Ostrovsky himself, Dostoevsky, Pogodin - isn’t this a whole era? Expressed in such old-fashioned colors and simple designs, Perov’s portraits will live for a long time and will not go out of fashion just like the portraits of Luke Cranach and ancient sculptural portraits.

After a trip to the Volga and Orenburg province, the artist conceived the painting “Pugachev’s Court”. That same year, Perov caught a bad cold while hunting and “developed consumption.”

Pugachev's court

At the third exhibition of the TPHV, Perov’s works “Plastuns near Sevastopol”, “Kyrgyz convict” and “Old parents” at the grave of their son were presented.”

Plastun Cossacks near Sevastopol

Old parents at their son's grave

Kirghiz convict

Art critics note that this period in the artist’s life can be called contradictory: in Perov’s works one can note both subjects and images that had already appeared in the artist’s work, as well as new religious, historical and everyday subjects.

On the eve of the bachelorette party

Sleeping children

A college girl's visit to her blind father

To Trinity-Sergius

In 1877 V.G. Perov leaves the membership of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions, participates in the Paris World Exhibition, continues to work on the image of Pugachev - writes several canvases on the theme of the Pugachev rebellion, which do not satisfy the artist himself.

During this period, the painting “Nikita Pustosvyat. Dispute about faith."

Nikita Pustosvyat. Dispute about faith

Monastic meal

Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane

In the last years of his life, Vasily Grigorievich wrote stories for the magazines “Nature and Hunting” and “Art Magazine”, created several canvases on religious and everyday themes.

Fishermen. (Priest, deacon and seminarian)

Wanderer in the field

Yaroslavna's cry

At the end of 1881, the artist fell ill with typhus, then pneumonia. These illnesses completely undermined Perov’s health, and at the 49th year of his life, the great Russian painter died in a hospital on the territory of the Kuzminki estate in the near Moscow region, and was buried in the cemetery of the Danilov Monastery (later the ashes were reburied in the cemetery of the Donskoy Monastery).