Pyotr Brazhanov. A Portrait of Admiral St Fyodor Ushakov. 1912

A Portrait of Admiral St Fyodor Ushakov (Pyotr Brazhanov, 1912)

Admiral St Fyodor Ushakov (1744-1817) was one of the most illustrious Russian naval commanders of all time. He was not only a daring fighting sea-dog, he was a competent administrator and a serious Orthodox Christian. The port facilities in Sevastopol and Kherson were originally built by him, and he worked on the establishment of the towns surrounding the naval bases. Admiral Ushakov never lost a battle, but, that is not why he was canonised. He took good care of his officers and sailors, and he ended his life in one of the monasteries of the Church (he never became a monk, but, he lived in a monastery and led a pious lay life).

He was canonised in 2000, and is the patron saint of the navy and of the Dalnaya Aviatsiya (“Long-range Aviation”, the strategic bomber force).

Yermolai Kamezhenkov. A Portrait of a Young Lady (E. N. Likhachyova). 1790

A Portrait of a Young Lady (Yermolai Kamezhenkov, 1790)

Ivan Eggink. A Portrait of P. A. Zubov. beginning of the 19th century

A Portrait of P. A. Zubov (Ivan Eggink, beginning of the 19th century)

Ivan Eggink. Grand Prince St Vladimir Examines the Faith. undated (first quarter of the 19th century?)

Grand Prince St Vladimir Examines the Faith (Ivan Eggink, undated (first quarter of the 19th century?))

Of course, this depiction is highly stylised, but, it does symbolise the fact that Grand Prince St Vladimir chose Orthodoxy over Roman Catholicism in 988. Do not forget that St Vladimir consciously rejected both Islam and Roman Catholicism… he was not merely ignorant of them. The former he considered too fanatical (for it forbade liquor) and the latter he found confusing (for his emissaries were not impressed with RC liturgy, finding it irreverent). Orthodoxy both he and his ambassadors found “just right” (“We did not know if we were in heaven or on earth”, in regards to the liturgy at Agia Sofia).

Russia is deeply Orthodox to this day… and shall remain so until the Last Trump, I am sure (Am I Orthodox? Well… I’m Russian… does that answer your question?).

Ivan Eggink. A Portrait of the Writer I. A. Krylov. 1834

A Portrait of the Writer I. A. Krylov (Ivan Eggink, 1834)

Krylov is a houehold word in Russia, for he made a famous collection of fairy tales that is still in print.

Firs Zhuravlyov. A Replete Table. undated (1860s-80s)

A Replete Table (Firs Zhuravlyov, undated (1860s-80s))

This painting reminds you of a Hogarth engraving, does it not? There is the same exaggerated satire, the same biting observation of sinful–ginful humanity. Obviously, this is a depiction of  a party held by a lower official or the lower kind of merchnt. Certainly, it is not a gathering of the local gentry!

Indeed, it appears to be a cutting artistic comment on the “new men” of the period. This is GLUTTONY. Note well that the priest and deacon are sitting near the host and they are stuffing themselves as cheerfully as the rest. One can see the artist holding his nose as he stands at his easel…

Aleksandr Ustinovich. White Guard. undated (1990s?)

White Guard (Aleksandr Ustinovich, undated (1990s?))

The “White Guards” were those who resisted the Reds during the Civil War of 1918-20. All of these objects were connected with the White Army, a subject that is being investigated with great vigour in contemporary Russia. Of course, any talk of such during the Soviet time was strictly verboten, and one could find out what the desert of Kazakhstan or the frozen waste of Norilsk was like first-hand if one was too inquisitive on the matter. Think of an American PC college professor on steroids, that’s what the Reds were like (if all things are equal, when the PC crowd falls, boy-oh-boy, I want to be around for the post-mortem).

In short, Russians are rediscovering their past. This is healthy. This painting is part of that rediscovery.

Aleksandr Sokolov. A Portrait of the Artist’s Daughter with Flowers. 1884

A Portrait of the Artist’s Daughter with Flowers (Aleksandr Sokolov, 1884)

Aleksandr Sokolov. A Portrait of a Woman. 1901

A Portrait of a Woman (Aleksandr Sokolov, 1901)

V Zhukov. A Central Asian Landscape. 1958

A Central Asian Landscape (V Zhukov, 1958)