Karl Pavlovich Bryullov - a famous painter, draftsman, watercolorist who lived in the first half of the 19th century. His work brought the freshness of vitality, romance, passion for the beauty of the world into the painting of modern academic classicism. World fame for this artist brought his work "The Last Day of Pompeii."
Our article presents a biography of Karl Bryullov. Briefly telling about this artist is not enough. Of course, Karl Pavlovich deserves a detailed review of his life and work. The biography of Karl Bryullov presented below is dedicated to this.
The origin and childhood of the artist
Karl Pavlovich Bryullov was born in St. Petersburg on December 23, 1799. His father, Pavel Ivanovich, is an academician of ornamental sculpture. In this regard, it is not surprising that all seven children in the family had artistic abilities. Moreover, five sons - Ivan, Pavel, Alexander, Fedor and Karl - became artists. The greatest fame, however, fell to the latter.
In childhood, Karl was distinguished by soreness. The biography of Karl Bryullov is marked by the fact that for seven years he almost did not get out of bed. Karl Pavlovich suffered scrofula. Very early, the boy showed great ability to painting. Pavel Ivanovich studied with his son since childhood. As a teacher, he was very strict. Karl's father could even leave his sick son without breakfast just because he did not complete the drawing task.
Studying at the Academy of Arts, first works
When Karl was 10 years old, he was admitted to the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. From the very beginning of his studies, the boy stood out among his peers by the serious training that he received under the guidance of his father, as well as his bright talent. Karl Pavlovich passionately loved to draw. For the sake of this, he sometimes even imitated attacks of scrofula, went to the infirmary and painted portraits of friends there.
The boy’s teachers at the Academy were A. Egorov, A. Ivanov, V. Shebuyev and others. The work “Narcissus looking into the water” was his first recognized work. The plot is based on the Greek myth of a handsome young man who was captivated by his own reflection in the water. In 1819, Bryullov was awarded the second degree gold medal for this work. And two years later, for the painting entitled “The Appearance of Three Angels to Abraham” he was awarded the Big Gold Medal.
Life with brother
Karl Pavlovich in 1819 settled with his brother Alexander in the workshop. His brother was an assistant to Montferrand on the construction of the famous St. Isaac's Cathedral. Bryullov at that time earned his living by creating portraits to order. Among his customers were people who later joined the Council of the Society for the Promotion of Artists. Karl Pavlovich, at their request, created "Policeman's Repentance" and "Oedipus and Antigone." For this, he was given the opportunity to make a four-year retirement trip to Italy with his brother.
A trip to Rome, works of the Italian period
The biography of Karl Bryullov continues with the fact that he, together with Alexander, went to Rome in 1822. Here the brothers studied the art of masters of the Renaissance. Karl Pavlovich devoted a lot of time to training, but his social life was quite saturated. During the time spent in Italy, the artist wrote many different works. In the works “Italian noon” (pictured above) and “Italian morning”, which were created for the report of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists that sent him abroad, the author turned to everyday scenes of grape harvest and morning washing, rather than mythological or historical subjects. The painting "Italian Morning" was appreciated by Nicholas I. He gifted this work to the Empress.
Karl Bryullov in the Italian period of his work focused on portraiture. Among his works, it is worth noting the portrait created by about 1832 of Countess Yu. Samoilova with an arapponchik, in 1828 - the musician M. Vielgorsky, in 1832 - Giovannina Pacchini (the famous "Horsewoman", pictured above), as well as a self-portrait, written about In 1834, the biography of Karl Bryullov was noted. Interesting facts about the artist and his outstanding works are numerous, as you will see by reading this article to the end.
Return to Russia
Returning to Russia, the artist created in Moscow several works of a more intimate nature. Among them are the portraits of A. Tolstoy, A. Pogorelsky, as well as I. Vitali at work. A little later, living in St. Petersburg, Karl Pavlovich created portraits of I. Krylov (in 1841) and V. Zhukovsky (in 1838). It is noteworthy that he performed the last work specifically for the lottery, which was organized to raise funds for the redemption of T. G. Shevchenko from serfdom.
Meeting with Yu. P. Samoilova, a new trip to Italy
At one of the receptions held in 1827, the artist met Samoilova Julia Pavlovna. This countess became for Karl Pavlovich love, closest friend and artistic ideal. Together with her, the artist went to Italy to the ruins of the cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii, who died in 79 AD. e. due to volcanic eruption. Bryullov, inspired by the description of this tragedy by the Roman author Pliny the Younger, who was her eyewitness, realized that this event would be the theme of his next work. For three years the artist collected material at excavations and in archaeological museums. He strove to ensure that every item presented on his canvas, consistent with that era.
"The last day of Pompeii"
For six years, work continued on a painting called "The Last Day of Pompeii." In the process of its creation, the author made many sketches, sketches and sketches, and also changed the composition several times. When the picture was presented to the public (it happened in 1833), it caused a real explosion of delight. Prior to this, none of the works related to the Russian school of painting, has not been awarded such great European fame. At exhibitions in Paris and Milan in 1834, her success was amazing. Bryullov in Italy became an honorary member of several art academies at once, and in the French capital he was awarded the Gold Medal.
What can explain the success of this picture? Not only with a successful plot that corresponded to the romantic consciousness of representatives of that distant era, but also with the way the author divided the crowd of dying people into local groups. Each of these groups illustrates a certain affect - greed, despair, self-sacrifice, love. The power of the elements, which is represented in the picture, destroys indiscriminately everything around, bursts into the harmony of being. For contemporaries of the artist, she aroused thoughts of unfulfilled hopes, of a crisis of illusions. This canvas brought its creator worldwide fame. Anatoly Demidov, the customer of the painting, presented it to Nicholas I.
Expedition and its fruits
It was difficult for Bryullov to create something superior to this canvas. After writing it, he fell into a creative crisis. Karl Pavlovich simultaneously set to work, but did not finish any of them. In May 1835, the artist went on an expedition of V.P. Orlov-Davydov, which was sent to Turkey and Greece. On the brig "Themistocles" he came from Athens to Constantinople. The commander of this ship was V.A. Kornilov. His portrait, created in 1835 (pictured above), is one of the best watercolors that marked the biography of Karl Bryullov. His creativity, impressed by the expedition, was subsequently replenished with a whole series of watercolors, paintings and graphic drawings. Among them should be noted the work of 1835, "The Wounded Greek" and "The Turk Riding a Horse"; "Turkish woman" (pictured below), created between 1837 and 1839; 1849 paintings "The Bakhchisarai Fountain", "Sweet Waters in Constantinople" and "Harbor in Constantinople".
Gala Reception in Odessa
Bryullov in the fall of 1835 was forced to return to Russia by order of the tsar. The first of the Russian cities where he arrived was Odessa. Residents of the city gave the artist a gala reception. M.S. Vorontsov, Governor General of Odessa, began to work on increasing the length of his stay in this city. However, the artist himself did not want to linger in these parts.
How Bryullov defended his independence
December 25, Bryullov arrived in Moscow. Acquaintance with A. S. Pushkin was an important event in his biography. After his arrival in Petersburg, the sovereign demanded that Karl Pavlovich write portraits of members of the imperial family. However, he always found reasons not to do the job. The courtiers were amazed at the insolence with which the artist belonged to dignitaries. Bryullov defended creative independence, he managed to make everyone respect himself.
Teaching and new work
Karl Bryullov, whose biography and work were known by that time in 1836, began working at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts as a professor, where he taught young artists. He created a whole "Bryullov school", which included his followers. Many famous masters, such as T. Shevchenko, P. Fedotov and others, grew up under the influence of Karl Pavlovich. The period of work at the Academy also includes the creation of about 80 new portraits. The most famous works of Bryullov of the 30s include portraits of V. A. Perovsky, the Shishmarev sisters (pictured above), Kukolnikov, singer A. Ya. Petrova. In addition, Bryulov participated in the painting of the Isakkiev Cathedral.
Events in the personal life of the artist
It should be noted that in the second half of the 1830s, Karl Pavlovich Bryullov was very lonely in his personal life. His biography is marked by a feeling for a woman named Yulia Samoilova, which we already talked about. However, at that time she was abroad. Karl Pavlovich at the age of forty met Emilia Timm, a gifted pianist. The father of this girl was the Riga burgomaster. Emilia, it must be said, had a difficult past. She honestly admitted to the artist in connection with her own father. However, pity and love blinded the artist. He hoped that feelings would overcome everything. So the biography of Karl Bryullov was marked by a wedding with Emilia. His personal life, however, was not easy. After 2 months, having survived the claims of the father of his chosen one and public scandal, he broke up with Emilia. Countess Samoilova soon returned to Russia. In 1841, the artist created her ceremonial portrait.
