Profile of Russian Artist Mikhail Vrubel
This Late 19th-Century Painter Founded Russian Art Nouveau
May 5, 2009
Vrubel was a natural artist who succeeded in almost every medium he worked in. Though he is primarily known for his work as a painter, he also experimented in areas including costume design, pottery, stained glass and architecture.
Early Life of Vrubel
Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel was born on 5th March 1856 in Omsk, Siberia, where the Fine Arts Museum is named after him. His father was in the military. He studied law at St Petersburg University, during which time he also took painting classes. After completing hist studies in 1880 he enrolled at the Imperial Academy of Art, where he remained for four years. One of his tutors was the influential Pavel Tchistyakov, who also inspired painter Ilya Repin.
Upon leaving he was invited to Kiev by the Art Historian Adrian Prakhov, who supervised the reconstruction of old cathedrals and the construction of new ones in the city. Vrubel worked on the restoration of 12th Century frescoes in the Church of St Cyril, focusing on murals and mosaics. He travelled to Venice in 1884 to research the Byzantine mosaics and Renaissance paintings. Later in life (1905) he created mosaics for the Metropol Hotel in Moscow, which can still be seen today.
Influence of Savva Mamontov on Vrubel
Vrubel moved to Moscow in 1889, where he was fortunate to be supported by the famous art patron Savva Mamontov, who commissioned him to paint scenery for his Private Opera. He also worked in the pottery shop on his Abramtsevo Estate near the city and painted decor for his mansion. Mamontov built up a clientele for him and Vrubel worked in the homes of many wealthy people.
Influence of Lermontov’s ‘The Demon’ on Vrubel’s Work
Vrubel’s greatest and most well known achievement is his Demon series of oil paintings, which he began planning whilst creating religious iconography in Kiev. They are inspired by ‘The Demon,’ an epic poem by Mikhail Lermontov. Vrubel illustrated the book using watercolour.
In the poem, the demon is a fallen angel who, upon landing on the earth, falls deeply in love with a beautiful woman who is betrothed to another man. The demon kills his rival and pursues his beloved. When he finally woos her, however, she dies in his embrace. Her pure soul ascends to heaven in the arms of an angel and the demon is left alone.
The 1890 painting, Seated Demon, was greatly appreciated in artistic circles, though much of the general public found it unsettling and were quite critical. The brushstrokes create a slightly broken, fragmented style, giving the appearance of ghostly images in the work. Vrubel’s growing interest in the Eastern arts, and especially Persian carpets, can be seen in the rich texture and colour scheme.
Influence of his Wife, Nadezhda Zabela-Vrubel
Towards the end of the nineteenth century Vrubel developed a fascination for Russian epic and fairytale, particularly in the operas of Rimsky Korsakov which included The Snow Maiden and The Tale of Tzar Saltan, roles that Nadezhda Zabela played. He saw her, then more well known that him, on stage and fell in love with her voice. They soon married and she began singing in the Private Opera where Vrubel designed not only her stage costumes but her everyday wear. He also designed the sets.
Vrubel’s Later Life and Mental Breakdown
In 1901 Vrubel returned to his Demon image and began painting the large Demon Downcast, which was exhibited in 1902. Unlike the previous reaction, people were awestruck by its power and his reputation was cemented in the minds of the general public. Unfortunately Vrubel himself had a breakdown. He had shown signs of mental instability before, but he became obsessed with his Demon muse and obsessively painted and repainted even when the work was on display. He never returned to the theme.
He was admitted to mental hospital where he continued to paint still life, portraits and landscapes. In 1904, however, he created the Six Winged Seraph (Azrael, Angel of Death), considered to be one of his finest works.
In 1906 he painted his last work, Portrait of the Poet Valery Briusov whilst in Dr Usoltsev’s Mental Hospital. He sadly suffered a severe mental decline combined with increasing blindness. He died on 1st April 1910. He is greatly admired by Russians today, who admire his symbolism and credit him as one of the founding fathers of Russian Art Nouveau.
Sources
History of Russian Art lectures, St Petersburg Study Day, Adrian Sumners (Grosvenor Museum, Chester, January 2009)
Britannnica Biographical Encyclopedia of Artists, Book 4 (The Brown Reference Group plc, 2005)
Vrubel Biography, Olga's Gallery
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