1. В истории русского искусства различают два периода

2. Русская живопись развивалась в тесной связи преклонением перед иконописью.

3. Наивысший расцвет русской средневековой живописи относится к 14-15 векам.

4. Вершиной русской иконной живописи является картина А.Рублева «Троица».

5. С середины 16 века русская иконная живопись находится под влиянием западного искусства.

6. Строгановская школа отличается изысканностью цвета, тщательной отработкой деталей и тенденцией к украшательству.

7. Восточная европейская живопись этого периода  уделяет большое внимание сходству в изображении людей и животных.

8. В 1701 году русский царь Петр Великий заложил основы новых форм искусства , основанные на имитации искусства Западной Европы.

9. В 18 вере превалирующим жанром в живописи был классический портрет.

10. Для русских икон характерна плоская перспектива, удлиненные черты, глаза, раскрывающие душу, и золотые блики.

11. Передвижники стали серьезными соперниками художников, представляющих академическое искусство.

12. Представители направления передвижников особое внимание уделяли реалистичности изображения и социальной значимости объектов.

13. Полотна К. Брюллова характеризуются сочетанием академического классицизма с романтизмом, новизной сюжета, световыми эффектами, сложной композицией и блестящей виртуозностью кисти художника.

14.  Хотя П. Федотов и считался блестящим дилетантом в живописи, он был тонким наблюдателем, остроумным сатириком, предвосхитившим дальнейшие тенденции русской жанровой живописи.

15.  В 1872 году было основано общество передвижников. В их работах жанровая живопись приобретает обличающий характер.

16.  В конце 19 века пейзажная живопись вытесняет жанровую живопись.

17.  Русское искусство идет в том же направлении, что и современное европейское искусство.

18.  Ренессанс русского авангарда относится к 60-ым годам 20 века, а работы советских авангардистов были признаны во всем мире.

19. Крушение коммунизма в Советском Союзе разрушило культурные барьеры между Россией и остальным миром.

20.  Межкультурная коммуникация - это важный индикатор состояния мирового искусства.

Describing a picture

Ex. 1. Here are a few examples of how pictures can be described, analyzed, inter­preted and evaluated.

A

"Lady Elizabeth Delme and Her Children" by Reynolds is a typ­ical family group portrait in the Grand Style of English portrait painting. Lady Delme was the wife of a member of Parliament and belonged to the privileged class of the landed nobility. Here, with an air of apparently casual informality, she is shown on the terrace before her country-house, while behind stretch the broad acres of her family estate.

Reynolds has taken care that the gestures, facial expressions, and poses of his subjects are appropriate to their age, character, and social status. "The joy of a monarch," Dryden once wrote, "for the news of a victory must not be expressed like the ecstasy of a harlequin on the receipt of a letter from his mistress." So, in this portrait, Lady Delme is dignified and gracious, secure in the knowledge of her beauty and wealth. Her son John, aged five, as if sensing the responsibilities of manhood, gazes sternly toward the distant horizon. Her other son, Emelias Henry, in unmasculine skirts as befits his three years, is coy and winsome. The fourth member of the group, the unkempt Skye terrier, is the embodiment of loyal affection. Note the simplicity of the pyramidal design and the low-keyed colour scheme. These features were for Reynolds symbols of dignity and good taste.

B

The "Mrs. Sarah Siddons” by Gainsborough has the distinction of being not only a remarkable work of art, but a unique interpretaion of a unique personality. It is not only one of the artist's finest portraits, but also one of the best of the many likenesses of the great tragic actress, who sat to most of the celebrated masters of her day- It was painted in 1783—1785, when the queen of the tragic drama was in her twenty-ninth year and at the zenith of her fame.

An enthusiastic admirer who saw it in the Manchester exhibi­tion of 1857 wrote as follows: "The great tragic actress, who inter­preted the passions with such energy and such feeling, and who felt them so strongly herself, is better portrayed in this simple half-length in her day dress, than in allegorical portraits as the Tragic Muse or in character parts. This portrait is so original, so individu­al, as a poetic expression of character, as a deliberate selection of pose, as bold colour and free handling, that it is like the work of no other painter.

C

"Dedham Lock and Mill" (1820)

This is a brilliant example of Constable's view painting at its complete maturity. The salient features of the landscape are treat­ed in sharp relief— even those not strictly necessary— yet they merge perfectly under a serene, perfect light. This painting con­tains, in synthesis, all the elements of landscape which Constable loved best: the river, the boats, the soaked logs, the river vegeta­tion, the sun shining through the foliage of the tall trees, the scenes of rural life and, above all, Dedham Mill. The cultural origins of this work are apparent in the traditional composition, in the use of chiaroscuro, in the way the landscape fades into the distance, after the Dutch manner, and in the complex, laboured palette. The com­pact tree mass in the foreground is blocked in against a sky filled with movement, reflected in the calm and transparent waters over which plays a pallid sun, as we find in Ruisdael.

D

For Constable I have an affection that goes back to my earliest recollections. In the first years of my childhood, there hung in the halls of my father's house a large steel engraving of "The Corn­field". Often in the long hot summers of the Middle West, I used to lie on the floor, gazing for hours into this English landscape carried from the dry and burning world around me into a vista of blessed coolness, thick verdure, dampness and everlasting peace.

I lived in that picture. To me it was more beautiful than a dream: the boy, flat on the ground drinking from a running brook; the sheep dog waiting patiently with turned head; the ambling flock; the old silent trees; the fat clouds reeking moisture...

Some years later, when I went to London to study pictures, I saw "The Cornfield" and many others by Constable, and my first impressions were confirmed. In his grasp of the stable, one might almost say formidable, repose that man feels in the presence of nature, and in communicating the spiritual contentment induced by companionships with nature, Constable is the master of the English school.

E

Vladimir Lukich Borovikovskii: “Portrait of Madame Lopukhina” (1797 ).

This portrait is one of the most famous Russian paintings of the 18th century. Every aspect of it is carefully controlled and directed to produce a certain effect, to create an atmosphere that is both in accord with, and slightly differing from, the prevailing neoclassical style of the day. This is reflected in the subtle natural background, the classic simplicity of Madame Lopukhina's dress, and the cool sense of decorum, individual calm, and quiet assurance that is transmitted through the combined effect of these and other details. At the same time, Madame Lopukhina's image reflects many characteristics of Borovikovskii's style that depart from standard neoclassical practice. This portrait, for instance, is far less ceremonial than many that were produced at the time. Madame Lopukhina is not decked out in her finest clothing, she is not depicted among rich surroundings, neither is she stiff and artificially posed. Rather, she is dressed unostentatiously and placed in an obscure natural background, which while it conforms to the neoclassical idea of nature's secondary position, contrasts with the formality often associated with neoclassic 'symbolic' portraits. Her pose, too, though it may not be natural, at least seems to be so. The "languid" position of her body, her facial expression, the tilt of her head, all combine to create a sense of individual character. Madame Lopukhina is here at ease, in her natural state of mind and a psychologically revealing pose. Her gaze is familiar, her eyes expectant, her mouth bantering, while her posture indicates a relaxed, confident poise (осанка, посадка головы).

One of the most noticeable elements of Borovikovskii's technique in this painting, which contrasts with common neoclassical practice and some of of his other works, is the soft-focus nature of the portrait. Even more obvious is his delicate use of color to create a harmonious atmosphere in which, again, Madame Lopukhina's presence is a natural occurrence. The cool tones of the background, her dress, and her sash are softly contrasted with the warmer tones of her face and neck. Though aesthetically pleasing on its own, the color scheme has a more important place in this portrait, accentuating her figure through an elegant luminescence that is only heightened by the dimming of the corners. Together these elements may create a slightly 'sentimental' portrait, but one that is nevertheless effective, and testifies to Borovikovskii's skill and importance as an 18th century Russian painter. At the same time, it reflects the "elegance" typical of the best 18th century Russian painting and supports the idea that Borovikovskii "was at heart a realist who never failed . . . to create a likeness"

F

“Портрет Е.А.Нарышкиной” (1799)

Портрет Елены Александровны Нарышкиной (1785–1855) – один из лучших женских портретов, написанных Боровиковским в конце XVIII века. Нарышкина – дочь обер-камергера А.Л.Нарышкина. В первом браке она была замужем за сыном генералиссимуса А.В.Суворова графом А.А.Суворовым-Рымникским; овдовев, вышла вторично замуж за князя В.С.Голицына. Е.А.Нарышкина обладала хорошими музыкальными способностями. Итальянский композитор Дж. Россини написал в ее честь кантату. Она была дружна с поэтами В.А.Жуковским и И.И.Козловым. Художник изобразил еще юную очаровательную девушку, с томной улыбкой взирающую на зрителя. Героиня одета в изысканно-скромное платье, по плечам небрежно рассыпались кудри. В портрете ощущается влияние эстетики позднего классицизма – четкий рисунок, определенность контуров, колорит, тяготеющий к локальным цветам.