Alexei Ivanovich Belsky (Russian: Алексе́й Ива́нович Бе́льский; 1726,
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
- 21 May 1796, Saint Petersburg) was a Russian painter. He was part of the "Belsky Dynasty" of painters of the Eighteenth Century and a teacher at the
Imperial Academy of Arts
The Russian Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by the founder of the Imperial Moscow University Ivan Shuvalov under the name ''Academy of the Thre ...
.
[ ]Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary
The ''Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' (Russian: Энциклопедический словарь Брокгауза и Ефрона, abbr. ЭСБЕ, tr. ; 35 volumes, small; 86 volumes, large) is a comprehensive multi-volume ...
@ Russian Wikisource He specialized in landscapes, allegories and historical subjects.
Biography
In the mid 1740s, he and his brother
Ivan Ivanovich were enrolled at the "Канцелярия от строений" (Chancellory of Buildings), where they studied with
Ivan Vishnyakov
Ivan Yakovlevich Vishnyakov (Russian: Ива́н Я́ковлевич Вишняко́в; 1699, in Moscow – 1761, in Saint Petersburg) was a Russian portrait painter and muralist in the Rococo style.Обзор творчества Ивана ...
, among others.
He painted murals, fresco panels and theatrical scenery for several Imperial Palaces, as well as icons for
St Andrew's Church, Kiev
St Andrew's Church ( uk, Андріївська церква, ''Andriivska tserkva'') is an Orthodox church in Kyiv, constructed between 1747 and 1754 to a design by the Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli, a rare example of Elizabethan Baroq ...
. In 1762, together with Ivan, he provided some paintings for the "Triumphal Arch", celebrating the coronation of
Catherine the Great
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
.
In 1764, he was elected to the Academy. In 1771, a series of didactic murals he executed for the
Smolny Institute
The Smolny Institute (russian: Смольный институт, ''Smol'niy institut'') is a Palladian edifice in Saint Petersburg that has played a major part in the history of Russia.
History
The building was commissioned from Giacomo Quar ...
(one of the
Institutes for Noble Maidens) resulted in an award of what was then the immense sum of 70 Rubles. The following year, he achieved the rank of Master Painter. In 1773, he was presented with a charter of liberty from the Academy, granting him and his progeny freedom from the poll-tax, conscription, enserfment and other possible obligations.
Four of the didactic murals
Image:Алексей Бельский 3.jpg, "Do not be a ne'er do well"
Image:Алексей Бельский 4.jpg, "Do not harm any animal"
Image:Алексей Бельский 5.jpg, "Do not do evil and do not annoy anyone"
Image:Алексей Бельский 6.jpg, "Do not lie"
References
Further reading
* ''История русского искусства'' (History of Russian Art), 5 Vols., Moscow, 1960, pages 339—352
* ''
Russian Biographical Dictionary
The ''Russian Biographical Dictionary'' (RBD, russian: Русский биографический словарь) is a Russian-language biographical dictionary published by the Russian Historian Society edited by a collective with Alexander Polov ...
'', edited by
Alexander Polovtsov
Alexander Alexandrovich Polovtsov (russian: Александр Александрович Половцов; 1832–1909) was a Russian Imperial statesman, historian and ''maecenas''; he was also known as the founder of the Russian Imperial Hist ...
(1896-1918)
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Belsky, Alexei Ivanovich
1726 births
1796 deaths
Russian painters
Russian male painters