19th Century Girl Albums
The young ladies of the 19th century were not so different from the modern ones: they also needed attention, recognition, evidence of sympathy from friends and, of course, a cordial…

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10 world famous paintings in which hidden symbols and messages are hidden
In the old days, when people were forbidden to express their opinions or beliefs publicly (or it was considered rude to publicize their true feelings), paintings and sculptures were a…

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10 skillful fakes that museums took for originals
Artistic fakes are a very real threat that museums constantly have to contend with. Fake artifacts appear in many museums from time to time, which can be displayed for several…

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collections of the two brothers

Solid Charm: Elizabeth Boehm Vintage Postcards

Postcards of Elizabeth Boehm were incredibly popular at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. They could be seen in the collections of the imperial family, in the Tretyakov Gallery and in the huts of ordinary peasants. Charming children in Russian national costumes, depicted in various everyday scenes, still cause the tenderness of the inhabitants.
Elizaveta Merkuryevna Boehm (nee Endaurova) was born a respected wealthy family in 1843. The artist recalled: “In letters to my friends in St. Petersburg I constantly put my pictures of dolls and animals; and it was this that drew the attention of several people who understood that I should seriously take up drawing. ” Continue reading

How Pavel Tretyakov competed with the emperor

Before the revolution, patronage of the arts was considered not only charitable, but also beneficial for the donor himself, and the point here was not taxes at all. According to the ideas of merchants in the old days, this activity avoided the terrible temptation – the power of money. Most often, wealthy industrialists became patrons of shelters, hospitals, and educational institutions. At first, the partners and competitors laughed at the Tretyakov brothers’ passion for painting, but time, of course, put everything in its place.

Pavel and Sergey Tretyakov were the eldest children in a well-known merchant family. Continue reading

What Censorship Looks Like at Christian College
For many centuries, it was religion that prompted brilliant people to create their masterpieces. It was during the construction of churches that architects revealed their talents, and most of the…

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VARIETIES OF FIGURATIVE PAINTING
In the XVII century, a thematic or story picture was attributed to the high genre (grand genre) and called the genre. The high genre included: allegorical, battle, epic, household, historical,…

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10 paintings by great artists
Before the invention of photography, People kept the memory of various historical events in the paintings. Such paintings often romanticized the struggle or presented various scenes in a distorted form…

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