Orest Kiprensky (1782-1836) became popularly known as “the Russian Van Dyck”. He was the illegitimate son of a landowner named Adam Diakonov and his serf woman. Unable to officially recognize the child, the father listed him as a member of his serf mother’s family.
From a very early age, Orest showed a talent for drawing, so his father enrolled him at the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg. The Academy’s administration spotted the gifted young man, allowed him to live in the Academy’s boarding house after graduation and granted him an allowance for a trip abroad.
Kiprensky traveled around Switzerland, France and Germany and, of course, Italy, where he spent several years of his life taking lessons from the best artists. He even married an Italian woman named Anna Maria Falcucci and converted to Roman Catholicism. He died in Rome (without getting to see his daughter, who was born after his death) and was buried in the local Sant’Andrea delle Fratte church.
Below are some of the most well known portraits by Orest Kiprensky.
1. Portrait of A. K. Schwalbe, 1804
Russian Museum
2. Dmitry Donskoy in the Kulikovo Field, 1805
Russian Museum
3. Portrait of Yevgraf Davydov, 1809
Russian Museum
4. The Young Gardener, 1817
Russian Museum
5. Girl wearing the poppy wreath, 1819
Tretyakov Gallery
6. Portrait of Yekaterina Avdulina, 1822
Russian Museum
7. Poor Lisa, 1827
Tretyakov Gallery
8. Portrait of Alexander Pushkin, 1827
Tretyakov Gallery
9. Self-portrait, 1828
Tretyakov Gallery
10. Readers of newspapers in Naples, 1831
Tretyakov Gallery
Dear readers,
Our website and social media accounts are under threat of being restricted or banned, due to the current circumstances. So, to keep up with our latest content, simply do the following:
- Subscribe to our Telegram channel
- Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter
- Enable push notifications on our website
- Install a VPN service on your computer and/or phone to have access to our website, even if it is blocked in your country