Pimen Nikitich Orlov (Russian: Пи́мен Ники́тич Орлóв; 1812, near Malo-Foshchevaty,

Ostrogozhsky Uyezd Ostrogozhsky Uyezd (''Острогожский уезд'') was one of the subdivisions of the Voronezh Governorate of the Russian Empire. It was situated in the southern part of the governorate. Its administrative centre was Ostrogozhsk. Demograp ...

, Voronezh Governorate — 6 October 1865,

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

) was a Russian painter in the Classical style. He worked in a wide variety of genres and spent most of his career in Italy.

Biography

He was born on a farm to a family of millers.Brief biography
@ RusArtNet. At an early age, he showed a talent for drawing. His father wanted him to continue the family business and could not afford to pay for an art school in any event. He was determined, however, and apprenticed himself to an itinerant decorative painter when he was a teenager. They travelled from village to village, painting signs and billboards as well as doing simple paint jobs on walls and fences.Brief biography
from the ''

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 changed employers as his experience grew, but still received no orders for icons or murals. He eventually turned to painting portraits of local landowners and, in 1834, with recommendations from the Gladkis, a Ukrainian noble family, he was able to go to Saint Petersburg and audit classes 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 ...

, where he studied with

Karl Bryullov Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (russian: Карл Па́влович Брюлло́в; 12 December 1799 – 11 June 1852), original name Charles Bruleau, also transliterated Briullov and Briuloff, and referred to by his friends as "Karl the Great", was a ...

and decided to become a painter of

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

scenes. While studying, he continued painting portraits to help support himself. Members of the Golitsyn family were among his most notable clients. He graduated in 1837 with a silver medal and the title of "Free Artist". In 1841, with the support of the Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, he obtained a grant that enabled him to go to Italy. He established himself in Rome and soon had a steady flow of commissions, although he was still not financially secure. Then, in 1848, he sent home a painting ("Young Woman Doing Laundry") that was brought to the attention of Tsar Nicholas I, who awarded him an annual pension of 300 Rubles. The following year, all pensioners were ordered to return to Russia, but he was able to get permission to stay, pleading eye disease and the necessity of completing his standing commissions. He would remain there until his death, sixteen years later. He continued to send the occasional painting back to Saint Petersburg and was awarded the title of "Academician" in 1857.

Orlov's artistic legacy

Orlov's paintings, which drew the praise of his contemporaries, are noted for their softness and beauty of colour, along with the efficacy of the lighting and the thoroughness of the finish. Most of his works are portraits and genre scenes from the life of Italians, but there are also works on historical subjects and landscapes. Most of Pimen's works remained in Italy and are in the private collections of Western European collectors. However, in Russia they were also in demand - the paintings "Young Roman Girl at the Fountain", "Italian Morning" were bought by Emperor Nicholas I. Currently, Orlov's paintings are represented in many museums in Russia and CIS countries - Tretyakov Gallery, Tver Regional Picture Gallery, Transcarpathian Regional Art Museum named after Y. Bokshaya (Ukraine) and others.

Selected paintings

File:Orlov P N Rimskij karnaval.jpg, Scene from the Roman Carnival File:«Напутствие великого князя Михаила Тверского».jpg, The Last Words of

Mikhail of Tver Mikhail Yaroslavich (russian: Михаил Ярославич) (1271 – 22 November 1318), also known as Michael of Tver, was a Prince of Tver (from 1285) who ruled as Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1304 until 1314 and again from 1315–1318. ...

File:Gruppovoj Portret sester Suhovo-Kobylinyh.jpg, The Sukhovo-Kobylin Sisters File:Партрэт А. І. Лорыс-Мелікава з жонкай і італьянскім хлопчыкам.JPG, A.I. Loris-Melikov
and his family File:Sofia Vassilyevna Orlova-Denisova by Petr Orlov.jpg, Portrait of the Maid-of-Honour Sophia Orlova-Denisova File:Pimen Orlov 01.jpg, Portrait of an Unknown in a Court Old Russian Dress. File:P N Orlov Arhitekturnyj pejzazh.jpg, Architectural landscape

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orlov, Pimen 1812 births 1865 deaths People from Ostrogozhsky Uyezd 19th-century painters from the Russian Empire Male painters from the Russian Empire Portrait painters from the Russian Empire Genre painters from the Russian Empire Emigrants from the Russian Empire 19th-century male artists from the Russian Empire