One of the most famous, popular and sought after museums among Muscovites and guests of the city is the State Tretyakov Gallery. It was founded back in 1856 by Pavel Tretyakov. It was in honor of this merchant that the institution got its name. At the moment, it is a large cultural institution of the state level. It combines several separate components, large and small objects. But central among them remains the largest building, which is located in Lavrushinsky Lane of the capital.
Gallery Buildings
Today, the State Tretyakov Gallery and its main works are in the house of the Tretyakov merchants, as well as a number of small buildings that are in close proximity to it.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the museum received a new facade, which adorns it to this day. Sketches for him were created by the notorious artist Vasnetsov. To emphasize that the museum presents mainly works of Russian art, a special neo-Russian style was chosen. So, the coat of arms of Moscow adorns the facade of the building.
Within the framework of a single complex, images of St. George the Victorious, a ceramic frieze, as well as an original inscription made in script are collected. It is she who conveys to each of the visitors of the Moscow State Tretyakov Gallery, who acted as the initial donors for the museum, that is, Sergei and Peter.
Already in the 1930s, to the right of the main building, another building was erected according to the Schusov project. To the left of it is an additional engineering building.
The role of the merchant Tretyakov in creating the gallery
The house of the State Tretyakov Gallery, where many works are still stored, originally belonged to the Tretyakov family.
Pavel Tretyakov himself was not only a merchant, he was also a philanthropist, who initially collected his own collection. Among her exhibits were only works created by Russian artists. He began collecting it from the distant 1856. By the end of the century, the merchant transferred all of his unique exhibits to the ownership of the city. At that time, 518 graphic samples were already present in its composition along with 1287 paintings, as well as 8 drawings created by masters of the European school, and 75 paintings from foreign authors. In addition, the collection included several valuable icons and sculptures.
Initially, the meeting of the State Tretyakov Gallery owed it to the impeccable taste of the merchant. His exhibits are even now included in the gold fund of art throughout the country.
Gallery History
Tretyakov began to collect works that later became the basis of the State Tretyakov Gallery, back in the early 50s. XIX century. But the official date of the foundation of the museum was taken in 1856, when he acquired the notorious creations of Khudyakov and Schilder for his collection.
In subsequent years, as the merchant’s collection expanded, public attention grew to her.
Pavel owned a huge house, not far from which a number of additional buildings were located. But within their walls it was not possible to place all the works of art he had. Already in the twentieth century, all the rooms of a formerly residential building were redone by craftsmen into separate rooms of a spacious gallery. But this solved the problem only for a while.
All new works came to the State Tretyakov Gallery, so a few decades later it was decided to move part of the exhibits to a building located on Krymsky Val. At the same time, all the works dated to the period up to 1910 remained in the original house. More modern exhibits have moved to a new building.
Gallery Collections
The contemporary State Tretyakov Gallery, whose collections are known throughout the world, has hundreds of thousands of its own exhibits. In addition to permanent works, temporary exhibitions are regularly held in its walls. In recent years, the museum continues to actively develop, offering its guests ever new directions, including in the form of creative studios for children and others.
Art objects that are dated to the 11th-early 20th century are located in the original building of the State Tretyakov Gallery. The collection includes the work of a number of world-famous masters, as well as little-known creators. In the walls of the gallery are the creations of Rublev and Theophanes the Greek, as well as Dionysius.
Separately allocated in the museum rooms with works of the XVIII-XIX centuries. Here are pictures of such eminent masters as Levitsky and Rokotov, Bryullov, Borovikovsky and many others.
Particular attention is paid to the realistic direction of Russian art, which received special development at the end of the 19th century. This category includes paintings by Repin and Shishkin, Levitan and Kramskoy, Surikov and other more or less well-known authors.
Also, an exhibition has been created in the museum, encompassing art dating back to the turn of the century and the beginning of the twentieth century. Mostly Serov, Vrubel, masters from the Union of Russian Artists and others are represented here.
To date, the walls of the State Tretyakov Gallery are not only paintings. One of the most striking and memorable parts in the framework of the current exhibition is the Treasury. Here you can see all kinds of art products created in the XII-XX centuries. For their manufacture, precious stones and precious metals, as well as other materials, were used.
The graphics, which need to create special storage conditions, are presented in a separate section in the museum. In the halls where such works are located, special soft lighting is created.
Famous gallery paintings
Today, the exhibitions of the State Tretyakov Gallery are located in a huge number of halls. Moreover, each of them reveals real masterpieces of its time. Pavel Tretyakov himself assigned a special place to Petrov’s creations, which is why his best paintings, the Troika and many others, are stored in the museum.
On the other hand, the original owner of the collection was always keen on landscapes. To this day, the gallery of paintings traces the history of Russia. Side by side with such collections are portrait halls, in which the most famous artists, writers and composers of various times are represented - these are Dal, Turgenev, Ostrovsky, Nekrasov and many other persons.
Popular works of Russian artists
Initially, Tretyakov actively supported the partnership, which organized art exhibitions of the traveling type. It was on them that he himself often acquired regular masterpieces for his collection. Among the most famous in such conditions, the paintings “Rooks Have Arrived”, “Pine Forest” and many others, whose names are no less famous than the creators themselves, were bought.
Over time, the merchant’s collection included works written by Repin and Surikov, Shishkin and others.
In addition to these authors and paintings, the notorious "Black Square" is very popular in the gallery along with works by Kuindzhi, Bryullov and others.
Museum collection
The current exhibits of this museum can be listed for a very long time due to their huge number. The pride of the gallery has been and remains the works classified as the best paintings in the framework of the golden age of painting by Russian artists.
In addition, the art of the Wanderers is exhibited here. These are creations of Levitan and Nesterov, Benoit, Roerich, Serov and Vrubel.
Later, after the revolution, the number of museum exhibits continued to grow. In many respects this was facilitated by the nationalization of the collected collections, as well as the active work of artists in those years. In the halls of the museum you can trace the development and the main directions characteristic of the art of the Soviet period.
Modernity
Today in the museum's halls are represented the directions of graphics and Russian painting, objects of decorative and applied art created in the period from the 11th to the 21st centuries, as well as a number of ancient icons and creations of eminent Russian artists.
Each year, the gallery is visited by millions of guests. In addition, hundreds of exhibitions of various orientations travel to various corners of a large country from its walls.