Unit V
Itinerants
Ex. 1. Render in English
Передвижники - художники, входившие в российское демократическое художественное объединение "Товарищество передвижных художественных выставок" (ТПХВ), созданное в 1870 г. по инициативе И. Крамского, Г. Мясоедова, Н. Ге и В. Перова. Первая выставка состоялась в 1871 г. Передвижники испытали воздействие общественных и эстетических взглядов В. Белинского и Н. Чернышевского. Большую роль в формировании их творческой программы сыграл критик В. Стасов. П. Третьяков материально поддерживал передвижников, приобретая их произведения для своей галереи. Передвижники были убежденными реалистами, а выдвинутая ими программа народности искусства выражалась в изображении типических сторон и многогранных характеров социальной жизни, часто с критической тенденцией ("Земство обедает" Г. Мясоедова, 1872 г, "Встреча иконы" К. Савицкого, 1878 г.). Передвижники показывают не только бедность, но и красоту народного быта ("Приход колдуна на крестьянскую свадьбу" В Максимова, 1875 г.), не только страдание, но и стойкость перед лицом жизненных невзгод, мужество и силу характеров
("Бурлаки на Волге" И. Репина, 1873 г.), богатство и величие родной природы (пейзажи А. Саврасова, И. Шишкина, И. Левитана), героические страницы национальной истории (картины В. Сурикова) и освободительного народного движения ("Арест пропагандиста", 1892 г.; "Отказ от исповеди", 1885 г.; "Не ждали", 1888 г., И. Репина). Большое значение в их творчестве приобретают социально-бытовой портрет ("Курсистка" Н. Ярошенко, 1883 г.), пейзаж, а позже - историческая живопись, где главным действующим лицом выступает народ ("Утро стрелецкой казни" В. Сурикова, 1881 г.). Образы русской народно-сказочной фантазии оживают на полотнах В. Васнецова.
Произведения В. Сурикова, И. Репина, Н. Ге, В. Васнецова, И. Шишкина, И. Левитана, представляющие собой вершины передвижнического реализма, отличаются свободной, широкой манерой письма, передачей световоздушной среды с помощью рефлексов, цветных теней, свободой и разнообразием композиционных решений. Последняя 48-я выставка ТПХВ состоялась в 1923 г.
Ex. 2. Retell and discuss the text.
Ex. 3. Explain the following:
a) A painter is a monument to his work.
b) It is a sign of a real genius that it remains up spotted by success.
Ex. 4. Answer the questions:
a) What do we mean by the word “peredvizhniki”?
b) Do you know who left the Russian Academy of Art and organized the group of “Peredvizhniki”?
c) When did their first exhibition take place?
d) Who played a great role in forming their creative program?
e) Were they influenced by the public and esthetic views by V. Belinsky and N. Chernyshevsky?
f) Who supported them buying their paintings for his gallery?
g) What did they reveal in their canvases?
h) By what standards do we charge them and their works?
i) Did social needs and technical skills change from the 18th century?
j) What are the achievements of realism at the end of 18th century and at the beginning of the 19th century?
Exercises
Ex. 1. Arrange the following in pairs of synonyms:
to realize; desire; actual; man-made; discuss; to see; to reply; to express; to ask; to be acquainted; to try; to produce; deep; sitter; to understand; wish; real; artificial; to view; to leave; to answer; to convey; to inquire; to be familiar; to seek; to create; profound; mastery; to argue.
Ex. 2. Arrange the following in pairs of antonyms:
success; worthy; dependence; happy; wrong; to neglect; richness; poor; easy; failure; worthless; independence; unhappy; right; to pay attention; poverty; difficult; rich.
Ex. 3. Translate the following groups of words into Russian:
to paint – painter – painterly – painting;
to depict – pictorial – picture – picturesque;
to master – master – mastery – masterpiece;
to portray – portrayal – portrait – portraitist – portraiture;
worth – worthy – worthless;
a water-colour/a pastel picture;
a sketch;
a family group;
a ceremonial/an intimate portrait;
a self-portrait;
a shoulder-length/half-length/knee-length/full-length portrait;
a landscape;
a seascape;
a genre/historical painting;
a still life;
a battle piece;
a flower piece;
a masterpiece
Ex. 4. Read the dialogue and reproduce it. Try to learn it by heart.
On Art
- Hello! I’ve heard you are fond of Russian painting. Did you go to the exhibition yesterday?
- Yes, I did. It was devoted to those realistic artists, who are known as Itinerants (Peredvizhniki).
- I think up to the present day the art of the Itinerants has been held in high esteem by the people. Their works constitute the pride and glory of Russian culture, don’t they?
- Yes, they do. Even in nowadays too there is a continually growing interest in the art of the Itinerants. By the way I’ve seen a lot of visitors at the art gallery.
- But many pictures are reproduced in editions that ran into millions. You can buy them in the book shops everywhere.
- You see, I prefer to see these canvases in origin. I know many books have been written and albums published about the society’s leading members, films have been made about them and even monuments erected in their honour.
- Yes, in schools all over the country their art is a subject of study, isn’t it?
- Yes, it is. I fully agree with you. Frankly speaking I enjoyed the exhibition seeing the canvases by those famous artists.
- I would have visited the exhibition if you had called me. The only thing I know about it is that the exhibition had a great success.
- If it were not raining, I would call you. We’ll go to the museum next time. Agreed?
- Sure. I’m looking forward to visiting this place with great pleasure. See you then.
- Bye!
Ex. 5. Look at the pictures and put 10 questions to each. Then try to describe the pictures.
I. Kramskoy Portrait of Peasant Mina Moiseev (1882)
И. Крамской Портрет Мины Моисеева (1882)
I. Kramskoy An Unknown Woman. (1883)
И. Крамской Незнакомка (1883)
Grammar Exercises
Practice modal verbs
Ex. 1. Make suitable sentences from the table below using can.
Learning English
exciting.
Watching television
boring.
Visiting relatives
sometimes
interesting
Winter sports
can
often
be
painful
Going to the dentist
occasionally
hard work.
Meeting new people
dangerous
Travelling
good fun
E.g.: Travelling can often be boring.
Ex. 2. Rewrite these sentences using may or might. You can use either
Maybe you are right. I can't be sure. You may be right.
Perhaps George will help if you give him a ring. ____________
Possibly it's a mistake. ________________
Perhaps things won't be so bad after all. _______________
It's possible that she won't recognize you even if she sees you. _________________
Perhaps it's broken. ______________
Now put the sentences above into the past using may have or might have. _____________
Ex. 3. You hear a strange noise at night. What do you think it could be? Write sentences using these ideas.
a burglar? It could be a burglar.
a wild animal? __________
one of the neighbours? _______________
the wind in the trees? _________________
a car passing? ______________
someone snoring? __________________
someone at the door? _______________
a ghost? ________________
I. Kramskoy
Ivan Kramskoy was born in 1837 in the town of Ostrogorsk, Voronezh Province, into the family of a scrivener. From 1857 to 1863 he received training at the Academy of Art in St. Petersburg, and in 1863 led so-called “Rebellion of the fourteen”, when a group of young artists left the Academy after having challenged the dogmatic tradition cultivated there.
Kramskoy was one of those who laid the foundations of the Artel of Artists in St. Petersburg. He was also one of the initiators and the ideological leader of the Society for Circulating Art Exhibitions. As an art critic and theoretician he played an important role in promoting Russian realist art.
Kramskoy is an outstanding portrait painter. His self-portrait (1867), Portraits of Leo Tolstoy (1873), a portrait of the poet Nekrasov (1877), of the artist Litovchenko (1878) and others have enriched the treasure-chest of Russian figurative arts. His other significant canvases are Christ in the Desert (1872), Woodman (1874) and Mina Moiseev (1882). From 1863 to 1868 Kramskoy taught at the Drawing School of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists in St. Petersburg.
Ex. 1. Read the text and put questions to it.
Ex. 2. Select a reproduction of a portrait painting by Kramskoy and discuss it according to the following outline:
a) The general effect
b) The contents of the picture
c) The composition and colouring
d) Interpretation and evaluation
Ex. 3. Work in pairs. Persuade your partner to agree with your opinion that life is made much more comfortable if you regularly visit art exhibitions.
Ex. 4. Points for ponder:
a) A great painting enriches our experience of life, just as a great poem does or a great musical composition.
b) Is the appreciation of pictures a special faculty which only a few can possess
Ex. 5. Give Russian equivalents for the following English proverbs and sayings:
a) When one loves his art no service seems too hard.
b) The devil is not so black as he is painted.
c) When in doubt leave it out.
d) Art is long, life is short.
e) That’s a horse of another colour.
f) A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
Ex. 6. Read and learn the words before the text:
bright — яркий
development — развитие
to be closely connected with — быть тесно связанным с
talented artist — талантливый художник
outstanding public figure — выдающийся общественный деятель
to earn one's living — зарабатывать на жизнь
on arriving — прибыв, приехав
to be admitted to — быть принятым в
to be against smth. — быть против чего-л.
teaching methods — методы обучения
to head — возглавлять
to refuse — отказаться
on a traditional theme — на традиционную тему
to propose — предложить
to demand — требовать
to satisfy demands — удовлетворять требования
the right to choose — право выбора
the life around — окружающая жизнь
supporters — сторонники, соратники
to leave (the Academy) without graduating — уйти (из академии), не завершив обучение
later on — позднее, затем
inspirer — вдохновитель
to create — создавать, творить
excellent — великолепный
canvas — полотно, картина
"The Stranger" — «Портрет незнакомки»
"Christ in the Desert" — «Христос в пустыне»
"Mermaids" — «Русалки»
treasure — богатство, сокровище
contemporary — современник
portrait painter — художник-портретист
to show a great ability of — проявлять большую способность (к чему-л.)
to reveal the inner world — раскрывать внутренний мир
models — (зд.) люди, с которых писались портреты
to fight for — бороться за
social significance — важность для общества
technical skill — техника, мастерство
citizen — гражданин
to deserve — заслуживать
to display — выставлять
Ex. 7. Read and retell the text:
IVAN NIKOLAYEVICH KRAMSKOY (1837-1887)
The best and brightest period in the development of Russian art is closely connected with the name of Kramskoy. He is known not only as a talented artist but an outstanding art critic and public figure as well.
I.N. Kramskoy was born in 1837 in Voronezh Gubernia. His parents were poor and he had to start earning his living very early. On arriving in St. Petersburg in 1857, he was soon admitted to the Academy of Arts. While studying in the Academy he was against the teaching methods of arts and headed a group of fourteen students who refused to paint pictures on traditional themes proposed by their teachers. This group demanded the right to choose themes connected with the life around them. Their demands were not satisfied, and Kramskoy together with his supporters protested. They left the Academy without graduating. Later on he became an organizer and inspirer of the Association of Travelling Artists (Peredvizhniki).
Kramskoy created many great paintings which are an important part of Russian art. His excellent canvases such as "The Stranger," "Christ in the Desert," "Mermaids" are among the best treasures of Russian culture.
Kramskoy is also known for his portraits of his famous contemporaries: writers, poets, painters and actors. As a portrait painter Kramskoy shows a great ability of understanding and revealing the inner world of his models. He is a great master of realistic and psychological portraits.
All his life Kramskoy fought for social significance, realism and technical skill in art. The importance of Kramskoy as the leader of the Travelling Artists Group and art critic is great. Repin spoke of him as a great Russian artist and citizen and said that he deserved a national monument. Kramskoy's pictures are displayed in the Tretyakov Art Gallery in Moscow, the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg and other museums in Russia.
Ex. 8. Answer the following questions:
1. What is the name of Kramskoy connected with?
2. When was he born?
3. Why did he have to start earning his living very early?
4. Where did he study?
5. What did Kramskoy and his supporters demand from their teachers?
6. What association did he organize?
7. What were his most famous pictures?
8. Why was he so important as a portrait painter?
9. What did Kramskoy fight for all his life?
10.What did Repin say about him?
11.Where are Kramskoy's pictures displayed?
12.What is your favourite picture by Kramskoy? Why?
Exercises
Ex. 1. Explain the meaning of the prefixes in the following words:
unthinkable; unusual; unknown; useless; shapeless; disproportion; impossible.
Ex. 2. Match suitable adjectives from A to the nouns in B:
A
B
general
details
brilliant
handling
sharp
sketches
incomplete
outlines
careful
pictures
infinite
gradation of tone
perfect
execution
masterful
colourist
effect
Ex. 3. Make up sentences with the following expressions.
Begin with: I admire; I consider; I don’t think; I should say
brilliant execution; the general effect is perfect and pleasing; the details are altogether imperfect and unsatisfactory; to complete the details; to hurt the general effect; the value of tints.
Ex. 4. Translate:
— Я знаю, что вчера вы были в картинной галерее. Вы получили удовольствие?
— Certainly. I enjoyed every minute of my stay there.
— Что вам больше всего понравилось?
— It is hard to say. There are so many pictures in the gallery that it is impossible to answer your question.
— Я думаю, что в такую картинную галерею надо пойти несколько раз. Вы согласны со мной?
— Of course. I am going to the gallery tomorrow. I want to see the canvases of Russian avant-garde art once more.
— Можно к вам присоединиться?
— I'll be happy if you join me.
Speech Exercises
Ex. 1. Comment on the following quotations:
a) No pains, no gains.
b) A good beginning makes a good ending.
c) Every man is an architect of his own fortunes.
d) Jack of all trades and master of none.
Ex. 2. Points to ponder:
a) Some people live to create, some live to work.
b) It was Bryullov’s guiding thought that man is the principal treasure in the world.
c) It is possible to have common standards and yet disagree about individual art expression.
Ex. 3. Discussion. Answer the following questions:
a) Why is it important to study an artist’s drawings?
b) Does an artist use drawing only as a means of preparatory work?
c) What characterizes Repin’s drawings (Serov’s, Fyodorov’s, etc.)?
Ex. 4. Read the text and make up a dialogue about I.N. Kramskoy
N. A. Yaroshenko. Portrait of I.N. Kramskoi
Ivan Kramskoi has a place in the history of Russian culture as a talented portraitist, historical and genre painter, theorist, teacher and fervent opponent of dogmatism in art, and as one of the leaders of the Society of Peredvizhniki.
He was born in the village of Novaya Sotnya, near Ostrogozhsk in Voronezh Gubernia; he was the third son of a town council clerk. After his father's death, the twelve-year-old boy could no longer continue his education, and his artistic interests, which manifested themselves very early, found no support among those near to him. His fortunes changed quite by chance, after he was recommended as a retoucher to a visiting photographer in Ostrogozhsk, Ya. Danilevsky. In October 1853 Kramskoi left his native village with Danilevsky and after itinerating around various Russian towns finally found himself in St. Petersburg. Here he found employment with the capital's best photographer. Denier. His new friends, young artists, spotted his talent for drawing and advised him to study. In the autumn of 1857 he was accepted by the Academy of Arts.
Kramskoi's years of study coincided with the rise of social-democratic thought in Russia. The spread of the ideas of the revolutionary democrats — Chernyshevsky, Pisarev, Dobrolyubov, Herzen — struck a chord in the hearts of the young non-aristocratic intelligentsia, including the students at the Academy of Arts. A group of talented young people formed around Kramskoi, who even in Ostrogozhsk had been fascinated by the articles of the critic Belinsky.
Almost every evening young people gathered in Kramskoi's flat on Vasilievsky Island. In this little flat, something like a new Russian Academy was growing up, as yet small, but which would later develop into a large 'Artists' Artel'.
Meanwhile, the Academy maintained its former positions, but the bases of the old aesthetics were crumbling under the weight of new demands. The antagonism between the aspirations of Kramskoi's group and the traditional academic system led to open conflict in the autumn of 1863. Fourteen competitors for a gold medal refused to paint pictures on the required theme — 'Feast at Valhalla' — and asked to be allowed to choose their own subjects. When the Academy Council turned down their request, they left the Academy, headed by Ivan Kramskoi. The artists were put under secret surveillance and the press was forbidden to mention them.
1863 saw the establishment of the Artists Artel; its leading figure was Kramskoi, the initiator of the first art exhibition outside Petersburg (in Nizhny Novgorod). The young artists' protest found a sympathetic response in democratic circles. Kramskoi gave warm support to the Moscow artists (G. G. Myasoyedov, V. G. Perov, I. M. Pryanishnikov) who were founding the Peredvizhniki Society which for many decades following the signing of its Regulations in 1870 united Russia's leading artists, and became a synonym for Russian realist art.
A sensitive, highly principled man, Kramskoi was one of the leading figures in the Peredvizhniki Society and became the intellectual father of a whole generation of artists.
