Pavel Fedotov. Fresh gentleman

In our new section, we will tell and show the most significant paintings for the events of our history and not only try to decipher the colorful details that are well understood by the artist’s contemporaries, but also show that paintings often live for a very long time and reflect problems that are well known today. Let's start with the eternal topic - Russian bureaucracy. Even today it is by no means ideal and often comes across various abuses. 170 years ago, during the time of Emperor Nicholas I, the shortcomings of the officials were much the same as what the observant artist Pavel Fedotov showed in his timeless painting.

Ironic realist

Pavel Andreevich Fedotov (1815-1852), who lived only a short time, but managed to become famous, was the first in the Russian everyday genre to try to give a critical analysis of everyday life. The painter's father was a military man, and Fedotov himself served in St. Petersburg, where he attended evening classes at the Academy of Arts. In 1846, he created his first significant painting, “The Fresh Cavalier.” In 1848, the no less famous “Matchmaking of a Major” was written. The paintings of the first years were characterized by irony and poignancy of plots, and later Fedotov mastered the art of psychological drama, as exemplified by his later paintings “The Widow” (1851) and “The Players” (1852). The artist’s images hit the mark - already at the end of the 1840s, many painters appeared who imitated Fedotov.

Pavel Fedotov, “Major's Matchmaking” (1848)

Eye of censorship

Fedotov’s painting, painted in 1846, bore several titles: “Fresh Cavalier”, or “Morning of an Official Who Received the First Cross”, or “Consequences of a Revel”. Now it is kept in the State Tretyakov Gallery.

The first sketches of the future masterpiece appeared in the early 1840s. On the advice of fabulist Ivan Andreevich Krylov, Fedotov decided to develop the plot and rework the sketches into a full-fledged canvas. After the painting was ready, the artist presented it at the Academy of Arts, where it was highly appreciated. In 1847, “Fresh Cavalier” was presented to the public and caused a real sensation, bringing fame to its creator. But censorship immediately drew attention to the painting: the removal of lithographs from it was prohibited because of... the disrespectful depiction of the order.

gloomy morning

All three titles of the picture tell about its plot. We see an ordinary average official the morning after he received his first order and celebrated such an important event. The Order of St., which offended censorship, Stanislav 3rd degree was the lowest in the hierarchy of state awards and was often used to distinguish officials.

Such a small award contrasts on the canvas with the very appearance of the newly minted gentleman: a proud and swaggering expression on his face, the pose of a Roman senator, wrapped as if in a toga, and not a shabby robe, and an order attached not to the uniform, but the same robe - all this should cause in the viewer a feeling of contradiction and inconsistency between the event and its perception by the main character.

But the irony of the maid depicted to the left of the order bearer completely coincides with ours, the viewer’s. A simple maid, in front of whom the gentleman displays his robe, looks at him with undisguised mockery and, defiantly holding the owner’s old worn-out boots in her hands. The comical nature of the image of an official who imagines himself an important bird after receiving a minor award is emphasized by the curls in his head (maybe with a hangover the hero turns into a laurel crown?) and his bare feet.

Pavel Fedotov, “Fresh Cavalier” (1846)

The environment around also shows the contrast between the gentleman's attitude towards himself and the harsh reality. There is mismatched furniture in the order bearer’s room, there is terrible chaos everywhere, things are scattered. On the table we can see the sausage left over from the party, lying not on a plate, but on a newspaper, and not simple, but on the Gazette of the St. Petersburg City Police. There are skeletons of herrings and shards of broken dishes lying around the table. A guitar with broken strings leaned against a chair. A skinny mongrel cat is tearing at the upholstery of a chair.

All this taken together is a pitiful sight, but it does not prevent the newly minted gentleman from cherishing his ambitions. He dreams of being no worse than everyone else and keeping up with metropolitan fashion - the hair curling iron, mirror and shaving accessories lying on the table tell us this. Fashionable and book - a moralizing novel by Thaddeus Bulgarin, close to the authorities, “Ivan Vyzhigin”. But the book is lying under the chair - it seems that our hero could not master it either.

Pavel Fedotov's painting is incredibly rich in telling details (which generally distinguishes the everyday genre in painting). “Fresh Cavalier” allows us to judge the life of St. Petersburg officials in the 1840s, who were capable of receiving an order, but who actually lived in poverty and were spiritually poor. Today, by the way, it is much more difficult to obtain an order than in 1846, but the morals, conceit and manners of bureaucrats have not changed very much. This is why the artist Fedotov, who died 165 years ago, is interesting to us.

Pavel Fedotov, “It’s all cholera’s fault!” (1848)

The painting “Fresh Cavalier (Morning of the Official Who Received the First Cross)” by P. A. Fedotov is the first work of the everyday genre in Russian painting, painted in 1847. The canvas was highly praised by critics and among progressive-minded intellectuals.

The plot and composition of the painting clearly shows the influence of English artists - masters of the everyday genre. On the canvas we see an official, with difficulty coming to his senses the next morning after a cheerful feast organized on the occasion of receiving his first order.

The official is depicted in squalid surroundings, in an old robe, barefoot, with curlers on his head and with an order pinned directly to his robe. Haughtily and reluctantly, he argues about something with the cook, who shows him her fallen boots.

Before us is a typical representative of his environment - a corrupt bribe-taker and a slave to his boss. Immensely arrogant, he idolizes the order as if it were evidence of some unprecedented merit. He probably flew very high in his dreams, but the perky cry of the cook immediately brings him back to his place.

The painting “Fresh Cavalier” is an accurate reproduction of reality in its entirety. In addition to his excellent command of writing technique, Fedotov demonstrates the subtlety of psychological characterization. The artist depicts his hero with amazing sharpness and accuracy. At the same time, it is obvious that the artist, while denouncing his character, at the same time sympathizes with him and treats him with gentle humor.

In addition to the description of P. A. Fedotov’s painting “Fresh Cavalier,” our website contains many other descriptions of paintings by various artists, which can be used both in preparation for writing an essay on the painting, and simply for a more complete acquaintance with the work of famous masters of the past.

A genre scene from the life of a poor official holding a small position is reflected in Fedotov’s very small painting “Fresh Cavalier,” which was painted, one might say, in a cartoon style in 1847.

And so, the day before this official was presented with his first award - an order - and now in his dreams he is already climbing the career ladder to the very top, imagining himself either as a mayor or as a governor...

Probably in his dreams, the newly minted cavalier, tossing and turning in pastels for a long time at night, was unable to fall asleep, all the time remembering his “triumph” at the moment of presenting this expensive award, becoming the envy of his entourage as a cavalier of the order. As soon as the morning dawned, the official had already jumped out of bed, throwing on a huge silk robe and pinning an order on it. He proudly and arrogantly assumed the pose of a Roman senator and examined himself in the fly-covered mirror.

Fedotov portrays his hero in a somewhat caricatured manner, and therefore, looking at the picture, we cannot resist a slight grin. The petty official, having received the award, was already dreaming that now he would have a different life, and not the one that had hitherto been in this sparsely furnished, cluttered room.

The comic nature of the image arises from the sharp contrast between dreams and reality. A servant in a robe worn to holes stands barefoot and wears curlers on his head, but with an order. He brags about it to the maid, who brought him polished but old boots. It’s time for him to get ready for work, but he really wants to prolong the pleasure of contemplating himself and fruitless fantasies. The maid looks at him condescendingly and mockingly, without even trying to hide it.

The room is in terrible disarray, all things are scattered. On the table, covered with a light tablecloth with a bright red pattern, you can see sliced ​​sausage, lying not on a plate, but on a newspaper. Nearby are paper curlers and curling irons, which indicates that the hero is trying to look in the fashion of his time.

The bones of the herring that the man probably ate for dinner fell under the table. There are also shards of broken dishes lying around here. The uniform was thrown onto the chairs in the evening. In one of them, a thin, disheveled ginger cat is tearing apart the threadbare upholstery.

From the painting “Fresh Cavalier” one can judge the life of small employees in the first half of the 19th century. It is full of irony. This is the artist's first completed oil painting. According to Fedotov, he depicted in his painting a poor official who receives little support and constantly experiences “scarcity and deprivation.” This is clearly visible in the picture: mismatched furniture, plank floors, a worn robe and scuffed boots. He rents a cheap room, and the maid is most likely the master's.

The artist depicts the maid with obvious sympathy. She is not bad-looking, she is still quite young and neat. She has a pleasant, round, folksy face. And all this emphasizes the contrast between the characters in the picture.

The official is ambitious and arrogant. He assumed the pose of a noble Roman, forgetting that he was wearing a robe and not a toga. Even his gesture, with which he points to his order, is copied from some magazine. His left hand rests on his side, also showing his supposed "superiority".

Imitating Greco-Roman heroes, the official stands leaning on one leg and proudly throws his head back. It seems that even his papillots sticking out on his head resemble the victorious laurel wreath of the commander. He really feels majestic, despite all the wretchedness of his surroundings.

Today this miniature painting by Pavel Fedotov “Fresh Cavalier” is on display at the State Tretyakov Gallery. Its size is 48.2 by 42.5 cm. Oil on canvas

But, while noting the commonality of Gogol’s and Fedotov’s types, we must not forget about the specificity of literature and painting. The aristocrat from the painting "Aristocrat's Breakfast" or the official from the painting "Fresh Cavalier" is not a translation into the language of painting of Gogol's sky-smokers. Fedotov’s heroes are not Nozdrevs, not Khlestakovs, not Chichikovs. But they are also dead souls.
It is perhaps difficult to imagine such a vividly and visibly typical Nikolaev official without Fedotov’s painting “Fresh Cavalier”. A swaggering official, boasting to the cook about the cross he received, wants to show her his superiority. The master's proudly pompous pose is absurd, just like himself. His arrogance looks funny and pitiful, and the cook, with undisguised mockery, shows him his worn-out boots. Looking at the picture, we understand that Fedotov’s “fresh gentleman,” like Gogol’s Khlestakov, is a petty official who wants to “play a role at least one inch higher than the one assigned to him.”
The author of the picture seemed to accidentally look into a room where everything was abandoned without the slightest attention to simple decency and basic decency. Traces of yesterday's drinking are visible everywhere: in the flabby face of the official, in scattered empty bottles, in a guitar with broken strings, clothes carelessly thrown on a chair, dangling suspenders... The pile of objects in "Fresh Cavalier", their unusually close arrangement (marked as negative quality even by Bryullov) is due to the fact that each item was supposed to complement the story about the hero’s life. Hence their extreme specificity - even the book lying on the floor is not just a book, but a very low-grade novel by Thaddeus Bulgarin “Ivan Vyzhigin” (the author’s name is carefully written on the first page), the award is not just an order, but the Order of Stanislav.
Wanting to be precise, the artist simultaneously gives a succinct description of the hero’s poor spiritual world. Giving their “replicas,” these things do not at all interrupt each other, but when collected together: dishes, remnants of a feast, a guitar, a stretching cat, they perform a very important role. The artist depicts them with such objective expressiveness that they are beautiful in themselves, regardless of what exactly they are supposed to tell about the chaotic life of the “fresh gentleman.”
As for the “program” of the work, the author set it out as follows: “The morning after the feast on the occasion of the received order. The new gentleman could not stand it: with the light he put his new thing on his robe and proudly reminds the cook of his importance, but she mockingly shows him his only and holey boots which she carried to clean."
After getting acquainted with the picture, it is difficult to imagine a more worthy brother of Khlestakov. Both here and there are complete moral emptiness, on the one hand, and arrogant pretentiousness, on the other. In Gogol it is expressed in artistic words, and in Fedotov it is depicted in the language of painting.

Pavel FEDOTOV
FRESH CAVALIER
(The morning of the official who received the first cross the day before)
1846. State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

C a fresh gentleman”, or “The Morning of an Official Who Received the First Cross” - a painting in which Fedotov first turned to oil painting techniques. Perhaps this is why work on it took quite a long time, although the idea was formed a long time ago, back in the sepia series. The new technique contributed to the emergence of a new impression - complete realism, materiality of the depicted world. Fedotov worked on the painting as if he were painting a miniature, paying attention to the smallest details, not leaving a single fragment of space unfilled (critics later reproached him for this).

The action takes place in a cramped room, filled to capacity with broken furniture, broken dishes and empty bottles. Fedotov uses every detail to outline the character and habits of the person living here, right down to the title of the novel he is reading (“Ivan Vyzhigin” by F. Bulgarin - a fairly popular but low-quality book at the time). The remains of yesterday’s “gala” dinner are eloquently displayed on the table - a decanter of vodka, pieces of sausage, a candle stub with tongs mixed with toiletries.

Under one table a dog is sleeping serenely, and under another - no less serene - one of the participants in yesterday's feast, sleepily watching the scene unfolding in front of him. In the midst of this chaos, the figure of the newly minted order bearer proudly rises. Apparently, in his dreams, “he ascended higher as the head of the rebellious pillar of Alexandria,” draped himself in a greasy robe, like an antique toga, and imagines himself to be no less than the greatest hero of antiquity. A leg thrust forward, an arrogant look, a proudly raised head... He is literally swollen with pride and swagger, and he is not at all embarrassed that his appearance - in curlers and a stale robe - does not somewhat correspond to the traditional idea of ​​​​an ancient hero.

And the cook shows her owner her leaky soles, not paying any attention to the new order. She knows his worth, and she is the true mistress of this house. “Where there is a bad relationship, there is dirt on the great holiday...” - this is how Fedotov begins a poetic explanation of his painting, hinting at the “hazing” of an official and a servant.

The morning of an official who received his first cross the day before.
Sketch. 1844. State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

In the comic scene, the famous critic Vladimir Stasov saw tragic and even scary content: “He is fierce and merciless,” he writes about the main character, “he will drown whoever and whatever he wants, and not a single wrinkle on his face will falter. Anger, swagger, a completely vulgar life - all this is present in this face, in this pose and figure of an inveterate official in a dressing gown and barefoot, in curlers and with an order on his chest.”

However, Fedotov himself was still not so clear about his work. Yes, he sharply ridicules his hero, but at the same time he somehow justifies and pities him. In any case, Fedotov’s letter to Count Musin-Pushkin has been preserved: “... isn’t it natural that where there is constant scarcity and deprivation, the expression of the joy of reward will lead to the childishness of rushing around with it day and night.”

Perhaps we should believe the opinion of Benoit, who believed that, in essence, Fedotov was always at one with his heroes...