Sylvester Shchedrin stood at the origins of Russianromantic landscape. Despite the fact that his life was short, he left behind a lot of beautiful works. The most famous cycle of the artist - “New Rome. Castle of the Holy Angel. Thanks to Shchedrin's works, the landscape in Russia goes to a new level and begins to be quoted as an independent genre.
Youth in Russia
Winter frosty day in an old noble familySylvester Shchedrin was born. The artist's biography is mainly associated with Italy, here he created his best canvases. Only the painter's youth passed in Russia. Despite the years spent abroad, the artist always felt like a Russian person and was keenly interested in the fate of his homeland. He was born in February 1791 in the family of the rector of the Academy of Fine Arts, Theodosius Fedorovich Shchedrin. Uncle, Semyon Fedorovich, was a professor at the Academy and led his class. Needless to say, with such gifted relatives, the boy’s fate was sealed.
At 9 years old Shchedrin became a graduate of the Academy.When it came time to choose a specialization, he was going to enter the class of his uncle, specializing in sentimental landscape. But Semyon Fedorovich unexpectedly dies, and the young man chooses Professor Mikhail Ivanov as mentor.
1808 brought the student the first, small silvermedal for drawing from life. The following year, for his success in painting, he was awarded a small gold. And in 1812 Shchedrin graduated from the Academy with the award of a large gold medal for the canvas “View from Petrovsky Island”. Such an award gave the graduate the right to travel to Italy to get acquainted with the rich kind and masterpieces of classical art, the so-called "pensionership". But because of the war with Napoleon, the journey had to be postponed. Only in 1818, the artist finally managed to leave for Italy. He will not return to Russia anymore.
Italy
In 27 years Shchedrin falls in Rome.Initially, he settled with the poet Konstantin Batiushkov. After strict cold Petersburg with eternal rains, sunny Italian nature seemed to the artist to be a paradise on earth. He works exclusively from nature, which for that time was a revolutionary move. The artist does not just write, he enjoys picturesque views of green valleys and azure sea. He is very good at conveying the effects of light, atmosphere and air. The real singer of Italian nature becomes Sylvester Shchedrin. Pictures of the artist want to buy not only Russian, but also sophisticated local collectors.
После Рима Щедрин отправился в Неаполь.However, revolutionary unrest was brewing there and it was not safe to remain. The painter once again settled in Rome. In 1823, he created his most famous painting - “New Rome. Castle of the Holy Angel. In the same year, the retirement pension of the Academy of Arts expired, the time came to return to their homeland. But the work Shchedrin enjoyed such success in Italy that he decided to stay here. Again, the artist moved to Naples. In the city, he spends the winter, and in the warm season he travels around small coastal towns, making full-scale sketches.
It is not known whether Shchedrin planned to return toRussia From the correspondence it is clear that the fate of the Motherland and national art was very disturbing to him, although he did not hurry to leave Italy. One way or another, he was not destined to return. The artist was knocked down by a serious illness, from which neither expensive treatment at the resorts, nor charlatan drugs helped. Sylvester Feodosiyevich Shchedrin died at the age of 39, in November 1830.
Creation
The formation of the landscape as such, andRomantic in particular, is associated in Russia with the names of Shchedrin and Aivazovsky. Before these masters, the image of nature was considered an elegant salon genre and did not have much weight. Preference was given to portraits and historical paintings. Nature was seen mainly as a backdrop for model placement or military battles. The romantic landscape was preceded by sentimental, as a rule, depicting peaceful pastorals or nostalgic types of country estates. Romanticism humanized nature, now it becomes the actor in the picture, expresses the thoughts of the artist. Favorite plot of romantic artists - the sea and mountains. Shchedrin began in the framework of classicism, but quickly moved away from him. Its picturesque sunny valleys and sea views in the moonlight belong to the romantic genre.
Many works of the artist did not get to Russia,breaking up on private Italian collections. Not all the heritage of the painter is known and taken into account. In the Petersburg Russian Museum you can see "View of Amalfi near Naples", "View of the Colosseum in Rome", "Waterfall in Tivoli near Rome". In the Tretyakov Gallery are "Moonlight Night in Naples", "Matromanio Grotto", "Big Harbor on the Island of Capri", "Small Harbor in Sorrento". Some works are kept in regional museums, for example, "View of Naples from the road Pozilippo" or "Grotto with a view of Vesuvius."
Castle of the Holy Angel
«Замок святого Ангела» (1823–1825) - самый famous plot Shchedrin. Strictly speaking, it was not a picture, but a whole cycle of eight canvases under a common name. The first work was such a smashing success that, due to numerous requests, Shchedrin made several more repetitions, varying the light and time of day. One of the works is in the Tretyakov Gallery.
На холсте художник изобразил набережную Тибра not far from the house where he lived. The background is given to the "old" Rome. Here you can see the castle and the cathedral, lost in the air mist. In the foreground are old residential buildings, a quay and fishing boats. The work of the carefully drafted figures of poor fishermen gives particular credibility. The picture lives and breathes. Shchedrin emphasizes contrasts: the magnificent Roman past and not the most stately present stand on the canvas.
"Veranda entwined with grapes"
The motif of green arbors and terraces was one offavorite in the period of mature work Shchedrin. He himself called him "Pergolat." Pergola in Italian - veranda or alley under the roof, covered with curling greens. In these paintings, the artist experimented with a plausible transfer of light-air space, seeking the liveliness of the canvas. The most famous painting on this story - "The veranda, entwined with grapes" (1828). Hot Italian noon. A group of people stopped to relax in the cool terrace. We do not know if this is family or occasional companions. It is evident that they are tired of the sweltering heat. People here are not just extras, each figure is expressive and not accidental. They are in unity with nature and complement it, without them the picture would look unfinished. The fertile shadow alternates with golden sunny squares, the sea is blue in the background. Looking at the picture, the viewer himself falls into this hot Italian summer.
"Naples on a moonlit night"
In the last period of his life, Sylvester Shchedrin got carried awayseascapes with dramatic lighting. He wrote several night scenes depicting the sea, flooded with alarming moonlight. One of them is in Petersburg, it is “Naples on a moonlit night” (1829). The picture can be divided into three parts. To the right is a dark sea with boat silhouettes. On the left are urban buildings and a boat dock where fishermen bask in the fire. The picture is crowned by a romantic sky covered with clouds, where a night light looks out in the gap between the clouds. On this canvas, the artist solves a difficult task: to combine in a single composition the cold moonlight and the warm flame of a burning fire.
