Art & Architecture - Moscow - page 411

figures more realistic and Russian-looking. In 17th-century Moscow, Simon Ushakov
(1626-86) moved towards Western religious painting with the use of perspective and archi-
tectural backgrounds.
Besides the outstanding collection at the Tretyakov Gallery and the Rublyov Museum of
Early Russian Culture & Art, there is an impressive private collection on display at the Mu-
seum of the Russian Icon, not to mention the many churches around town.
Andrei Tarkovsky's 1966 film Andrei Rublevinterpreted the life of the icon painter amid
the harsh realities of medieval Russia. Addressing themes such as religious faith and
artistic freedom, the film was heavily censored in the Soviet Union, but was awarded a
prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969.
Peredvizhniki & Russian Revival
The major artistic force of the 19th century was the Peredvizhniki (Society of Wanderers)
movement, in which art was seen as a vehicle for promoting national awareness and social
change. The movement gained its name from the touring exhibitions with which it widened
its audience. These artists were patronised by the brothers Pavel and Sergei Tretyakov (after
whom the Tretyakov Gallery is named). Peredvizhniki artists included Vasily Surikov
(1848-1916), who painted vivid Russian historical scenes; Nikolai Ghe (1831-94), who de-
picted Biblical and historical scenes; and Ilya Repin (1884-1930), perhaps the best loved of
all Russian artists, whose works ranged from social criticism (Barge Haulers on the Volga)
to history (Zaporozhie Cossacks Writing a Letter to the Turkish Sultan) to portraits. Many
Peredvizhniki masterpieces are on display at the Tretyakov Gallery.
Later in the century, industrialist Savva Mamontov was a significant patron of the arts,
promoting a Russian revivalist movement. His Abramtsevo estate near Moscow became an
artists' colony. One frequent resident was Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926), a Russian-revival-
ist painter and architect famous for his historical paintings with fairy-tale subjects. In 1894,
Vasnetsov designed his own house in Moscow, which is now a small museum. He also de-
signed the original building for the Tretyakov Gallery, as well as the chapel at Abramtsevo.
Nikolai Rerikh (1874-1947) - known internationally as Nicholas Roerich - was an artist
whose fantastical artwork is characterised by rich, bold colours, primitive style and mystical
themes. In 2013, Rerikh's mesmerising painting Madonna Laboris sold at auction in London
for some £7.9, topping the ever-changing list of most expensive Russian paintings. In Mo-
scow, Rerikh's paintings are on display at the Rerikh Museum and the Museum of Oriental
Art.