"Princess Tarakanov", a picture of K. Flavitsky: history, description

Konstantin Dmitrievich Flavitsky (1830-1866), many art critics call the artist of one painting. He died early, at thirty-six, from tuberculosis. "Princess Tarakanov" - a picture that immortalized the artist. But the inexperienced person still does not understand its meaning. If the canvas depicts a princess, why is she in the prison cell? And why is the dungeon flooded with water? The viewer only understands that a young beautiful girl is awaiting her death in horror. The tragedy of the situation is in every detail of the picture. What secret is hidden in the canvas, located in the Tretyakov Gallery? Read about this in this article.

A short digression into the history

Who is this princess Tarakanov, and is this a real character? The origin of this personality is still vague. Some researchers believe that she was the daughter of a baker from Nuremberg, others - an innkeeper from Prague. There is even the opinion that she could be the offspring of the Persian shah. "Tarakanovs" were called in Russia illegitimate children of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna. For the first time, a young adventurer appears under the name of Mademoiselle Frank, then - Madame Tremouille, the Persian Emperor Ali-Emete, until finally she calls herself Elizaveta Vladimirskaya, daughter of the Empress, born from the secret marriage of the latter with the favorite Razumovsky. It so happened that in Russia only recently was the revolt of Emelyan Pugachev - another "Tarakanova" suppressed. Catherine II could not remain indifferent to another pretender to the throne. She instructs Count Orlov to kidnap the impostor. He coolly pretends to be a fan of Princess Tarakanova, achieves her reciprocity and even offers her hand and heart. The wedding was to take place aboard the Russian ship, which is on the roads in Livorno. There the princess was arrested. The beautiful impostor died in the Peter and Paul Fortress. Under the impression of these events, the painting "Princess Tarakanov" was born. The story of the poor woman, who ended her life in the color of years in gloomy chambers, later acquired legends.

Truth and Fiction

Official sources say that a prisoner of the Peter and Paul Fortress died of tuberculosis in December 1775. At the last confession she did not reveal to the priest the secret of her origin. But there are other records. So, it is known that in 1785 a certain princess Tarakanov was tonsured and under the name of the nun Dosifei she spent the rest of her life in the walls of the Ivanovo Monastery in Moscow. She was under protection, and Metropolitan Platon and other notable persons visited her. Dositheus died in February 1810. She is buried in the tomb of the Romanovs in the Novospassky Monastery. However, in the memory of the people, the death of the princess is surrounded by legends. According to one of them, Princess Tarakanova (the picture was inspired by this particular myth) was drowned during a severe flood that occurred in September 1777. In the history of St. Petersburg this was the third strongest spill of the Neva. Water has risen three or more meters above its normal level.

K. Flavitsky and his story

The artist was born in the family of a petty official in 1830. He early orphaned and spent his childhood in an educational home. However, the talent for drawing helped him to break out into people. He was sent to an art school for the funds of the Society for the Encouragement of Artists. Later he enrolled as a student to Professor FA Bruni. Petersburg Academy of Arts Flavitsky graduated with a gold medal in 1855. The award was brought to him by the student work "The Brothers Sell Joseph into Slavery". The gold medal gave Flavitsky the opportunity to spend several years in Italy at the state expense in order to improve his skills. It was there that the idea was born to write a canvas about a great and mysterious adventurer. The sketch, in which the painting "Princess Tarakanov" was written two years later, the author made in Italy. Returning to Russia, Flavitsky presented to the public the painting "Christian Martyrs in the Coliseum" (1862), which did not cause much enthusiasm.

Picture «Princess Tarakanov»: description

On the canvas, we see a beautiful girl, fleeing from imminent death on her bed. Cold waves of the Neva all come to the camera. The prison bed had already half disappeared under the water. Dramatism is added by two wet rats, climbing onto the bed and clinging to the feet of the prisoner. "Princess Tarakanova" - a picture built on contrasts. Once a luxurious dress looks like a bright spot in the wretched gray ambience of the casemate. Yes, and the girl herself with her hair dispersed, pale, frightened, seems to be a beautiful exotic bird, caught in the snare of the Russian prison system.

"Princess Tarakanov": a picture of the frontier?

It is necessary to take into account the period in which the canvas was created. In 1861-1862, many young people protesting against the repressive system were arrested. Some of them were imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress and died there. Perhaps in the picture there is a certain front, a hidden rebellion? No wonder because Flavitsky's canvas enthusiastically welcomed the democratic camp of Russia, and it was very coolly received by official circles. Alexander II, having visited the exhibition, ordered to make an entry in the catalog that "the plot of this picture is borrowed from a novel that has nothing in common with historical truth." After that, most galleries were wary of buying a canvas. And only a private negotiator Tretyakov bought it for his collection.

Unruly princess Tarakanova?

The picture of Flavitsky, if you look at it closely, reveals one important detail. Princess Tarakanova has four arms. Two, clearly visible, are limp along the body. But if you look closely, you can see two hands that the girl proudly crossed on her chest. This was the author's first intention. Later, he changed it, deciding to show all the monstrous power of the Russian power system to break down the souls of people. He painted over his crossed arms. But they somehow resurfaced.