Portrait of T. G. Shevchenko by Ivan Kramskoyy is faith in a person that has passed through the centuries

Portrait of Taras Shevchenko is a painting painted by Ivan Nikolayevich Kramskoy in 1871. The outstanding Ukrainian thinker and creator is depicted waist-deep. He is dressed in a peasant fur hat and a casing, under which one can see the fashionable urban suit of a Petersburger of that time with a crystal-white shirt collar.

A chic spreading mustache emphasizes the image of a folk freethinker. The impression is also enhanced by the unevenly colored dark sepia background, the overflows and strokes of which seem to envelop the person portrayed by sparks of flame and smoke.

Author: Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy (1837-1887).
Year of writing: 1871
Size: 84 x 65 cm.
Style: Realism.
Genre: Portrait.
Technique: Oil painting.
Material: Canvas.
Location: State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.

Ivan Kramskoy is a famous Russian painter and prominent public figure of the second half of the 19th century.

The creative path of the master is invariably associated with selfless devotion to art. Possessing an extraordinary mind, energy and extensive knowledge, he attracted the attention of progressive cultural figures.

The talented artist also impressed the well-known philanthropist Pavel Tretyakov, with whom fruitful cooperation began with the painting “Portrait of Taras Shevchenko”. Studying the works of the outstanding poet and prose writer, Kramskoy admired his fiery creativity, the power and truth of the word, the beauty and sonority of the Ukrainian folk language, raised by him to unprecedented poetic heights.

In 1871, commissioned by Tretyakov, the artist was lucky enough to paint his pictorial portrait in oil. But there was also a problem. Ten years had passed since Shevchenko’s death, and it was impossible to work with nature. Kramskoy took as the basis of the work a photograph of Taras Grigorievich, taken in the St. Petersburg photo studio of Andrei Denier in 1858, a few months after returning from exile. The artist did not like to work with portrait reconstruction, but he treated the task responsibly and with interest.

The master patiently collected information, talked with people who knew the person portrayed, sought to learn about his habits, manners, spiritual appearance, compared and analyzed materials that shed light on his personality. In order to give the work a more serious character, he chose a canvas as close as possible to a square, created a three-dimensional and relief form of the composition, and saturated the color.