Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (1817-1900)

Nowadays it’s rather difficult to find a person who has never heard about a famous Russian painter of sea-scapes Ivan Aivazovsky and his masterpiece “The Ninth Wave”. Every painting which came out of his brush is a real piece of art. It’s appreciated not only by Russian art-lovers, but also by the artists all over the world.
Born in the family of a poor Armenian merchant in 1817 in the Crimea, Aivazovsky could made his fortune thanks to his striking talent, amazing diligence, absolute devotion to his work and also thanks to people who had noticed the talented youth.

After 3 years of studies in a high school of Simferopol, in 1833 he entered the Academy of Arts in St.Petersburg, where he took the landscape painting courses and was extremely interested in marine landscapes. He had been captivated by the astonishing mighty and power and the charming beauty of sea since his early childhood. His passion for sea is not a surprise. As a small poor boy, who lived in a one-storeyed house on the shore of the gulf, he tended spending his pastimes watching the play of colours upon the water.

His first works at the Academy were highly appreciated by artistic critics. Received the Gold Medal for 3 sea-pieces, he was sent to the Crimea to perfect his art. This trip enriched much his knowledge of sea. He was in the crew of warships and he became acquainted with the Commander–in-Chief of the Black Sea Fleet and got on well with P.S.Nakhimov and V.A. Kornilov.

During the period of 1840-1844 Aivazovsky spent time in Italy, traveled to Germany, France, Spain, and Holland. He worked much and had a great success with his exhibitions. He painted a lot of marine landscapes, which became very popular in Italy. In 1844 the artist returned to St. Petersburg, he was awarded the title of Academician, and became attached to the General Naval Headquarters. From 1846 to 1848 he painted several naval canvases. In 1845 he settled down in Feodosiya, where he lived up to his death in 1900.

The great painter said: “Sea is my life”. So, most of his paintings are devoted to this theme. What really differs him from other painters of sea-pieces is his ability to see sea in its infinite fickleness. The sea he portrayed is not static. On his canvases the immense water smooth can be delicate, captivating, changing its colour and shine under the rays of the sun. On the contrary it can change immediately its mood and becomes a monster who brings destruction and death.

It really impresses that depicting sea the great master never painted it from nature. He just kept the image in his mind and drew it from memory, according to his own feelings and emotions. So, he is a representative of the romanticism.

In most of his sea-pieces the great painter chose a low sky-line to emphasize the sky vast and enormous. Aivazovsky executed a great number of sea-scapes, representing the charming beauty of serene moonlit night. You can see it on his canvases “The Bay of Naples by Moonlight” (1842), “Moonlit night” (1849), etc.

A special stage in his art belongs to a battle piece. Aivazovsky depicted in a realistic way the state of Russian Fleet of the 19th century in his paintings “The Battle of Chesma”(1848) and The Battle in the Chios Channel”(1848). He devoted more than 10 canvases to the Crimean War (1853-1856) and heroic defense of Sevastopol. He dedicated 2 brilliantly executed paintings to the Battle of Sinop, the most significant event of this war.

One of his most famous works of this genre “Brig "Mercury" Attacked by Two Turkish Ships” (1892) is painted in a rather strange manner. Aivazovsky didn’t represent that very battle, but its result. He portrayed that very moment, when a wounded but unsurrendered Russian brig comes towards the Russian Squadron. So, this picture is a symbol of heroism Russian seamen and their courage. During his artistic life, the master often touched the theme of patriotism and glorified deeds of seamen.

All the sea-pieces of Aivazovsky are full of sense and emotionally coloured. Among his unsurpassed masterpieces are “The Ninth Wave” (1850), “The Black Sea” (1881),“The Rainbow” (1873). These pieces of art are the top of his artistic genius. In his pictures sea is a symbol of freedom.

On his most famous canvas “The Ninth Wave” Aivazovsky shows us the early morning which comes after a stormy night. He drew first rays of the sun light up raging ocean and enormously large wave which will soon come down the people. They seem so small and defenseless against the storming ocean. We can hardly distinguish people on a raft. The master placed them in the bottom of the canvas. These people are exhausted and tiered, because of a terrible night and the shipwreck. Their destiny is not defined, but the sky drawn in warm colours and the dawn give them hope for rescue.

The colour scheme draws audience; it captivates our look and impresses our mind. We are enchanted by the palette of yellow, salmon pink, lilac, gingery red, peach and mauve colours of the sky and emerald-green, sea-green, deep blue hues of the ocean. Undoubtedly, he fantastically portrayed the silvery path of the reflection on the water.

In the picture “The Black Sea” Aivazovsky represented the state of nature and sea before the storm. He painted a grey day, the sky covered with heavy clouds. We are attracted by his combination of warm hues of the sky and deep cold greeny-blue colours of the sea.

In 1873 the great painter created the outstanding piece of art “The Rainbow”, where he depicted a frightful storm on the sea. The storm splits up the ship and the crew is sailing away on life-boats. We can guess that they are enthralled and think of rescue. The master didn’t emphasize contours purposely; he didn’t define figures of people sharply in order to reflect the chaos and the terrible storm. We are charmed by the colour scheme of the sky. Dark and violet hues become gently clear. To depict the sky Aivazovsky used the palette of blue, lilac, mauve and peach colours.

Undoubtedly, Aivazovsky is an unsurpassed master of painting sea-pieces. His art influenced such outstanding Russian painters of landscape as Kuindszhi and Bogaevsky. Moreover, his works were highly appreciated by J.W.M.Turner, a prominent English landscape and marine painter.