Aivazovsky and sea battles on his best canvases. Aivazovsky’s painting “Chesme Battle”: a brief description of the artist’s canvas Bead weaving

Aivazovsky's sea battle is undoubtedly one of the most common themes depicted in his canvases. The legendary painter admired the exploits of the heroic sailors who defended their Fatherland, and gladly glorified them in his paintings. Thanks to his work, it was possible to perpetuate the memory of many events and glorious episodes from the history of the Russian fleet. The artist owes his world fame to many masterpieces.

Aivazovsky’s painting “Chesme Battle”, description of the best masterpiece

Ivan Aivazovsky’s canvas “” is deservedly called one of the most striking and famous works of the greatest marine painter among those dating back to the early period of his work. It is dedicated to the most significant episode of the Russian-Turkish war, which at the end played a decisive role in the signing of a peace agreement between the countries.

The canvas takes us back to the distant year 1770, on the night of June 25-26, when the ships of the Russian flotilla managed to block a significant part of the Turkish ships in Chesme Bay and destroy them. Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” became the best description of the grandiose battle; in it, the author managed to perfectly combine two opposing feelings: to reflect the drama of the event for one side and to “imbue” literally every stroke with a feeling of triumph, heroism, and brilliant victory.

In the foreground of the picture the outlines of the flagship of the Russian fleet loom proudly, and inside the bay Turkish ships are burning and exploding, and fragments of masts are scattered.

The black-gray smoke rising from the scarlet flame mixes with the clouds through which the moon breaks through, and seems to be absolutely calmly observing, shedding its cold light, everything that is happening below.

The viewer’s attention in Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” is captured by a group of people in the water - these are Turkish sailors who were able to escape after the explosion of their ship. They try to grab hold of the wreckage of its masts and hold on, calling in vain for help.

Describing Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme”, it should be noted how it amazes with its high skill, virtuosic technique and realistic images.

Here the colors are brilliantly collected, conveying the tragedy and triumph of the situation, emphasizing the powerful mixture of elements: water, fire and air.

Aivazovsky's canvases about the Battle of Sinop

Among the best paintings of the famous painter, who devoted many works to describing military battles during the Crimean War, two more dedicated to the Battle of Sinop are confidently included.

The battle took place in November 1853, after the Turkish state declared war on Russia. The fleet under the command of Nakhimov set off in the direction of the enemy’s shores and, coming as close as possible, destroyed all the Turkish ships based in Sinop Bay in a few hours.

On one canvas - "" - Aivazovsky captured the early morning and the very beginning of a victorious battle for the Russian fleet: the sea, small waves on which sailing ships sway, the sky covered with gray clouds and the first clouds of smoke from cannon shots.

On the second canvas, dedicated to the Battle of Sinop, Aivazovsky depicted. The Turkish ships, burning with a bright flame, throw burnt chips into the black, but already calm water. Not far away, Russian ships stood proudly, enjoying their triumph.

The famous painting “The Battle of Navarino” by Aivazovsky

The famous canvas by Aivazovsky, written by the author in 1846, depicts one of the most significant events in the history of the Russian fleet and the events that glorified it. History takes us to October 1827, when a battle took place with the Turkish-Egyptian fleet in Navarino Bay.

In the foreground is the famous Russian flagship "Azov", it was badly damaged as a result of the battle, but at the same time decides to board the enemy ship. As a result, Russian sailors move to the enemy deck to destroy it.

With a skillful brush, the master conveyed the tragedy and heroism of the event, despite the raging fire and clouds of smoke, fragments of the masts of broken ships, the activity of the battle - no one doubts the outcome.

Other paintings

Ivan Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” was created in 1868. It is the only canvas describing the events of the Chesme Battle. For painting the canvas, the artist was awarded the Catherine Order. The painting is included in the list of “Top 200 Best Paintings” according to Maxim magazine.

History of creation

The idea came to Aivazovsky’s mind after a trip he made in 1866. The artist spent the whole year traveling with his wife, Anna. For the first time, the creator came across the dates of the battle, and then decided to study the issue personally. By order of the emperor, the artist was provided with data from the archive. A personal servant was assigned, whose duties included monitoring the artist’s work.

The painting was planned to be delivered by Navy Day. A militaristic policy was beginning in the country, and Aivazovsky’s desire to paint a picture about the Battle of Chesma was received with a bang. After its delivery, the artist received a monetary reward and was assigned to the order that was popular at that time.

Features of the picture

The work was drawn in two stages. The main element was oil. First, the outlines of the ships were created. It was important to preserve their structure while depicting the view historically correctly. At this stage, the work was redrawn twelve times. Aivazovsky could not accurately capture the condition of the masts, and was extremely worried about this. Then the background was formed. The artist managed to capture the fire and the flame rising to the sky right away.

The artist spent a couple of months painting the image of sailors drifting on the wreckage. The painting was painted in a year and three weeks, after which it was varnished and handed over to the emperor's envoy. The grand opening took place at the Peterhof Palace.

Writing style

The picture is painted with short strokes, the brush is turned a couple of centimeters to the left. The base of the tip is used when the middle part is not used. Therefore, a feeling of neat strokes is created, without excessive application of paint. The image of the ships was leveled using a scraper; straight lines were smoothed with a slipway.

Varnishing took place in two stages. First, the emulsion was applied to ships using a mixture with zero hydrogen oxide. The rest was treated with a three percent thinning fluid to give the background a natural look without layering brush strokes.

I.K. Aivazovsky is an outstanding Russian marine painter, collector, and philanthropist. His paintings are rightfully considered masterpieces, and the author himself enjoys fame not only in Russia, but also abroad. The artist was a member of several European academies, which is the best proof of the recognition of his work abroad.

general description of work

At the beginning of his career as an artist, Aivazovsky was strongly influenced by the famous Russian painter of the romantic movement K.P. The latter had such a strong impression on the young and aspiring master that at first he simply imitated him.

“Chesme Battle” - a painting by Aivazovsky, the history of which is closely connected with the early stage of his work, is the best confirmation of this. In this monumental and large-scale canvas, the painter embodied the best principles of his teacher: the courage and grandeur of the plan, the brightness and liveliness of the image, the sublime style of the images. Following the principles of romanticism, the author did not skimp on dramatic colors.

Features of the canvas

Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” demonstrates the best achievements of painting in the genre of romanticism. The fact is that at this time the young and talented artist created under the influence of the era. In order to emphasize the majesty of the victory of the Russian fleet, he even made some deviations from historical reality, slightly shifting the position of the ships. The artist primarily focused on the image of the fire, which, despite the tragedy of the situation, gives the canvas a major tone.

Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” is one of the author’s first major works in the marine genre. The artist did not set out to reproduce the picture of the battle with documentary accuracy, because this had already been done by the German painter Ya.F. Hackert by special order of Catherine II. This author drew the location of all ships and fleets of the warring parties in strict order, based on documentary evidence, memoirs, and data from ship logs.

Therefore, Aivazovsky decided to deviate somewhat from the realities of the event. Taking the work of his predecessor as a basis and carefully working with documentary materials, he created his own original canvas, with which he glorified the victory of the Russian fleet. This was quite in the spirit of his time, when the romantic direction in Russian art was dominant.

Historical plot

One of the main battles of the Russian-Turkish war was the Battle of Chesme. Aivazovsky, whose painting is dedicated to this important event of the 18th century, chose it as the subject for his canvas for two reasons. Firstly, this victory clearly demonstrated the increased power of the Russian fleet, and, secondly, there were many documents, memories, and most importantly, a similar work by a German artist already existed, which influenced the author.

In addition, this battle had a resonance in Russian society. Count Orlov's famous dispatch, in which he reported on the victory, circulated from hand to hand. Of course, such a historical fact could not help but attract the attention of such a famous marine painter as Aivazovsky, who was the artist of the Main Naval Staff.

Description

Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” was painted in 1848. As mentioned above, this was an early period in the artist’s work. The main element of the work is a fire, which gives the impression of a terrible, but at the same time spectacular fireworks. The artist deliberately made the outlines of the ships somewhat vague so that the viewer would not be distracted from the main idea of ​​the work. All attention should have been focused precisely on this powerful fiery stream that soars upward.

As you know, representatives of romanticism very often played on contrasts, thereby further enhancing the impression of what was happening. Aivazovsky was no exception. In contrast to the burning sea, which seems to merge with the night sky, a light yellow moon peeks out from behind the clouds. She casts dim rays down. They slightly shade the brightness of the terrible battle. Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” depicts in the background figures of people who were apparently thrown overboard by a shock wave into the sea. The drama of what is happening intensifies: the viewer, looking at the picture, understands that they cannot do without help, and yet this very help will be very difficult for them to receive in view of the disaster that has occurred.

The meaning of the painting in the artist’s work

“Chesme Battle” - a painting by Aivazovsky, the description of which this article was devoted to, occupies a prominent place in the gallery of his paintings. She is, as it were, an intermediate link between his romantic hobbies and the transition to monumental battle painting. It outlined the principles of depiction: colorful reproduction of the battle, special attention to the image of the water surface, which merges with the sky, as well as the use of bright, saturated colors.

In the history of the Russian fleet, the Battle of Chesma is one of the glorious heroic events. Aivazovsky himself, of course, could not have witnessed these events that unfolded on the night of June 26, 1770. But at the same time, the artist was very reliably and convincingly able to reproduce the picture of a naval battle on his canvas. Ships burn and explode, fragments of masts fly up to the sky, rising bluish-scarlet flames mix with the clouds, the moon calmly contemplates what is happening from above. Its calm and cold light seems to emphasize the hellish mixture of fire, sea and water. The feeling is as if Aivazovsky himself, when creating this picture, was experiencing the ongoing event, during which the Russian sailors won. Despite the cruelty of what is seen in the picture, it leaves the impression of a grandiose fireworks display and grandeur. The plot of the film was one of the episodes of the Russian-Turkish war, in which Russia fought for dominance in the Black and Mediterranean seas. The Turkish fleet at that historical period was considered the strongest. But after several military battles, he disappeared in panic into Chesme Bay. Pursuing the enemy, Russian ships blocked the exit from the bay, and in one night completely destroyed and burned the entire Turkish fleet. The Russian fleet lost only 11 sailors that night, while the Turks lost 10 thousand. Human. Russia has never experienced such a victory in the history of naval battles. Count Alexey Orlov commanded the events, and Catherine II, being the empress. She ordered the erection of a monument to the heroes who participated in the Battle of Chesme in Tsarskoe Selo. The monument was made in the form of a column, which still stands today in the center of a large pond. The allegorical sculpture is completed by the silhouette of a double-headed eagle, which breaks the marble crescent. Aivazovsky, wanting to feel the scale of a naval battle, took part in some wars, after which he created many battle-themed paintings. Aivazovsky’s painting “The Battle of Chesme” demonstrates the brilliant skill of the painter, his technique and courage of execution. In the same 1848 Aivazovsky painted the painting “The Battle of the Cheos Strait,” which was a worthy match for the Battle of Chesma, glorifying the victory of the Russian fleet. Aivazovsky was the brightest of the last representatives of the romantic mood in Russian painting. This was especially evident in his pathetic heroic naval battles.

Aivazovsky Ivan Konstantinovich

Chesme fight - Aivazovsky. 1848. Oil on canvas. 193 x 183 cm. Museum: Aivazovsky Art Gallery, Feodosia

A recognized master marine painter, the artist, like no one else, knew how to depict the sea in any state and various ships - from a small boat to a huge sailboat. The painting depicts the moment of a naval battle between the Russian fleet and the Turkish one, in which the latter suffered a crushing defeat and lost many ships and its experienced sailors.

The canvas reflects the decisive moment of the night battle, when the Turkish fleet was completely defeated. This is a monstrous and frightening sight - huge ships are burning and sinking like splinters, and the surviving sailors are barely clinging to the remains of the masts and rigging. The incredible power and horror of this battle is emphasized by the highly rising columns of flame, so that it seems that the sea itself is blazing with hellish flames. The flashes of fire are painted so masterfully that it creates the feeling of a painting bursting with heat.

The use of contrasting colors gives the painting depth of perspective and volume. The overall color scheme is very dark and gloomy, which not only corresponds to the tragedy of the event, but is also due to the fact that the battle took place at night, and the smoke and fumes from the ships dying in the fire literally covered the horizon. The sky as such is not visible on the canvas; it is covered with a dense curtain of black mourning smoke, against which the fiery splashes of colors of burning ships and the yellow moon, barely visible under the blanket of smoky puffs, clearly stand out.

In the foreground of the picture you can see a boat crowded with people who have just blown up one of the Turkish ships with their fireship. This explosion caused a huge fire, which soon destroyed almost the entire linear Turkish fleet. On the other side of the canvas, a handful of Turks who survived the battle are trying to escape on the remains of their sunken ship. Their only hope of survival lies in being captured before they drown in the murky waters of the Aegean Sea.

This historic battle allowed Russian troops not only to prevent the Turks from freely moving their ships through this area of ​​the Aegean Sea, but also to establish a blockade of the Dardanelles, which prevented the main forces of the Turkish fleet from entering the Black Sea.

Using such a limited color range, the artist managed not only to convey the realities of naval battle, but also to do it so masterfully that the picture looks like a real photo report from the scene of a historical event, striking the imagination of a modern viewer with the grandeur and danger of naval battles of past eras.