Ilya Repin is a famous Russian realist painter. He was born in 1844 in the city of Chuguev, Kharkov region (Ukraine). At the age of 11, his parents assigned him to study at the school of topographers. But after two years it was closed, the boy moved to the icon-painting workshop. Here he began very quickly to master the skill of the isographer. Glory went about his skill and he was invited to work in a mobile icon-painting workshop.
Painting training
Moving with her around the cities, the boy learned about the existence of the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg and decided to go there to study. Repin failed to enter there the first time. After studying at an evening drawing school for a year, he managed to become the first student, and to fulfill his dream - to enter the Art Academy.
Ilya Repin.
Painting "Ivan the Terrible kills his son"
The artist based the plot of this painting on the story of Ivan the Terrible. His life especially attracted public attention at the end of the 19th century. In particular - the events associated with the war of Ivan the Terrible with the Polish invaders and their siege of the city of Pskov. At the same time, the incontinent tsar, in a fit of anger, killed his son and heir - Ivan.
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Researchers believe that the impetus for the beginning of work was given by the symphonic suite "Antar" by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. For many years the artist thought about the sketch of the painting, the music helped to create the composition. I. Repin spent a lot of time studying the historical situation.
To recreate interior items, he devoted a lot of time to studying the palace chambers in Moscow and St. Petersburg. It is from here that the originals were taken, which served the honor of being depicted in the picture. No wonder they look very tangible.
The heroes of the picture were created in the same way. They were written from different people, from whom some facial features were borrowed. It was very important for the painter to show the psychological moment. The painting depicts the scene when the formidable king realized what he had done.
All shades of red play an essential role in the basis of the picture. They are enhanced by blue tones and create the dramatic horror of the murder. Paints very vividly convey the situation and make people perceive the canvas as a reality.
The painting was first presented to the audience on February 10, 1885 in the house of the Yusupov princes in St. Petersburg. Before her, many froze under the impression of the image of the real horror of the father who killed his son, his grief and suffering. Some were crying or hysterical.
Pavel Tretyakov.
The icon painter cut the painting by Repin
Thirty years later, in January 1913, the painting was subjected to a barbaric attack. The Old Believer icon painter A. Balashov hid a knife behind the bootleg while entering the Tretyakov Gallery. He calmly stood near the painting by V. Surikov "Boyarynya Morozova", and then with the words: "Enough blood", rushed to the Repin painting and struck three blows on the faces of Ivan the Terrible and his son.
The author himself came to restore the painting. But by this time the manner of his writing had changed. The painter simply painted a new head of Ivan the Terrible. It was noticeably different from the general structure of the picture. I. Grabar, a student of I. Repin, noticed this even before the paints had dried, and hastened to "fill" the fallen places with watercolors, and then cover them with varnish. Even the author, who visited the exhibition after a while, did not notice such a daring act.
On May 25, 2018, the painting was attacked again. I. Podporin, an unemployed from Voronezh, shortly before the museum was closed, attacked the painting, tearing out the metal fence post. He managed to break the frame and damage part of the figure of Tsarevich Ivan in the center. He explained his act by the fact that the canvas is contrary to the attitude of believers and contradicts historical events.
The murder myth
Indeed, for many years it was believed that Tsar Ivan the Terrible became the murderer of his son. But in the 1960s. years were carried out research of the royal tombs. An autopsy revealed that there were no traces of violent death on the prince's skull. But his remains contained the remains of the poison. It is possible that he was poisoned.
Where did the legend of filicide come from?
What actually happened? Where did such inventions come from? Oddly enough, the author of the fake was the Jesuit monk Anthony Possevin (Antonio Possevino). By order of the pope, he arrived in Muscovy to propose to the Russian tsar to change the Orthodox faith to Catholic.
Ivan the Terrible refused. Possevin, by absolute coincidence, happened to witness a family scene. The prince's wife, being pregnant, came out in an inappropriate outfit. The angry father-in-law swung his staff at her. The son stood up for his wife and received a blow to the temple from his father. But apart from Possevin, this fact was not confirmed by anyone. Later, even Russian historians, including I. Karamzin, took up the legend.
The painting somehow influenced the people who posed for the artist. The artist G. Myasoedov and the composer P. Blaramberg were used to paint the head of Ivan the Terrible. Subsequently, the painter made an attempt on his little son. The writer V. Garshin was the prototype of Ivan's heir. I. Repin recalled: “He had the face of a man doomed to perish. This was what my prince needed. Indeed, the writer went crazy and fell into a flight of stairs. For several days he had to suffer a mortal agony.
The painting "Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan November 16, 1581" is so realistic that it attracts the attention of visitors for many years. It is a pity that it is currently under restoration. But there is a possibility of its early completion and the appearance of the canvas in its permanent place. Then, at the next visit to the Tretyakov Gallery, we will again be able to stay near a realistic canvas that recreates the legend of Tsar Ivan the Terrible and his son.
Zhanna Lyubarskaya