ART
Life in the Name
of the National Art
Elena Rudakova
SUNRISE chief editor,
Blagoveshchensk (Russia)
That summer on our way back home
from Paris, we stayed in Moscow for a few days
to walk around the city and embrace the full
life of its wide and noisy avenues. Many people
don't like our capital for this, but I, on the
contrary, experience some kind of inexplicable
awe each time for the power which literally
knocks me down. Moreover, when being in
there I feel the spirit of the time and the
flowing of our Russian Orthodox history, which
is reflected in the appearance of the city and
on the faces of random passersby.
When in Moscow, I always try to visit the
maximum number of galleries and museums,
even if I have visited some of them for more
than once before. One of such places is the
Tretyakov Gallery, which is located in a
charming and quiet Lavrushinsky Lane. Despite
the fact that its facade is quite simple and
with no frills of the architectural philosophy
(and according to the creator's idea, this was
the way it should be, so that the visitor
wouldn't be distracted when contemplating
the paintings), the visit of it leaves a mark on
your soul that is several times deeper
compared to the visiting the Louvre. Here you
can feel the touch of something native and
special. This feeling is not accidental, since the
collection of the Tretyakov Gallery is devoted
exclusively to the Russian national art and to
those artists who contributed to the Russian
art history or the ones who were closely
related to it. When I come there, I, holding my
breath in the silence of the halls, carefully
examine the pictures I have long known since
childhood and I travel through time. I do it
every time when I am there, but why do I recall
that exact summer? It was then, after gaining
a huge experience in participating in the
French culture, I realized how close I'd been
related to our domestic one, that is stretching
through our whole lives with a vibrating thin
string, evoking all the brightest and warmest
feelings on the verge of nostalgia. Pavel
Tretyakov didn't waste any breath on trifles
and had been thinking ahead with total
dedication, which resulted in getting a feeling
of a dialogue with the artists through their
paintings in his gallery. It is quiet and peaceful
in there.
20
SUNRISE
By the way, the Tretyakov Gallery
foundation date is considered to be 1856,
when young Tretyakov acquired the first works
of contemporary Russian artists, having set
up a goal of creating a collection that could
later develop into a museum of national art.
"For me, the person who truly and ardently
loves painting, there can be no better desire
than to create a public, accessible to
everyone repository of fine arts, which would
be beneficial for many, pleasant for everyone,"
- the collector wrote in 1860, adding at the
same time: "... I would like to leave for future
the national gallery, consisting of Russian
artists` paintings. "
February 2019 №2