Arts of Russia Tretyakov Gallery
Among the art museums of the national art of Russia, the Tretyakov Gallery occupies
special place. It can rightly be considered the first and in time of creation, and by role in the history of the national
self-awareness, if you trace this story to the brightest and at the same time typically
Russian phenomena of national culture, have earned worldwide recognition. For Russians
and foreigners familiarity with the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery – inexhaustible wealth
impressions and acquired knowledge travel to Russia. Russian art collected
in the Gallery, provides an opportunity to see the features of the worldview and spiritual warehouse of the Russian people.
Being in the halls of the Gallery, you comprehend not only the originality and originality of the Russian school, but also its
inextricable link with the pan-European artistic process.
The emergence of major art museums, representing primarily national art,
falls in our country to the last third of the XIX century. It is then that society is widely manifested.
conscious, deep interest in national culture and art. Meaningful driving force
in this process were enlightened layers of Moscow merchants. Unlike Petersburg, where
industrial circles sought to join the high society, in Moscow they came closer to a scientist and
art world. The generation of Moscow merchants of the 1850–1860s put forward remarkable
connoisseurs collectors. The largest figure in this environment was Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov. He is the most
fully collected in his gallery the works of members of the Association of Traveling Art
exhibitions. Adherents of this trend advocated realistic art, national in spirit
and content. Arranging in the cities of the Russian empire traveling exhibitions (1871–1923), itinerants,
as their contemporaries called them, they enlightened the Russian provincial society, introducing
him to the achievements of domestic art. The activities of the Partnership contributed to
in a number of cities in Russia, societies and circles of amateurs of fine arts, art schools, prepared
ground for creating local art museums.
The profoundly patriotic activity of P. M. Tretyakov in creating publicly accessible
galleries of Russian art received a huge response and was a noble example
to follow. “Museum fad” followed Moscow to the province. In 1881, the grandson of the writer
A.N. Radishcheva famous landscape painter A.P. Bogolyubov addressed the minister of the imperial court
I.Vorontsov-Dashkov with the project of the device of art museums “in all provincial, university
and some provincial cities of Russia. ” An authoritative artist called the implementation of the project
important public affairs, citing the experience of Western Europe, where “every little-known
the town has a museum at the town hall, eagerly visited and enriched by the inhabitants. ” Through the efforts of Bogolyubov
and his associates one of the first art museums in the province opened in 1885
in Saratov. Art museums and art departments attached to museums in other
cities – in Kazan (1895), Nizhny Novgorod (1896), Penza (1897), Irkutsk, Taganrog (both – 1898)
etc. In most cases, art collections included mainly Russian art.
Their organizers and inspirers were recognized masters of painting (IK Aivazovsky,
A.P. Bogolyubov, N.A.Koshelev, A.O.Karelin, V.P.Vereshchagin, K.A.Savitsky) and local enthusiasts: artists, art lovers (K.P.Golovkin, I.P.Plagostin , V.P.Sukachev),
intellectuals, including Chekhov, organs
city government. The basis of the provincial assembly
made gifts of individuals; paintings sent
from the Academy of Arts; works from authors
as well as from collectors of Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The turn of the XIX – XX centuries in the literature on the history of domestic
museum affairs are called “museum renaissance”. In it
time, the Museum of Fine Arts is being created in Moscow,
complex and specialized museums in Stavropol,
Ekaterinodar (now Krasnodar), Rostov-on-Don, Simbirsk,
Smolensk, Vologda, Tula and many other Russian cities.
The cataclysms that hit the country with the onset of the First
world war and reached its climax due to political
events of 1917, exposed the problem of preserving
cultural heritage. In 1918-1920, the decrees on nationalization were issued
most valuable art collections,
on the protection of monuments of art and antiquities, on the prohibition of export
and sales abroad of special artistic items
and historical significance. In the extreme conditions of a revolutionary
time and civil war intellectuals
museum specialists were driven by a sense of immense
responsibility, showed civil courage and the highest
professionalism. Unfortunately, not to mention
and the sad fact of the sale abroad of cultural property,
including from museum collections authorized by the state in
late 1920s – the first half of the 1930s.
