Orlovsky Vladimir
The painter admired the open views and endless spaces of the fields and meadows that were reproduced in his canvases during his artistic life. The great landscape painter depicted native suburbs with plains spread under high sky in different seasons. The canvas “Two figures approaching a village nestled in a valley” is one of such landscapes represented in the collection. It is filled with peace and contemplation. V. Orlovskiy often put people in his pictures. Figures placed and located in canvases harmonically interact with nature becoming its integral part. This technique is traced in this canvas telling us about the interaction of a man and nature, the search of ways of civilization and environment rapprochement. The village, the people are approaching, is wrapped by nature that is the source of wisdom and measurement of real values for the peasants, their village is almost lost between the forest and fruitful endless fields. This native and dear landscape have embraced everything here: there is gold of the field spread till the very horizon and almost imperceptible disseminations of blue and violet wildflowers, thick grooves and paths lost in the grass. Peculiarity of nature space reproduction, its greatness, epic calmness and spectacular feeling of beauty are the main leitmotif of the canvas.
Orlovskiy Volodymyr Donatovich
(1842, Kyiv – 1914, Nervi, Italy)
Vladimir Donatovich Orlovskiy is one of the greatest Ukrainian and Russian landscape painters of the second half of the XIX century. He is well-known as an author of the works characterized by the strictness of composition structure, accuracy of details workup, rapt attention to natural light effects.
The painter was born in Kyiv in a noble family. His first painting lessons he received in the second Kyiv high school from N. M. Soshenko. Later he studied in St. Petersburg and took lessons from T. G. Shevchenko. In 1861 he entered Imperial Academy of Fine Arts where A. P. Bogoliubov was his teacher. During the period of study he was granted all existing academic awards: in 1862 – small silver medal for landscapes, in 1863 – big silver medal and in 1866 – small golden medal. In summer 1864 and 1865 he went to the Crimea for sketches, in 1867 he made a journey to Kyivskaia and Tavricheskaia provinces, in 1868 he visited Finland. In 1868 he was granted a golden medal for three landscapes with Crimea views, he got the status of professional 1st rate painter and the right of pensionary journey abroad for three years. During 1869-1872 the painter had lived and worked in France and Switzerland.
Upon his return from abroad the painter worked a lot and traveled in Russia bringing drawings, sketches and pictures from these journeys. Since 1874 V. Orlovskiy was an academician and since 1878 – landscape paintings professor and the member of committee of the Academy of Fine Arts. His canvases depicting views of Ukraine, middle Russia, Petersburg and North Caucasus were always desirable at national and international exhibitions. V. Orlovskiy paid a lot of attention to the development of fine arts in the country. He took an active part in formation of artistic education in Kyiv. Nowadays his works are exposed in many museums showing the art amateurs professional samples of landscapes of the second half of XIX century.
The artist’s paintings are very diverse both in nature (from Finland to the Crimea), and in content (dull day, winter moonlit night, autumn flood, etc.). He depicted swamps, plant-filled ponds as well as meadows and fields, birch and hornbeam woods giving them romantic look. V. Orlovskiy was more often a good observer than the searcher of poetic moods though he was not deprived of the latter (for example, “Winter moonlit night” included in collection of the grand duke Vladimir Aleksandrovich). His marine views are notable for their detailed workup, harmonious colors (the picture “Wave”, 1888 was bought by the grand duke Konstantin Konstantinovich.
The painter always managed to show skillfully how the nature entered human consciousness becoming a symbol, lyric meditation or nostalgic image of human soul. Vladimir Donatovich Orlovskiy described nature not as dispassionate observer, he accurately and clearly expressed his attitude towards it, thus, conveying his love and tremor for native nature to the spectators.
The name of Vladimir Donatovich Orlovskiy belongs to the number of great Russian painters of Ukrainian origin. Being a prominent landscape painter and a singer of native nature, Orlovskiy tells us a life long story the main characters of which are represented by vast fields full of hot sun, meadows and plains lit by evening light, plant-filled ponds and swamps, birch grooves. In his canvases this keen nature observer creates fascinating feeling of its greatness remaining at the same time the lyric singer.
The painter saw a lot of places bringing drawings, sketches and finished pictures from his journeys. During several years the master had been living in France and Switzerland. After his returning to St. Petersburg he visited Crimea from time to time. In 1875 the artist went to Italy, and then he traveled in Ukraine and Russia. In 1881 he visited Caucasus and then in 1900-1902 lived in Kyiv. In his native city the painter took an active part in work of Kyiv painting school named after N. I. Murashko where he was a member of artistic committee. V. Orlovskiy became one of the founders of Kyiv College of Fine Arts that was opened in 1901. During his artistic life the painter exhibited his works a lot. He exposed his canvases at exhibitions in the halls of Imperial Academy of Fine Arts (1868- 1888, with breaks), in premises of Society of artworks exhibitions (1876-1882), St.Petersburg society of painters (1891- 1904), at Global exhibitions in Philadelphia (1876) and Paris (1878), at Russian artistic and industrial exhibitions in Moscow (1882) and many others.
The last years of his life V. Orlovskiy spent in Italy, he was buried in his native Kyiv. In two years after his death in 1916 the memorial exhibition of V. D. Orlovskii and N. K. Pimonenko was held in Moscow.
