Kulikovo battle in images and paintings
"Dmitry Donskoy on the Kulikovo field." Kiprensky Orest Adamovich, 1805 (1782-1836)
A friend tells me: "Cut your sword,
In order to fight with the Tatar,
For a holy cause, lie dead! ”
A. Block. On the Kulikovo field
Art and story. After the release of material devoted to triptych by P. Korin, readers of "VO" expressed their wishes for the continuation of the cycle, and specific topics for new articles were proposed. Among them is the "Don Cycle" by I. Glazunov. But I looked at the paintings of this cycle, and thought that it would probably be more interesting to arrange a kind of vernissage of paintings dedicated to the Battle of Kulikovo, that is, to consider not one or two, but many paintings and compare what is what and why their authors more just bowed. Here, however, the question of selection arose, since there are many paintings. But, in my opinion, the principle of the image is important. Someone copied Roerich's manner, someone Vasnetsov's, someone hit the epic, and someone - realism. In any case, we will be interested not in the idea embedded in these paintings, but in the image weapons and armor. After all, we still have a battle genre, and not something else ... So, let's start from the XNUMXth century.
Here is a picture of O. A. Kiprensky "Dmitry Donskoy on the Kulikovo field." What can I say? It was such a time! Everything was written expertly, but I just want to laugh a little at what is happening on the canvas. Prince: “Oh Lord, you are my God, how I got! My torment is unbearable! ” A woman at his feet (by the way, where is the woman from?): "Lord, save and save!" A man in a torn shirt: "This is the prince, ulcerative velmi!". Warrior in a green cloak: “Is it really a prince, I am old with my eyes, I can’t make out ...” Warrior in a helmet: “I’m prince bad! Water to him, water! ”
However, he painted all this on ... a task. Everything was agreed! This Academy of Arts, as an examination test, invited its graduates to paint a picture on the theme "Dmitry Donskoy on the Kulikovo Field." And it was clearly stipulated how exactly the prince should be portrayed:
And here is what was said in the Academy’s response to this picture:
And in the end, on September 1, 1805, Kiprensky was awarded the Great Gold Medal for this painting.
Well, the lack of national color did not bother the author or the examiners, and, therefore, that’s not the right armor, not the weapon, but the picture of the master. And it, of course, corresponds to the era and the then vision of historical realities.
Subsequently, a number of artists followed his example and received appropriate recognition, but time passed, and people began to pay attention to history. It got to the point that Valentin Serov, for example, who was ordered the "Battle ...", did not write it and even returned the money issued for it. And all because he did not agree with customers in their views.
Then came the Soviet time, socialist realism, and with it came its own classic. Here, for example, this is the picture of Avilov Mikhail Ivanovich (1882-1954) “Duel on the Kulikovo Field”, written by him in 1943, which is known to everyone from school.
Personally, I would change only the drawing on the shield of a Tatar warrior on it. Here it is shown painted, but in reality they were made of rods wrapped with threads, connecting one ring to another. It turned out a very beautiful pattern, which was additionally decorated with plaques and tassels. But, in principle, this is not even a remark. It was just that at that time there were no reconstructions of the Tatar shields. And so is dynamism, and expression, and epicness - everything is present, not an inch inferior to historical authenticity. Actually, with this canvas of his, Avilov raised the bar so high that anyone who undertakes to write on the same topic can only be advised one thing: to look at this canvas for a long, long time and at the same time think, can I at least get closer to this. And if the inner voice makes you doubt your abilities - do not take it!
By 1980, on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Kulikovo, Yu. M. Raksha painted the triptych "Kulikovo Field". We are especially interested in its middle part. And it seems to be on her "everything is like that." But why did the author draw to the warrior on the left, and with a shield on his right hand, the archer's reed, which he holds in his left hand? Even if he is left-handed, it is impossible to cut an enemy with a reed with one hand, and with two, with a shield, it is inconvenient. It's the little things like this that ruin the whole experience.
The artist Yu. P. Pantyukhin also created a triptych, with Alexander Nevsky placed on the left, Dmitry Donsky in the center, and Minin and Pozharsky on the right
What did you like? The way the author wrote out the helmets. Finally, they are what they should be. It is not clear why the elbow pads, what he depicted on the left and right, is an overlap on the brush. And here's what's interesting - where did the author get it from? Are there such elbow pads in the fonts of the Armory Board or the State Historical Museum? Moreover, if something like this exists, it cannot in any way relate to the era of Alexander Nevsky. There was no such thing then either with us or with the Western knights. However, we have already talked about Nevsky ... Two more details are striking here: the chest octagonal plates of both princes. It can be seen that the artist really liked them very much. But it wasn't there then! Dmitry was separated from the mirror armor by at least 200 years. And if it wasn’t, then why draw it? And it's funny to read the descriptions of all these paintings, made by art historians. Marked and "multidirectional views", and confidence, showing in the poses, and the people in the background, supporting their leader. But why don't you, dear, see other elementary things that the artist painted "as he sees", although he should have tried to draw "as it was." So, we have historical fantasies and today at least a dime a dozen.
For example, I am preparing this material, browsing the Web, and there: "Three thousand six hundred heavily armed Genoese infantrymen represented a formidable force." Where exactly did 3600 Genoese infantrymen and 400 more crossbowmen come from on the Kulikovo field, when we don’t even know for sure the number of troops on the battlefield? Mommy hired? Where? In a cafe, in Sudak? Yes, there were not so many soldiers in all of Genoa. The magistrates - and records about this have been preserved, recruited dozens of soldiers, and they were glad about that. But the main thing is not even this, but where is the source, where did the author get these numbers from: 3600 spearmen and 400 crossbowmen? I remember that in the publications of 1980 the number of 1000 Genoese was called - and even then it was questioned. And then ... they multiplied by budding?
But I can’t even explain this picture of Ilya Glazunov ... I don’t understand what this can be connected with at all. And most importantly - why? Neither the poses nor the detailing make any sense. The horses are galloping in different directions, Glazunov's Peresvet, instead of chopping the spear like Avil's Peresvet, holds it like a reed ... I don't understand how. And the Tatar clung to him with both hands - a grip that had probably not been used for at least five hundred years! Yes, and the horse under him is somehow “perverted” - croup and neck in one direction, head in the other ... Picturesque hooliganism is, not art!
And here is another of his paintings in the recognizable Roerich style. But look at the half-naked Tatar on the right. Why did the artist put a samurai helmet from the Nambokucho era on his head? Where did this warrior get it from? After all, the Mongols invaded Japan a century earlier ... That is, in 1380 Mamai’s warriors could not have such helmets, since in 1274 and 1281, when one of the ancestors of this ... hick could capture such a helmet as a trophy, kabuto precisely with such kuwagata simply did not exist. By God, it's disgusting to even comment on such blunders
It should be noted that in recent years, artists have become more demanding of themselves in relation to the depiction of historical realities.
Here, for example, Dmitry Anatolyevich Belyukin’s painting (b.1962) Dmitry Donskoy, 2015. Armor is a forged army, although it would be nice to show the plate mounts on chain mail. One can argue about the top of the hilt of the sword, but ... so in general - why not?
Prince Dmitry also liked me in the image of Kirillov Sergey Alekseevich (b. 1960) “Dimitri Donskoy”, 2005
Moreover, such a mace is quite possible for him. And the plate armor is shown very realistically. Even the plate greaves on the legs… Well, it could be like that. That's just some kind of shield he has fantastic! Where did he see this? Where, in what museum I saw such facings, I don’t know. But ... the shields were never just planks! This is not the door to your summer cottage! They were pasted over with linen or leather, or both leather and linen, primed and painted, about which there are even reports from chroniclers who wrote about Russian scarlet shields. The cross sprouted on it drew at least a well-known symbol depicted on our shields.
Prisekin Sergey Nikolaevich (1958-2015) “With a victory”. Here, the prince, however, also gleamed, but he, at least, at least far
Ryzhenko Pavel Viktorovich (1970-2014) “Blessing of Sergius”, 2005
Again, this is ... why not ?! Everything is written out very carefully, something, well, not quite, but tolerable, within the framework of the statistical error between typical and unique. That is, or, at least, we also had such painters on the pictures, which it is quite possible to look at without feeling shame! That is, quite a bit more, and history and epic on the canvases of our masters will be able to get along without interfering with each other.
- Vyacheslav Shpakovsky
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“The Battle of Angiari” and “The Battle of Marciano”. Leonardo da Vinci and Giorgio Vasari
Pavel Korin. "Alexander Nevskiy". The insoluble task of a restless soul
“The Battle of Grunwald” by Jan Matejko: when there is too much epic
"Heroes" Vasnetsov: when the main epic in the picture
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