Painting history. Ten amusing stories about paintings from the Tretyakov gallery

The idea to depict a flowing clock came to Salvador Dali at dinner when he noticed Camembert melting in the sun.

It was only later that Dali was asked whether Einstein's theory of relativity was encrypted on the canvas, and he answered with a clever look: “Rather, the theory of Heraclitus that time is measured by the flow of thought. That is why I called the painting "The Persistence of Memory". And first there was cheese, processed cheese. "

"The Last Supper"

When Leonardo da Vinci wrote The Last Supper, he paid special attention to two figures: Christ and Judas. Leonardo found a model for the face of Jesus relatively quickly - a young man who sang in the church choir approached his role. But the person capable of expressing the vice of Judas, Leonardo was looking for for three years. Once, walking down the street, the master saw a drunkard in the gutter. Da Vinci brought the drunkard to a tavern, where he immediately began to write Judas from him.

When the drinker sobered up, he remembered that several years ago he had already posed for the artist. This was the same chorister. The great fresco by Leonardo by Jesus and Judas shows the face of one person.

"Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan"

In 1913, a mentally ill artist slashed a painting by Repin "Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan" with a knife. Only thanks to the masterful work of the restorers, the canvas was restored. Ilya Repin himself came to Moscow and redrawn the head of Grozny in a strange purple color - over two decades, the artist's ideas about painting have changed a lot. The restorers removed these edits and returned the painting to an exact match for its museum photographs. Repin, having seen the restored canvas later, did not notice the corrections.

"Dream"

In 2006, American collector Steve Wynn agreed to sell Pablo Picasso's The Dream for $ 139 million, one of the highest prices ever. But when talking about the picture, he waved his arms too expressively and tore the art with his elbow. Wynne regarded this as a sign from above and decided not to sell the canvas after the restoration, which, by the way, cost a pretty penny.

"A boat"

A less devastating, but no less curious incident happened with the painting by Henri Matisse. In 1961 the Museum contemporary art in New York, presented to the audience a picture of the master "Boat". The exhibition was a success. But only seven weeks later, a casual art connoisseur noticed that the masterpiece was hanging upside down. During this time, 115 thousand people managed to see the art, the book of reviews was replenished with hundreds of admiring comments. Confusion spread throughout all the newspapers.

"Battle of Negroes in a Cave in the Deep Night"

The famous "Black Square" was not the first painting of its kind. 22 years before Malevich, in 1893, the French artist and writer Allais Alphonse exhibited his masterpiece "The Battle of the Blacks in the Cave deep at night»- completely black rectangular canvas.

"Feast of the Gods on Olympus"

In the 1960s. in Prague was found one of the most famous paintings by Peter Paul Rubens "Feast of the Gods on Olympus." For a long time, the date of its writing remained a mystery. The clue was found in the picture itself, moreover, by astronomers. They guessed that the position of the planets was subtly encoded on the canvas. For example, Duke Gonzaga of Mantua as the god Jupiter, Poseidon with the Sun and the goddess Venus with Cupid reflect the position of Jupiter, Venus and the Sun in the Zodiac.

In addition, Venus is seen heading towards the constellation Pisces. Meticulous stargazers calculated that such a rare position of the planets in the sky was observed on the days of the winter solstice in 1602. This was a fairly accurate dating of the picture.

"Breakfast on the grass"

Edouard Manet, "Breakfast on the Grass"

Claude Monet, Breakfast on the Grass

Edouard Manet and Claude Monet are confused not only by current applicants art schools- they were confused even by their contemporaries. Both lived in late nineteenth centuries in Paris, communicated with each other and were almost the same names. So, in the film "Ocean's Eleven" between the characters of George Clooney and Julia Roberts, the following dialogue takes place:
- I always confuse Monet and Manet. I only remember that one of them married a mistress.
- Monet.
- So Manet had syphilis.
“And they both wrote at times.
But the artists had little confusion with names, in addition, they actively borrowed ideas from each other. After Manet presented to the public the painting "Breakfast on the Grass", Monet, without thinking twice, wrote his own with the same name. As usual, it was not without confusion.

"Sistine Madonna"

When you look at Raphael's painting "The Sistine Madonna", you can clearly see that Pope Sixtus II has six fingers on his hand. Among other things, the name Sixtus is translated as "sixth", which eventually gave rise to a lot of theories. In fact, the "lower pinky" is not a finger at all, but a part of the palm. This is noticeable if you look closely. No mysticism and secret harbinger of the Apocalypse, but sorry.

"Morning in a pine forest"

The bears from the picture "Morning in a Pine Forest" by Shishkin, disseminated by pastry chefs, were not at all the work of Shishkin. Ivan was an excellent landscape painter, he brilliantly knew how to convey the play of light and shadow in the forest, but people and animals were not given to him. So, at the artist's request, the cute cubs were painted by Konstantin Savitsky, and the painting itself was signed with two names. But Pavel Tretyakov, after buying the landscape to his collection, erased Savitsky's signature, and all the laurels went to Shishkin.

In almost every significant work art has a mystery, a "double bottom" or a secret story that you want to reveal.

Music on the buttocks

Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden of Earthly Delights, 1500-1510.

Fragment of a part of a triptych

Disputes over meanings and hidden meanings the most famous work of the Dutch artist has not abated since its inception. On the right wing of the triptych entitled "Musical Hell" are depicted sinners who are tortured in the underworld with the help of musical instruments... One of them has notes imprinted on the buttocks. Oklahoma Christian University student Amelia Hamrick, who studied painting, transposed 16th century notation into a modern twist and recorded "a 500-year-old song from hell out of hell."

Mona Lisa nude

The famous "La Gioconda" exists in two versions: the nude version is called "Monna Vanna", it was written a little famous artist Salai, who was a student and model of the great Leonardo da Vinci. Many art critics are sure that he was the model for Leonardo's paintings "John the Baptist" and "Bacchus". There are also versions that disguised as women's dress Salai served as the image of Mona Lisa herself.

Old Fisherman

In 1902 Hungarian artist Tivadar Kostka Csontvari painted the painting “ Old Fisherman". It would seem that there is nothing unusual in the picture, but Tivadar laid in it a subtext that was never revealed during the artist's life.

Few people have the idea to put a mirror to the middle of the picture. Each person can have both God (duplicated the right shoulder of the Old Man) and the Devil (duplicated left shoulder old man).

Was there a whale?

Hendrik van Antonissen "Scene on the Shore".

It would seem like an ordinary landscape. Boats, people on the shore and the deserted sea. And only an X-ray study showed that people gathered on the shore for a reason - in the original they examined the carcass of a whale washed ashore.

However, the artist decided that no one would want to look at the dead whale and rewrote the picture.

Two "Breakfasts on the Grass"

Edouard Manet, Breakfast on the Grass, 1863.

Claude Monet, Breakfast on the Grass, 1865.

The artists Edouard Manet and Claude Monet are sometimes confused - after all, they were both French, lived at the same time and worked in the style of impressionism. Even the name of one of the most famous paintings by Manet "Breakfast on the Grass" Monet borrowed and wrote his "Breakfast on the Grass".

Doubles on "The Last Supper"

Leonardo da Vinci, " The last supper", 1495-1498.

When Leonardo da Vinci wrote The Last Supper, he gave special meaning two figures: Christ and Judas. He was looking for models for them for a very long time. Finally, he managed to find a model for the image of Christ among young singers. It was not possible to find a model for Judas Leonardo for three years. But one day he ran into a drunkard on the street who was lying in a gutter. It was a young man who had grown old by unrestrained drunkenness. Leonardo invited him to a tavern, where he immediately began to write Judas from him. When the drunkard regained consciousness, he told the artist that he had already posed for him once. It was several years ago, when he sang in the church choir, Leonardo wrote Christ from him.

"Night Watch" or "Day Watch"?

Rembrandt, " The night Watch", 1642.

One of the most famous paintings by Rembrandt "Performance of the rifle company of Captain Frans Banning Kok and Lieutenant Willem van Ruutenbürg" hung in different rooms for about two hundred years and was discovered by art critics only in the 19th century. Since the figures seemed to appear against a dark background, it was called "Night Watch", and under this name it entered the treasury of world art.

And only during the restoration, carried out in 1947, it was discovered that in the hall the painting had managed to become covered with a layer of soot, which distorted its color. After clearing original painting it was finally revealed that the scene presented by Rembrandt actually takes place during the day. The position of the shadow from Captain Kok's left hand indicates that the action lasts no more than 14 hours.

Inverted boat

Henri Matisse, The Boat, 1937.

The New York Museum of Modern Art in 1961 exhibited a painting by Henri Matisse "The Boat". Only after 47 days did someone notice that the painting was hanging upside down. The canvas depicts 10 purple lines and two blue sails on a white background. The artist painted two sails for a reason, the second sail is a reflection of the first on the surface of the water.
In order not to be mistaken in how the picture should hang, you need to pay attention to the details. The larger sail should be at the top of the painting, and the peak of the painting should be towards the top right corner.

Deception in self-portrait

Vincent van Gogh, Self-Portrait with a Pipe, 1889.

There are legends that van Gogh allegedly cut off his own ear. Now the most reliable version is that van Gogh's ear was damaged in a small scuffle with the participation of another artist - Paul Gauguin.

The self-portrait is interesting in that it reflects reality in a distorted form: the artist is depicted with a bandaged right ear, because he used a mirror during his work. In fact, the left ear was affected.

Stranger bears

Ivan Shishkin, "Morning in the Pine Forest", 1889.

The famous painting belongs not only to Shishkin's brush. Many artists, who were friends with each other, often resorted to the "help of a friend", and Ivan Ivanovich, who painted landscapes all his life, feared that touching bears would not turn out the way he needed. Therefore, Shishkin turned to the familiar animal painter Konstantin Savitsky.

Savitsky drew some of the best bears in history Russian painting, and Tretyakov ordered to wash his name off the canvas, since everything in the picture “from the concept to the execution, everything speaks about the manner of painting, oh creative method peculiar to Shishkin ”.

The innocent story of "Gothic"

Grant Wood, " American gothic", 1930.

Grant Wood's work is considered one of the strangest and most depressing in history. American painting... The painting with the gloomy father and daughter is replete with details that indicate the severity, puritanism and retrogradeness of the people depicted.
In fact, the artist did not intend to depict any horrors: during a trip to Iowa, he noticed a small house in gothic style and decided to portray those people who, in his opinion, would ideally fit as inhabitants. Grant's sister and his dentist are immortalized in the form of characters that the people of Iowa took offense at.

Revenge of Salvador Dali

The painting "Figure at the Window" was painted in 1925, when Dali was 21 years old. Then Gala had not yet entered the artist's life, and his sister Ana Maria was his muse. The relationship between brother and sister soured when he wrote on one of the paintings "sometimes I spit on a portrait of my own mother, and it gives me pleasure." Ana Maria could not forgive such shocking.

In her 1949 book, Salvador Dali through the Eyes of a Sister, she writes about her brother without any praise. The book infuriated El Salvador. For another ten years after that, he angrily remembered her at every opportunity. And so, in 1954, the painting "A young virgin, indulging in the sin of Sodom with the help of the horns of her own chastity" appears. The woman's pose, her curls, the landscape outside the window and the color scheme of the picture clearly echo the "Figure at the Window". There is a version that Dali took revenge on his sister for her book in this way.

Two-faced Danae

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, Danae, 1636-1647.

Many secrets of one of the most famous paintings by Rembrandt were revealed only in the 60s of the twentieth century, when the canvas was enlightened x-rays... For example, the shooting showed that in the early version the face of the princess, who had a love affair with Zeus, looked like the face of Saskia, the wife of the painter, who died in 1642. In the final version of the picture, it began to resemble the face of Gertier Dierks, Rembrandt's mistress, with whom the artist lived after the death of his wife.

Van Gogh's yellow bedroom

Vincent Van Gogh, The Bedroom at Arles, 1888 - 1889.

In May 1888, Van Gogh acquired a small workshop in Arles, in the south of France, where he fled from Parisian artists and critics who did not understand him. In one of the four rooms, Vincent is setting up a bedroom. In October, everything is ready, and he decides to paint "Van Gogh's Bedroom in Arles". For the artist, the color and coziness of the room were very important: everything had to suggest the idea of ​​rest. At the same time, the picture is sustained in alarming yellow tones.

Researchers of Van Gogh's work explain this by the fact that the artist took foxglove, a remedy for epilepsy, which causes serious changes in the patient's perception of color: the entire surrounding reality is painted in green-yellow tones.

Toothless perfection

Leonardo da Vinci, "Portrait of Madame Lisa del Giocondo", 1503-1519.

The generally accepted opinion is that Mona Lisa is perfection and her smile is beautiful in its mystery. However, the American art critic (and part-time dentist) Joseph Borkowski believes that, judging by the expression on her face, the heroine has lost a lot of teeth. Examining enlarged photographs of the masterpiece, Borkowski also found scars around her mouth. “She smiles so much precisely because of what happened to her,” the expert said. "Her expression is typical of people who have lost their front teeth."

Major on face control

Pavel Fedotov, The Major's Matchmaking, 1848.

The public, who first saw the painting "The Major's Matchmaking", laughed heartily: the artist Fedotov filled it with ironic details, understandable to viewers of that time. For example, the major is clearly not familiar with the rules of noble etiquette: he appeared without the required bouquets for the bride and her mother. And the bride herself was discharged by her merchant parents in the evening ball gown, although it is day outside (all the lamps in the room are out). The girl clearly tried on a low-cut dress for the first time, she is embarrassed and tries to run away to her room.

Why Freedom is naked

Ferdinand Victor Eugene Delacroix, Liberty on the Barricades, 1830.

According to art critic Etienne Julie, Delacroix painted the face of a woman from the famous Parisian revolutionary - washerwoman Anna-Charlotte, who came to the barricades after the death of her brother at the hands of royal soldiers and killed nine guardsmen. The artist depicted her with bare breasts. According to him, this is a symbol of fearlessness and selflessness, as well as the triumph of democracy: a naked chest shows that Freedom, like a commoner, does not wear a corset.

Non-square square

Kazimir Malevich, "Black Suprematist Square", 1915.

In fact, the "Black Square" is not at all black and not at all square: none of the sides of the quadrangle is parallel to any of its other sides, and not one of the sides of the square frame that frames the painting. And the dark color is the result of mixing different colors, among which there was no black. It is believed that this was not the author's negligence, but a principled position, the desire to create a dynamic, mobile form.

Specialists of the Tretyakov Gallery discovered the author's inscription on famous painting Malevich. The inscription reads: "Battle of the Negroes in the Dark Cave." This phrase refers to the title of the playful picture of the French journalist, writer and artist Alphonse Allais "Battle of the Negroes in a Dark Cave in the Deep of Night", which was a completely black rectangle.

Melodrama of the Austrian Mona Lisa

Gustav Klimt, "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer", 1907.

One of Klimt's most significant paintings depicts the wife of the Austrian sugar magnate Ferdinad Bloch-Bauer. All Vienna was discussing whirlwind romance Adele and the famous artist. The wounded husband wanted to take revenge on his lovers, but he chose very unusual way: he decided to order Klimt a portrait of Adele and force him to make hundreds of sketches until the artist starts to turn away from her.

Bloch-Bauer wanted the work to last several years, and the model could see how Klimt's feelings fade away. He made the artist generous offer, from which he could not refuse, and everything turned out according to the scenario of a deceived husband: the work was completed in 4 years, the lovers have long cooled to each other. Adele Bloch-Bauer never found out that her husband was aware of her relationship with Klimt.

The painting that brought Gauguin back to life

Paul Gauguin, Where We Come From? Who Are We? Where Are We Going ?, 1897-1898.

The most famous canvas Gauguin has one peculiarity: it is "read" not from left to right, but from right to left, like Kabbalistic texts in which the artist was interested. It is in this order that the allegory of a person's spiritual and physical life unfolds: from the birth of the soul (a sleeping child in the lower right corner) to the inevitability of the hour of death (a bird with a lizard in its claws in the lower left corner).

The painting was painted by Gauguin in Tahiti, where the artist fled civilization several times. But this time life on the island did not work out: total poverty led him to depression. Having finished the canvas, which was to become his spiritual testament, Gauguin took a box of arsenic and went to the mountains to die. However, he miscalculated the dose and the suicide failed. The next morning, rocking, he wandered to his hut and fell asleep, and when he woke up, he felt a forgotten thirst for life. And in 1898 his affairs went uphill, and a brighter period began in his work.

112 proverbs in one picture

Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Dutch Proverbs, 1559

Pieter Bruegel Sr. portrayed a land inhabited by literal images Dutch proverbs those days. There are approximately 112 recognizable idioms in the painting. Some of them are used to this day, such as: "swim against the tide", "bang your head against the wall", "armed to the teeth" and "a big fish eats a small one."

Other proverbs reflect human stupidity.

Subjectivity of art

Paul Gauguin, Breton Village in the Snow, 1894

Gauguin's painting "Breton Village in the Snow" was sold after the death of the author for only seven francs and, moreover, under the name "Niagara Falls". The person conducting the auction accidentally hung the painting upside down, seeing a waterfall in it.

Hidden picture

Pablo Picasso, The Blue Room, 1901

In 2008, infrared light showed another image hidden under the Blue Room - a portrait of a man dressed in a suit with a bow tie and resting his head on his arm. “As soon as Picasso had new idea, he took up a brush and embodied it. But he had no opportunity to buy new canvas every time a muse visited him, ”explains possible reason this is art critic Patricia Favero.

Inaccessible Moroccans

Zinaida Serebryakova, "Naked", 1928

Once Zinaida Serebryakova received tempting offer- go to creative journey to depict the naked figures of oriental maidens. But it turned out that it was simply impossible to find models in those places. Zinaida's translator came to the rescue - he brought his sisters and bride to her. No one before and after this has been able to capture the closed oriental women naked.

Spontaneous insight

Valentin Serov, "Portrait of Nicholas II in a Jacket", 1900

For a long time Serov could not paint a portrait of the tsar. When the artist gave up completely, he apologized to Nikolai. Nikolai got a little upset, sat down at the table, stretching out his arms in front of him ... And then it dawned on the artist - here he is an image! A simple military man in an officer's jacket with clear and sad eyes. This portrait is considered the finest depiction of the last emperor.

Deuce again

© Fedor Reshetnikov

The famous painting "Deuce Again" is just the second part of the artistic trilogy.

The first part is “Arrived for Vacation”. A clearly wealthy family, winter holidays, a joyful excellent student.

The second part is "Deuce again". Poor family from a working-class suburb, in the midst of school year, dejected, stunned, again grabbed a deuce. In the upper left corner you can see the picture "Arrived for Vacation".

The third part is "Re-examination". A country house, summer, everyone is walking, one malicious ignoramus, who has failed the annual exam, is forced to sit within four walls and cram. In the upper left corner you can see the painting "Deuce again".

How masterpieces are born

Joseph Turner, Rain, Steam and Speed, 1844

In 1842 Mrs. Simon was traveling by train in England. Suddenly a heavy downpour began. The elderly gentleman sitting opposite her got up, opened the window, stuck his head out and stared like that for ten minutes. Unable to contain her curiosity, the woman also opened the window and began to look ahead. A year later, she discovered the painting "Rain, Steam and Speed" at an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts and was able to recognize in it the very episode on the train.

Anatomy lesson from Michelangelo

Michelangelo, The Creation of Adam, 1511

A couple of American neuroanatomy experts believe Michelangelo actually left some anatomical illustrations in one of his most famous works... They believe that there is a huge brain on the right side of the picture. Surprisingly, even complex components such as the cerebellum, optic nerves and pituitary gland can be found. And the eye-catching green ribbon perfectly matches the location of the vertebral artery.

The Last Supper by Van Gogh

Vincent Van Gogh, " Night terrace cafe ", 1888

Researcher Jared Baxter believes that the dedication to Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" is encrypted on Van Gogh's painting "Terrace of the Cafe at Night". In the center of the picture is a waiter with long hair and a white tunic resembling Christ's clothes, and around him there are exactly 12 café visitors. Also, Baxter draws attention to the cross located right behind the back of the waiter in white.

Dali's image of memory

Salvador Dali, The Persistence of Memory, 1931

It is no secret that the thoughts that visited Dali during the creation of his masterpieces were always in the form of a very realistic images, which the artist then transferred to the canvas. So, according to the author himself, the painting "The Persistence of Memory" was painted as a result of associations that arose at the sight of processed cheese.

What Munch Screams About

Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1893.

Munch talked about his idea of ​​one of the most mysterious paintings in world painting: "I was walking along the path with two friends - the sun was setting - suddenly the sky turned blood-red, I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence - I looked at blood and flames over the bluish-black fjord and the city - my friends went further, and I stood trembling with excitement, feeling an endless cry piercing nature. " But what kind of sunset could scare the artist so?

There is a version that the idea of ​​"Scream" was born in Munch in 1883, when several powerful eruptions of the Krakatoa volcano took place - so powerful that they changed the temperature of the Earth's atmosphere by one degree. Copious amounts of dust and ash spread throughout the globe even reaching Norway. For several evenings in a row, the sunsets looked as if the apocalypse was about to come - one of them became a source of inspiration for the artist.

Writer among the people

Alexander Ivanov, "The Appearance of Christ to the People", 1837-1857.

Dozens of sitters posed for Alexander Ivanov for his main picture... One of them is known no less than the artist himself. In the background, among the travelers and Roman horsemen, who have not yet heard the sermon of John the Baptist, you can see a character in a korchin tunic. Ivanov wrote it from Nikolai Gogol. The writer closely communicated with the artist in Italy, in particular on religious issues, and gave him advice in the process of painting. Gogol believed that Ivanov "has long since died for the whole world, except for his work."

Michelangelo's gout

Raphael Santi, School of Athens, 1511.

By creating famous mural"School of Athens", Raphael immortalized his friends and acquaintances in the images of ancient Greek philosophers. One of them was Michelangelo Buonarotti "in the role of" Heraclitus. For several centuries, the fresco kept the secrets of Michelangelo's personal life, and modern researchers have suggested that the artist's strangely angular knee indicates the presence of joint disease.

This is likely given the lifestyle and working conditions of Renaissance artists and Michelangelo's chronic workaholism.

Arnolfini's mirror

Jan van Eyck, "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple", 1434

In the mirror behind the Arnolfini couple, you can see the reflection of two more people in the room. Most likely, these are witnesses present at the conclusion of the contract. One of them is van Eyck, as evidenced by the Latin inscription, placed, contrary to tradition, above the mirror in the center of the composition: "Jan van Eyck was here." This is how contracts were usually sealed.

How lack turned into talent

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, Self-portrait at the age of 63, 1669.

Researcher Margaret Livingston studied all of Rembrandt's self-portraits and found that the artist suffered from squint: in the images his eyes look in different directions, which is not observed in the portraits of other people by the master. The illness led to the fact that the artist was better able to perceive reality in two dimensions than people with normal vision. This phenomenon is called "stereo blindness" - the inability to see the world in 3D. But since the painter has to work with a two-dimensional image, this very shortcoming of Rembrandt could be one of the explanations for his phenomenal talent.

Sinless Venus

Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, 1482-1486.

Before the appearance of "The Birth of Venus", the image of a naked female body in painting symbolized only the idea of ​​original sin. Sandro Botticelli was the first European painter to find nothing sinful in him. Moreover, art critics are sure that the pagan goddess of love symbolizes on the fresco christian image: her appearance is an allegory of the rebirth of a soul that has undergone the rite of baptism.

Lute player or lute player?

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, The Lute Player, 1596.

For a long time, the painting was exhibited in the Hermitage under the title "The Lute Player". Only at the beginning of the twentieth century, art critics agreed that the canvas still depicts a young man (probably, his familiar artist Mario Minniti posed for Caravaggio): on the notes in front of the musician there is a recording of the bass part of madrigal Jacob Arcadelt “You know that I love you” ... A woman could hardly make such a choice - it's just hard for her throat. In addition, the lute, like the violin at the very edge of the picture, was considered a male instrument in the era of Caravaggio.

Salvador Dali believed that he was the reincarnation of his deceased brother.

Each of Dali's works contains either his portrait or a silhouette.

Idea soft hours came to Dali when he watched Camembert cheese melt in the sun.

Єdgar Degas was so fascinated by ballet dancers that he created more than 1,500 works with their participation.

The theme of all the artist's works Marcel Duchamp was everyday life. His most famous work is called "The Fountain", and there is nothing more than the ejaculating urine of the artist himself.

The work of Henri Matisse, "The Boat", for 46 days hung upside down , at the exhibition in New york before anyone noticed. The picture was appreciated by 1600 visitors.

William Morris had happy childhood, everyone pampered him. As a result, he could throw dinner out the window, just because he didn't like the way it was served.

Jackson Pollock often painted his paintings with cigarettes.

The work of the artist Auguste Rodin, "Bronze Age", was so realistic that it seemed to people that there was a living person inside the sculpture.

Rubens was knighted and by Philip IV , King of Spain, and Charles I , King of England.

Vermeer used a pinhole camera in his work.

In his entire life, Vincent Van Gogh sold only one job - « Red Vineyards in Arles, ”and then to his brother, the owner of an art gallery.

In 1912, the "La Gioconda", the work of Leonardo da Vinci, was stolen. During the 3 years they were looking for it, 6 copies were sold, which were considered the original, and each of them cost a lot of money.

In 1962, La Gioconda was valued at $ 100 million, and in 2009 at $ 700 million.

Most artists and entertainers are left-handed.

It is believed that Pablo Picasso is the most famous painter in the world.

Raphael, known mainly for a large number paintings depicting Madonnas. But at the same time, according to the historian Giorgio Vasari , the artist was an atheist. It is also known that all of these paintings depict the same woman.

Andy Warhol was not only an artist. His first film, A Dream, about his friend sleeping, was 6 hours long. The premiere was attended by 9 people, 7 of them stayed to watch the film, 2 of them did not sit for an hour. Warhol has created about 60 films, such as: Kiss, Food, Shoulder, Couch, Kitchen, Face, Horse, Suicide, Sunset, Bitch "," Blowjob " …

Andy Warhol wore a gray wig and eventually dyed his hair gray. After being told he had blurred vision, he began to wear opaque glasses with a tiny hole to see.

In his youth, Renoir was a tailor and also sewed shoes.

"Pieta" is the only work by Michelangelo that he signed. He was also a poet, over 300 of his poems are still available.

Michelangelo became the first Western artist whose biography was printed during his lifetime.

Leonardo da Vinci could draw with one hand and write with the other at the same time.

Paul Gauguin was a laborer on the Panama Canal.

Paul Cézanne's first solo exhibition took place when he was 56 years old.

Claude Monet won 100 thousand francs in the lottery, which allowed him to quit his job as a messenger and take up painting.

Vermeer never painted children, although he had 11.

Renoir was so in love with painting that he did not stop working even in old age, sick different forms arthritis, and painted with a brush tied to the sleeve.

Salvador Dali created the Chupa Chups logo.

Most of the time, Claude Monet drew cartoons, mainly of his teachers.

Salvador Dali's nickname was “ Avida dollars ", Which means" passionately loving dollars. "

Vincent van Gogh had a brother who died at birth. His name was also Vincent van Gogh.

Picasso's full name consists of 23 words: Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuseno Maria de los Remedios Cypriano de la Santisima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruiz y Picasso.

Picasso's first word was "pencil".

Picasso wore long clothes and also had long hair, which was unheard of for those times.

Today we present to your attention twenty paintings that are worthy of attention and recognition. These pictures were painted famous artists, and they should be known not only by the person who is engaged in art, but also ordinary mortals, since art paints our life, aesthetics deepens our view of the world. Give art its due place in your life ...

1. "The Last Supper". Leonardo Da Vinci, 1495 - 1498

Monumental painting by Leonardo da Vinci depicting the scene of Christ's last meal with his disciples. Created in the years 1495-1498 in the Dominican monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.

The painting was commissioned by Leonardo by his patron, Duke Lodovico Sforza and his wife Beatrice d'Este. The Sforza coat of arms is painted with lunettes above the painting, formed by a ceiling with three arches. Painting began in 1495 and completed in 1498; work went on intermittently. The date of the commencement of work is not accurate, since "the archives of the monastery were destroyed, and an insignificant part of the documents that we have at our disposal date back to 1497, when the painting was almost completed."

Painting became a milestone in the history of the Renaissance: correctly reproduced the depth of perspective changed the direction of development of painting in the West.

It is believed that many secrets and hints are hidden in this picture - for example, there is an assumption that the image of Jesus and Judas was copied from one person. When Da Vinci painted the picture, in his vision Jesus personified good, while Judas was evil. And when the master found “his own Judas” (a drunkard from the street), it turned out that, according to historians, this drunkard had served as a prototype for writing the image of Jesus several years earlier. Thus, we can say that this picture captured a person at different periods of his life.

2. "Sunflowers". Vincent van Gogh, 1887

The name of the two cycles of paintings Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. The first series was performed in Paris in 1887. It is dedicated to lying flowers. The second series was performed a year later, in Arles. She depicts a bouquet of sunflowers in a vase. Two Parisian paintings acquired by van Gogh's friend Paul Gauguin.

The artist painted sunflowers eleven times. The first four paintings were created in Paris in August - September 1887. Large cut flowers lie, like some outlandish creatures dying before our eyes.

3. "The Ninth Wave". Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky ?, 1850.

One of the most famous paintings Russian marine painter Ivan Aivazovsky, kept in the Russian Museum.

The painter depicts the sea after a severe night storm and people who were shipwrecked. The sun's rays illuminate huge waves. The largest of them - the ninth shaft - is ready to fall on people trying to escape on the wreckage of the mast.

Despite the fact that the ship was destroyed and only the mast remained, the people on the mast are alive and continue to fight the elements. The warm colors of the painting make the sea less harsh and give the viewer hope that people will be saved.

The painting The Ninth Wave, created in 1850, immediately became the most famous of all its marinas and was acquired by Nicholas I.

4. "Nude Mach." Francisco Goya, 1797-1800

Painting Spanish artist Francisco Goya, painted around 1797-1800. Mates with the painting La maja vestida. The paintings depict a maha, a Spanish town woman of the 18th-19th centuries, one of the artist's favorite objects. "Maja nude" is one of early works Western art, depicting a completely naked woman without mythological or negative connotations.

5. “Flight of lovers”. Marc Chagall, 1914-1918

Work on the painting "Above the City" began in 1914, and the master put the finishing touches only in 1918. During this time, Bella turned from a beloved not only into an adored wife, but also the mother of their daughter Ida, forever becoming the main muse of the painter. The union of a rich daughter of a hereditary jeweler and a simple Jewish youth, whose father earned his living unloading herring, otherwise you cannot call it a misalliance, but love was stronger, and overcame all conventions. It was this love that inspired them, lifting them to heaven.

Karina depicts Chagall's two loves at once - Bella and Vitebsk, dear to her heart. The streets are presented in the form of houses, separated by a high dark fence. The viewer will not immediately notice a goat grazing on the left side of the center of the picture, and a simple man with his pants down in the foreground - a humor from the painter, breaking out of the general context and the romantic mood of the work, but this is the whole Chagall ...

6. "Face of War". Salvador Dali, 1940.

Painting by Spanish artist Salvador Dali, written in 1940.

The painting was created on the way to the USA. Impressed by the tragedy unfolding in the world, by the bloodthirstiness of politicians, the master starts work while still on the ship. Located in the Boijmans-van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam.

Losing all hope for normal life in Europe, an artist from his beloved Paris leaves for America. War covers the Old World and seeks to take over the rest of the world. The master does not yet know that staying in the New World for eight years will make him truly famous, and his works - masterpieces of world painting.

7. "Scream". Edvard Munch, 1893

The Scream (Norwegian Skrik) is a series of paintings by the Norwegian expressionist painter Edvard Munch, created between 1893 and 1910. They depict a human figure screaming in despair against the backdrop of a blood-red sky and an extremely generalized landscape background. In 1895 Munch created a lithograph on the same subject.

The red, fiery hot sky covered a cold fjord, which, in turn, gives rise to a fantastic shadow, similar to a certain sea monster. Tension has distorted space, lines have broken, colors don't match, perspective is destroyed.

Many critics believe that the plot of the picture is the fruit of a sick fantasy of a mentally ill person. Someone sees a premonition in work ecological disaster, someone decides the question of what kind of mummy inspired the author to this work.

8. "Girl with a Pearl Earring." Jan Vermeer, 1665

The painting "Girl with a Pearl Earring" (Dutch. "Het meisje met de parel") was written around 1665. V the given time kept in the Mauritshuis Museum, The Hague, Netherlands, and is business card museum. The painting, nicknamed the Dutch Mona Lisa, or Mona Lisa of the North, is written in the Tronie genre.

Thanks to Peter Webber's 2003 film "Girl with a Pearl Earring", a huge number of people far from painting learned about the wonderful Dutch artist Jan Vermeer, as well as about his most famous painting "Girl with a Pearl Earring".

9. "The Tower of Babel". Pieter Bruegel, 1563

Famous painting by the artist Pieter Bruegel. The artist created at least two paintings on this subject.

The painting is located - Museum of Art History, Vienna.

There is a story in the Bible about how the people of Babylon tried to build a high tower to reach the sky, but God made them speak in different languages, stopped understanding each other, and the tower remained unfinished.

10. "Algerian women". Pablo Picasso, 1955

"Algerian Women" - a series of 15 canvases created by Picasso in 1954-1955 based on paintings by Eugene Delacroix; the paintings differ in the letters assigned by the artist from A to O. "Version O" was written on February 14, 1955; for some time it belonged to the famous American art collector of the 20th century, Victor Gantz.

Pablo Picasso's painting "Algerian Women (version O)" was sold for $ 180 million.

11. "New planet". Konstantin Yuon, 1921

Russian Soviet painter, landscape master, theater artist, art theorist. Academician of the Academy of Arts of the USSR. People's Artist THE USSR. Laureate Stalin Prize first degree. Member of the CPSU since 1951.

This is an amazing picture, created in 1921 and not at all typical for the realist artist Yuon, painting “ New planet”Is one of the brightest works that embodied the image of the changes that the October Revolution became in the second decade of the 20th century. New system, new way and new image thinking of the newly emerging Soviet society. What awaits humanity now? Bright future? They did not think about it then, but the fact that Soviet Russia and the whole world is entering an era of change, obviously, as is the rapid birth of a new planet.

12. "Sistine Madonna". Raphael Santi, 1754

A painting by Raphael, which has been in the Old Masters Gallery in Dresden since 1754. It belongs to the recognized peaks of the High Renaissance.

Huge in size (265 × 196 cm, this is the size of the picture in the catalog Dresden Gallery) the canvas was created by Raphael for the altar of the church of the monastery of St. Sixtus in Piacenza, commissioned by Pope Julius II. There is a hypothesis that the painting was painted in 1512-1513 in honor of the victory over the French who invaded Lombardy during the Italian Wars, and the subsequent incorporation of Piacenza into the Papal States.

13. “Penitent Mary Magdalene”. Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), written around 1565

Painting, painted around 1565 Italian artist Titian Vecellio. Belongs The State Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Sometimes the date of creation is indicated as "1560s".

The model for the painting was Julia Festina, who amazed the artist with a shock of golden hair. The finished canvas greatly impressed the Duke of Gonzaga, and he decided to order a copy of it. Later, Titian, changing the background and posing of the woman, wrote a couple of similar works.

14. "Mona Lisa". Leonardo Da Vinci, 1503-1505

Portrait of Mrs. Lisa del Giocondo, (Italian. Ritratto di Monna Lisa del Giocondo) - a painting by Leonardo da Vinci, located in the Louvre (Paris, France), one of the most famous works painting in the world, which is believed to be a portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of the Florentine silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo, painted around 1503-1505.

According to one of the versions put forward, "Mona Lisa" is a self-portrait of the artist.

15. "Morning in a pine forest", Shishkin Ivan Ivanovich, 1889.

Painting by Russian artists Ivan Shishkin and Konstantin Savitsky. Savitsky painted bears, but the collector Pavel Tretyakov erased his signature, so that one is often indicated as the author of the picture.

The idea of ​​the picture was suggested to Shishkin by Savitsky, who later acted as a co-author and depicted the figures of bear cubs. These bears, with some differences in posture and number (at first there were two), appear in preparatory drawings and sketches. The animals turned out in Savitsky so well that he even signed the picture with Shishkin.

16. "We didn't expect it." Ilya Repin, 1884-1888

Painting by Russian artist Ilya Repin (1844-1930), painted in 1884-1888. It is part of the collection of the State Tretyakov Gallery.

The picture shown on XII traveling exhibition, is part of a narrative cycle dedicated to the fate of the Russian revolutionary populist.

17. "Ball at the Moulin de la Galette", Pierre Auguste Renoir, 1876.

Painting painted French artist Pierre Auguste Renoir in 1876.

The place where the painting is located is the Musee d'Orsay. Moulin de la Galette is an inexpensive pub in Montmartre, where students and working youth of Paris gathered.

18. "Starry Night". Vincent van Gogh, 1889

De sterrennacht- a painting by the Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh, painted in June 1889, with a view of the predawn sky over a fictional town from the east window of the artist's home in Saint-Remy-de-Provence. Since 1941 it has been kept at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Considered one of best works Van Gogh and one of the most significant works of Western painting.

19. "Creation of Adam". Michelangelo, 1511

Fresco by Michelangelo, painted around 1511. The fresco is the fourth of nine central ceiling compositions Sistine Chapel.

"The Creation of Adam" is one of the most outstanding compositions in the painting of the Sistine Chapel. God the Father flies in endless space, surrounded by wingless angels, with a flying white tunic. Right hand stretched out to meet Adam's hand and almost touches it. Lying on a green rock, Adam's body gradually begins to move, awakens to life. The whole composition is focused on the two-hand gesture. The hand of God gives impulse, and the hand of Adam takes it, giving to the whole body vital energy... By the fact that their hands do not touch, Michelangelo emphasized the impossibility of combining the divine and the human. In the image of God, according to the artist's intention, it is not a miraculous beginning that prevails, but a gigantic creative energy. In the image of Adam, Michelangelo praises strength and beauty human body... In fact, it is not the very creation of man that appears before us, but the moment at which he receives a soul, a passionate search for the divine, a thirst for knowledge.

20. "A kiss in the starry sky." Gustav Klimt, 1905-1907

Painting by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt, painted in 1907-1908. The canvas belongs to the period of creativity of Klimt, called "golden", last piece author in his "golden age".

On a rock, on the edge flower meadow, in a golden aura, there are lovers completely immersed in each other, fenced off from the whole world. Due to the uncertainty of the place of what is happening, it seems that the couple depicted in the picture goes into a cosmic state beyond the control of time and space, beyond all historical and social stereotypes and cataclysms. The man's complete solitude and turned back face only emphasize the impression of isolation and detachment in relation to the observer.

Source - Wikipedia, muzei-mira.com, say-hi.me

Admiring still lifes, we can hardly imagine what was depicted in the first paintings written in this genre. And on them, in fact, were painted decay products: rotting fruits, withered flowers. Very often, such works were decorated with a human skull. The artists once again wanted to remind that we are all only guests in this world ...

The most expensive painting in the world is Rubens' Beating of Babies. The painting wanders from one rich man to another, and its price is steadily growing. Last time it was bought for over 73 million euros. No wonder the buyer wished to remain anonymous ...

The most offended "grateful" admirers of the artist can be called Henri Matisse. In 1961, the Museum of Modern Art, located in New York, presented his painting "The Boat" for the judgment of visitors. And only after almost a month and a half, a casual connoisseur of painting noticed that the masterpiece is not hanging as it should be, but upside down. The embarrassment turned out to be terrible ...

Even during the life of Ilya Repin on his famous Ivan Terrible, who had just killed his son, an attempt was made. The insane icon painter, unable to withstand the terrible gaze of the tsar, cut the canvas with a knife. Not only the best restorers were involved in the restoration, but also Repin himself. But the master did not want to return to the original Ivan the Terrible, which appeared 20 years ago, and painted the tsar's face in a new way. As a result, it turned out to be purple. The restorers secretly from Repin returned the face of Ivan IV to its previous color. When the painting was shown to the artist, he did not pay attention to such "arbitrariness".

Can Christ and Judas have the same person? Maybe if it's the face of a sitter. The painting "The Last Supper" cost Leonardo da Vinci a titanic effort. The artist found the man who posed for him as "Christ" pretty quickly - the singer was perfect for his role. church choir... But the search for "Judas" took three years. Once, walking down the street, the master saw a drunk who could not get out of the cesspool. The lover of the green snake was still young, but due to regular libations he looked much older than his years. Leonardo took him to the nearest drinking establishment, sat him down at the table and began to draw. Imagine the artist's amazement when a sober drunk said that he had already posed for him several years ago! This was the same singing ...

Manet and Monet are confused not only by modern art lovers - they were also confused by their contemporaries. The artists not only lived at the same time and bore similar surnames, but also borrowed ideas from each other. After Manet presented to the public the painting "Breakfast on the Grass", Monet, without thinking twice, wrote his own, and under the same name.

Many of Vasnetsov's "colleagues" disliked neither him nor the paintings he painted. The battlefield strewn with corpses, left after the battle of Prince Igor with the Polovtsy, they nicknamed nothing but "Dead". Another painting by the master - "Flying Carpet" - received an even more malicious title: "Carpet with ears".