Vladimir Lukich Borovikovsky (russian: Влади́мир Луки́ч Боровико́вский, ukr, Володи́мир Лýкич Боровикóвський, ; July 24
O.S. (August 4, N.S.) 1757,
Mirgorod
Myrhorod ( uk, Ми́ргород, ) is a city in the Poltava Oblast (province) of central Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Myrhorod Raion (district), the city itself is administratively incorporated as a city of oblast ...
– April 6 O.S. (April 18, N.S.) 1825,
St. 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 ...
) was a prominent
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
Imperial artist of
Ukrainian Cossack
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
background, who served at the court 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 ...
and dominated
portraiture
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this r ...
in the Russian Empire at the turn of the 19th century.
Biography
Vladimir Borovikovsky was born in
Mirgorod
Myrhorod ( uk, Ми́ргород, ) is a city in the Poltava Oblast (province) of central Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Myrhorod Raion (district), the city itself is administratively incorporated as a city of oblast ...
,
Cossack Hetmanate
The Cossack Hetmanate ( uk, Гетьманщина, Hetmanshchyna; or ''Cossack state''), officially the Zaporizhian Host or Army of Zaporizhia ( uk, Військо Запорозьке, Viisko Zaporozke, links=no; la, Exercitus Zaporoviensis) ...
,
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
(now Ukraine) on July 24, 1757 in a family with
Ukrainian Cossack
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
background. His father, Luka Borovik, was an
icon
An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...
-painter. According to the family tradition, all four of Borovik's sons served as Cossacks in Mirgorod
regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
, but Vladimir retired early at the rank of
poruchik
The rank of lieutenant in Eastern Europe ( hr, poručnik, cs, poručík, pl, porucznik, russian: script=latn, poruchik, sr, script=latn, poručnik, sk, poručík) is one used in Slavophone armed forces. Depending on the country, it is either ...
and devoted his life to art — mostly icon painting for local churches.
Borovikovsky lived in Mirgorod until 1788, where he painted icons and portraits in the
Cossack Baroque
Ukrainian Baroque, or Cossack Baroque or Mazepa Baroque ( uk, Українське бароко або Козацьке бароко), is an architectural style that was widespread in the Ukrainian lands in the 17th and 18th centuries. It was th ...
tradition. His friend
Vasily Kapnist
Count Vasily Vasilievich Kapnist (russian: Василий Васильевич Капнист, 23 February 1758 – 9 November 1823), was a Russian poet, playwright and nobleman who was known as an active critic of serfdom in Russia and as a pr ...
was preparing an accommodation for Empress
Catherine II
, 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 Anha ...
in
Kremenchuk
Kremenchuk (; uk, Кременчу́к, Kremenchuk ) is an industrial city in central Ukraine which stands on the banks of the Dnipro River. The city serves as the administrative center of the Kremenchuk Raion (district) in Poltava Oblast (pr ...
during her travel to newly conquered
Crimea
Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
. Kapnist asked Borovikovsky to paint two allegoric paintings (
Peter I of Russia
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
and
Catherine II
, 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 Anha ...
as peasants sowing seeds and Catherine II as a
Minerva
Minerva (; ett, Menrva) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. Minerva is not a patron of violence such as Mars, but of strategic war. From the second century BC onward, the Roma ...
) for her rooms. The paintings so pleased the Empress that she requested that the painter move to
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 ...
.
After September 1788 Borovikovsky lived in Saint Petersburg where he changed his surname from the Cossack ''Borovyk'' to the more aristocratic-sounding ''Borovikovsky''. For his first ten years in Saint Petersburg, he lived in the house of the poet, architect, musician and art theorist, Prince
Nikolay Lvov
Nikolay Aleksandrovich Lvov (May 4, 1753 – December 21, 1803) was a Russian artist of the Age of Enlightenment. Lvov, an amateur of Rurikid lineage, was a polymathBohlman, p. 45. who contributed to geology, history, graphic arts and poetry, but ...
, whose ideas strongly influenced Borovikovsky's art. At the age of 30 years, he was too old to attend
St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Arts, so he took private lessons from
Dmitry Levitzky
Dmitry Grigoryevich Levitsky (russian: Дмитрий Григорьевич Левицкий, May 1735 – 17 April 1822) was a Russian portrait painter and Academician.
Biography
He was born to , a priest, who was also an amateur painter and ...
and later from
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n painter
Johann Baptist Lampi.
In 1795 he was appointed an
academician
An academician is a full member of an artistic, literary, engineering, or scientific academy. In many countries, it is an honorific title used to denote a full member of an academy that has a strong influence on national scientific life. In syst ...
. He became a popular portrait painter and created about 500 portraits during his lifetime, 400 of which survived to the 21st century. He had his own studio, and often relied on assistants to paint the less important parts of a portrait. His sitters included members of the imperial family, courtiers, generals, many aristocrats, and figures from the Russian artistic and literary worlds. Most of his portraits are intimate in style.
The most notable are:
*Portrait of ''
Catherine II
, 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 Anha ...
, Empress of Russia'' (1794)
*''Portrait of E. N. Arsenyeva'' (1796)
*''Portrait of M. I. Lopukhina'' (1797)
*''Portrait of F. A. Borovsky'' (1799)
*''Portrait of Paul I, Emperor of Russia'' (1800)
*''Portrait of Prince A. B. Kurakin'' (1801–1802)
*''Portrait of Princess A. G. Gagarina and Princess V. G. Gagarina'' (1802).
*''Portrait of Serbian Prince Karadjordje' 1816
Borovikovsky never taught in the Imperial Academy of Art but pupils lived in his home. Among them were
Alexey Venetsianov
Alexey Gavrilovich Venetsianov (russian: Алексей Гаврилович Венецианов; 18 February 1780–4 January 1847) was a Russian painter, renowned for his paintings devoted to peasant life and ordinary people.
Life
Alexe ...
and Bugaevsky-Blagodarny (who painted the only survived portrait of Vladimir Borovikovsky).
After 1819 Borovikovsky became a
Freemason
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
, member of a
lodge
Lodge is originally a term for a relatively small building, often associated with a larger one.
Lodge or The Lodge may refer to:
Buildings and structures Specific
* The Lodge (Australia), the official Canberra residence of the Prime Ministe ...
''
Dying Sphinx''. At that time he mostly painted icons, including
Iconostasis
In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...
of the Smolensky Cemetery church and some icons for
Kazan Cathedral in
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 ...
.
On April 6, 1825 he died suddenly of a heart attack and was interred in the
Lazarevskoe Cemetery
Lazarevskoe Cemetery (russian: Лазаревское кладбище) is a historic cemetery in the centre of Saint Petersburg, and the oldest surviving cemetery in the city. It is part of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, and is one of four cemeterie ...
of the
Alexander Nevsky Lavra
Saint Alexander Nevsky Lavra or Saint Alexander Nevsky Monastery was founded by Peter I of Russia in 1710 at the eastern end of the Nevsky Prospekt in Saint Petersburg, in the belief that this was the site of the Neva Battle in 1240 when Ale ...
in
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 ...
.
Characteristics of the works
In the late 1790s, Borovikovsky gains fame as a famous portrait painter. He painted with his left hand.
His work is dominated by chamber portraits. In female images, Borovikovsky embodies the ideal of beauty of his era.
The artist subtly conveys the inner world of the people he portrays. In a chamber, sentimental portrait with limited emotional expression, the master can convey the diversity of innermost feelings and experiences of the models portrayed. For the canvas "Catherine II for a walk in the Tsarskoselsky park (1794), submitted to the Academy of Arts, Borovikovsky was appointed an academician.
In the 1810s Borovikovsky attracted a strong, energetic personality, he focuses on the citizenship, nobility, dignity of the portrayed. The appearance of his models becomes more restrained, the landscape background is replaced by a depiction of the interior.
В. Borovikovsky painted several ceremonial portraits. Borovikovsky's ceremonial portraits show the brush's mastery of texture: the softness of velvet, the brilliance of gilded and satin vestments, and the sparkle of precious stones.
The work of Borovikovsky is a fusion of classicist and sentimental styles.
In his later years, Borovikovsky returned to religious painting, including several icons for the ongoing construction of the
Kazan Cathedral and the iconostasis of the Church of Smolensk cemetery in St. Petersburg. He gave painting lessons to the then aspiring artist
Alexey Venetsianov
Alexey Gavrilovich Venetsianov (russian: Алексей Гаврилович Венецианов; 18 February 1780–4 January 1847) was a Russian painter, renowned for his paintings devoted to peasant life and ordinary people.
Life
Alexe ...
.
Works
File:"Mary, mother of Jesus" by Luka Borovyk, 1771.jpg, "Mary, mother of Jesus" by Luka Borovyk (1771)
File:Catherine_II_walking_by_V.Borovikovskiy_(1794,_Tretyakov_gallery).jpg, Catherine II
, 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 Anha ...
in Tsarskoe Selo
Tsarskoye Selo ( rus, Ца́рское Село́, p=ˈtsarskəɪ sʲɪˈlo, a=Ru_Tsarskoye_Selo.ogg, "Tsar's Village") was the town containing a former residence of the Russian imperial family and visiting nobility, located south from the cen ...
(1794)
File:Borovikovsly Levitzky.jpg, Portrait of Dmitry Levitzky
Dmitry Grigoryevich Levitsky (russian: Дмитрий Григорьевич Левицкий, May 1735 – 17 April 1822) was a Russian portrait painter and Academician.
Biography
He was born to , a priest, who was also an amateur painter and ...
(1796)
File:Vladimir Borovikovsky - Mirza-Kuli-Khan (GRM).jpg, Portrait of Morteza Qoli Khan Qajar
Morteza Qoli Khan Qajar ( fa, مرتضی قلی خان قاجار, 1750/1755 – either 1798 in St. Petersburg or 1800 at Astrakhan) - was a prince of Persia's Qajar dynasty, and the brother of Agha Mohammad Khan. A protégé of the Russian ...
(1796)
File:Borovikovsky maria Lopukhina.jpg, Portrait of Maria Lopukhina (1797)
File:Borovikovsky borovsk.jpg, Portrait of F. A. Borovsky (1799)
File:Borovikovsky Pavel I.jpg, Portrait of Paul I Paul I may refer to:
*Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch
*Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople
*Pope Paul I (700–767)
*Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia
*Paul ...
, Emperor of Russia (1800)
File:Borovikovsky_portrait_of_Kurakine_A_1802.jpg, Portrait of Alexander Kurakin (1801-1802)
File:Maria Pavlovna of Russia by V.Borovikovskiy (1800s, Pavlovsk).jpg, Portrait of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (1800s)
File:Vladimir_Borovikovsky_001_(portrait_of_Gavrila_Derzhavin).jpg, Portrait of Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin (1811)
File:S.A.Raevskaya_by_Borovikovsky.jpg, Portrait of S. A. Rayevskaya (1813)
File:Borovikovsky lobanovy Rostovsky.jpg, Portrait of A. G. and A. A. Lobanov-Rostovsky (1814)
File:Karađorđe_Petrović,_by_Vladimir_Borovikovsky,_1816.jpg, Karađorđe
Đorđe Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе Петровић, ), better known by the sobriquet Karađorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Карађорђе, lit=Black George, ; – ), was a Serbian revolutionary who led the struggle for his country's independ ...
Serbian Prince (1816)
File:Borovikovsky_Volkonsky_Grigory.jpg, Portrait of Prince G.S. Volokonsky
File:Borovikovsky arharova.jpg, Portrait of Ye. A. Arkharova (1820)
File:Ioannis varvakis.jpg, Portrait of Ioannis Varvakis
Ioannis Varvakis ( el, Ιωάννης Βαρβάκης; 1745–1825), also known as Ivan Andreevich Varvatsi (russian: Иван Андреевич Варваци), was a Greek privateer, benefactor, and member of the Filiki Eteria.
Origins, early ...
Literature
*
See also
*
List of Russian artists
This is a list of Russians artists. In this context, the term "Russian" covers the Russian Federation, Soviet Union, Russian Empire, Tsardom of Russia and Grand Duchy of Moscow, including ethnic Russians and people of other ethnicities living in Ru ...
References
External links
Online gallery and biography
Borovikovsky VL Russian and Ukrainian painter, portraitist.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borovikovsky, Vladimir
1757 births
1825 deaths
18th-century painters from the Russian Empire
19th-century painters from the Russian Empire
Orientalist painters
Russian male painters
Russian portrait painters
Russian people of Ukrainian descent
People from the Cossack Hetmanate
Burials at Lazarevskoe Cemetery (Saint Petersburg)
Painters from Saint Petersburg
19th-century male artists from the Russian Empire