Valentin Serov

Valentin Alexandrovich Serov (1865 - 1911) was a Russian painter.

In his childhood he studied under Ilya Repin (in Paris and Moscow) and in the St.Petersburg Academy of arts (1880-1885) under Pavel Chistyakov. Serov’s early creativity was sparked by the influence of the realistic art of Repin and strict plastic system of Chistyakov. The biggest influences on Serov were paintings of the old masters in museums of Russia and Western Europe, friendship with Mikhail Vrubel and later with K.A. Korovin, and the creative atmosphere of the Abramtsevo Colony circle to which he was closely connected.

The greatest works of Serov’s early period were portraits ("The Girl with peaches" (1887), "The Girl covered by the sun" (1888); both in Tretyakov gallery). In these paintings Serov concentrated on spontaneity of perception of model and the nature. In development of light and color, in transfer of complex harmony of reflections, in the saturation of the environment by air, in freshness of picturesque perception of the world there appeared the features of early Russian impressionism.

Portrait of Isaac Levitan by Serov (1893)From 1890 on, the portrait became the basic genre in Serov’s art, in which his early style would become apparent, and with psychologically pointed characteristics of the subjects revealed in his works. Serov’s favorite models were actors, artists, and writers (K.A. Korovin, 1891, Isaac Levitan, 1893, Nikolai Leskov, 1894, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, 1898, - all in Tretyakov gallery).

Abstaining from polychromatic, brightly colored painting styles of the second half of 1880, Serov preferred one dominating scale of black-grey or brown tones (though he transferred plenty of different shades of color), used more free wide dabs, promoting an acuteness of transfer of a nature. Impressionistic features appeared sometimes only in composite construction of a portrait, or the character of movement of the model. Receiving wide popularity, becoming in 1894 partners with Peredvizhniki, Serov was compelled to work much above custom-made, as a rule, smart portraits (portraits of grand duke Pavel Alexandrovich, 1897 in Tretyakov gallery; his portraits of S.M. Botkin, 1899, and F.F. Yusupova, 1903, are both in the Russian museum in St.Petersburg). In these truthful, compositionally skillful, and picturesque executions, Serov more and more consistently used the linear-rhythmic beginnings and decorative color combinations.

At the same time, he developed a contrasting direction: he frequently produced intimate, heartfelt, chamber portraits, mainly of children and women. In portraits of children Serov aspired to capture pose and gesture, to reveal and emphasize a spontaneity of internal movement, sincere cleanliness and clearness of attitude of the child ("Children", 1899, Russian museum; "Mika Morozov", 1901, Tretyakov gallery). Serov frequently called upon various graphic techniques - watercolors, pastels, lithographs and so forth. Figures in Serov’s portraits gradually became more and more graphically refined and economical, particularly during the late period (Vasily Kachalov, 1908, Tamara Karsavina, 1909; numerous figures to Ivan Krylov’s fables, 1895-1911, all in Tretyakov gallery, Russian museum and other collections). In 1890 to the beginning of 1900, Serov produced many landscape compositions on country themes, in which romantic beginnings facotred into artistic decisions.

During his late period (which began in 1900), Serov was connected with "The World of art", an association Serov was a member of from its beginning. At the turn of the century, Serov was at a stylistic turning point: features of impressionism disappeared from his work, and his modernistic style developed, but his characteristic truthful and realistic comprehension of the nature of his subjects remained constant. In the middle of 1900 Serov created heroic portrait images; having selected for them the genre of a smart portrait, Serov developed a former theme of the artist finding freedom in the revealing of talent and his public importance (Maxim Gorki's portraits (1904, A.M. Gorki's museum, Moscow); Maria Yermolova (1905), Feodor Chaliapin (coal, 1905) - both in Tretyakov gallery).

Serov’s democratic beliefs were clearly shown during the Revolution from 1905 to 1907: he depicted a number of satirical figures exposing chastisers, and being a full member of the St.Petersburg Academy of arts since 1903, in 1905 he left it as a gesture of protest against the execution on January 9. His late creativity was dominated by historical painting ("Peter II departure and Empress Elizabeth Petrovna on hunting", 1900, Russian museum), and depth of comprehension of the historical maintenance of an epoch ("Peter I", distemper, 1907, Tretyakov gallery).

The last years of Serov’s life were marked by works on themes from classical mythology. Combining a mythological image with his own perspective, while addressing the ancient tradition, Serov gave his own interpretation of the ancient myths.