Art does not have a material coordinate system. A tiny box is often more valuable than a giant sculpture. The average contemplative of the beautiful rarely thinks about the meaning. At the same time, size is an indicator that is difficult to ignore. In the exhibition halls, large canvases always look more advantageous. Stunning detail does not allow to pass by. And after visiting the gallery, the question often arises, which picture is the largest in the world?
“Marriage in Cana of Galilee”
The painting was commissioned by Catholic clergy for the refectory monastery of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice. The painter Paolo Veronese worked on the canvas for a year. At the time of its creation, it was the largest painting in the world, the size of which is 666 Ă— 990 cm. It depicts a biblical story describing the conversion of water into wine by Christ when it suddenly ended at the time of the feast.
During the Napoleonic conquest wars, the giant canvas was taken out by the French army to Paris. To do this, I had to cut the picture in half. On the site, restoration was carried out, and now Veronese's work decorates one of the halls of the Louvre. It is noteworthy that "Marriage in Cana of Galilee" hangs opposite the "Mona Lisa." But visitors are so absorbed in photographing the masterpiece of the great Leonardo that they pass by the fundamental canvas. Sometimes the crowd simply does not allow them to move away enough to see a picture covering the entire wall.
It should also be noted the work of Theodore Gericault "Raft" Medusa "". The canvas size 491 Ă— 716 cm is the second largest in the Louvre.
"Paradise": the largest painting in the world on canvas
After the fire of 1577 in the Doge's Palace on St. Mark's Square in Venice, it was necessary to restore the interior. Originally, Paolo Veronese, the author of Marriage in the Cana of Galilee, was commissioned to fulfill the order, but the artist died before he began to work. Then the Venetian Doges turned to Tintoretto (real name Jacopo Robusti), who by that time was quite famous and had written many paintings for the city.
The plans were so grandiose that the painter had to attract his students. Work on the painting lasted more than 12 years and was completed when Tintoretto turned 70. The scale of the canvas is staggering: the image of paradise based on the Dante’s Divine Comedy 7 × 22 m in size occupies an entire wall of the Great Council Hall.
“The Appearance of Christ to the People”
Russian painter Alexander Ivanov went to Italy to write the main picture of his whole life. He was going to create a work of art for all of humanity. The plot is based on a gospel baptismal scene. But the artist expands the chronology of scripture. During baptism, many did not recognize the Messiah in Jesus. Here Ivanov covers the entire distance traveled. Christ appears before the people as the Son of God. The figure of Jesus deliberately depicts fewer people in the foreground. Only those who really want to see Christ can see it.
The planned short trip lasted for 20 years, but Ivanov did not have time to finish the picture. The artist’s vision fell sharply, as a result the old man in the lower left corner remained almost naked, although the reflection in the water suggests that he should have red clothes on. The unfinished picture is sent to St. Petersburg, and a year later Ivanov dies.
To place a magnificent canvas measuring 540 × 750 cm, a separate pavilion was built in the Tretyakov Gallery. A smaller version of the painting is exhibited at the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg in the same room as Aivazovsky’s Ninth Wall and Bryullov’s Last Day Pompeii.
"Minin's appeal to Nizhny Novgorod": the largest picture in Russia
For almost half a century, Ivanov's work “The Appearance of Christ to the People” remained the largest example of Russian painting until Konstantin Makovsky presented his epoch-making canvas on a patriotic theme. The picture describes the historic moment of collecting donations for the militia against foreign invaders. The artist managed to portray representatives of all classes, ready in a single impulse to come to the aid of the Fatherland. Each face is original, with its own character. This is a warrior, and a holy fool, and a young lady taking an earring out of her ear. When you look at the picture, the feeling of presence does not leave.
Makovsky spent 6 years writing his grandiose canvas. He repeatedly visited Nizhny Novgorod to accurately convey the landscape of the Market Square under the walls of the Kremlin. Many sketches were made, which are stored in galleries in Russia. A painting measuring 698 Ă— 594 cm is exhibited at the Nizhny Novgorod State Art Museum and occupies a separate room.
Aivazovsky: “Among the waves”
A review of the largest paintings will be incomplete without the work of the Russian marine painter. And although the canvases of Ivan Aivazovsky are inferior to the grandiose canvases of the great Venetians in size, these are the most ambitious images of the sea element.
"Among the waves" is stored in the artist’s homeland in the museum of the city of Feodosia, where a rich collection of his works is collected. The picture depicts two elements: the sea and the sky. It is as if they merge into a single whole, only the sun's rays breaking through the clouds paint the aquamarine mass in thousands of shades. Aivazovsky painted his best picture in 10 days. Its dimensions are impressive: almost three meters in height and more than four in width. The picture was the result of his painstaking work.
Chasing the record
Each year, bold statements by contemporary artists about their intention to create the largest picture in the world appear in the press. Art objects appear on the facades of buildings, kilometers of fences, in deserts and even on projections of the globe. Guinness Book of Records is constantly updated with new entries.
Brazilian artist Jose Roberto Aguilar created the painting “Sky” with an area of ​​740 square meters. m. As a cloth served as plastic panels, which caused 3700 liters of paint. The Croatian Juro Shir used a 6-kilometer-long fence for painting. His painting, entitled "Wave" was sold at auction. To do this, it had to be cut into pieces. American Jim Denevan claimed to have created the largest picture in the world. Photos could only be taken with aerial photography. The picture was a concentric circle on the sand of the desert of Nevada. But Swedish student Eric Nordenankar excelled everyone. He stated that he created the largest self-portrait in the world. For this, Nordenankar allegedly sent a GPS device on a world trip and recorded its movement on the map. Later, Eric himself admitted that it was just a hoax.
Any artist dreams of creating something grand. But only a true master is able to come to a large form, while maintaining his identity and not sliding into gigantomania. No matter how hard the apologists of the avant-garde try to pass off their creations as masterpieces, they will be inferior to the classics without daily work on the technique and a deep understanding of the artist’s highest mission.