How to raise a legend: in the Tretyakov reveal the secrets of engravings

The project, presented in the building in Lavrushinsky Lane, is dedicated to the creative heritage of Vasily Mate - an outstanding master of engraving and teacher - and Anna Ostroumova-Lebedeva, one of his most famous students. The exhibition reveals the continuity of two generations of artists and shows how Mate’s pedagogical activity influenced the formation of a new direction in the domestic graphics.

Vasily Mate specialized in reproduction engraving. His works were distinguished by the accuracy of the transmission of pictorial originals and at the same time preserved an individual artistic manner. Among the most famous sheets of the master are engravings on the works of Ilya Repin and Viktor Vasnetsov, including the paintings “Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan” and “Bogatyri”. An important part of Mate’s heritage is a gallery of portraits of artists, collectors, artists, scientists and public life.

The exhibition also reveals Vasily Mate as a talented teacher. He taught at the Central School of Technical Drawing Baron A. L. Stieglitz and at the Imperial Academy of Arts, where he brought up a whole galaxy of talented masters. He was engaged in Ilya Repin, Valentin Serov, Vladimir Makovsky and Isaac Levitan, as well as representatives of the association “World of Art” – Mstislav Dobuzhinsky and Eugene Lancere.

The central place in the exposition is given to the work of Anna Ostroumova-Lebedeva, one of the largest masters of Russian graphics of the XX century, who approved woodcutting as an independent artistic technique. She became the first in Russia who created author’s color engravings using printing from several boards.

The main theme in the artist’s work was St. Petersburg – Petrograd – Leningrad and its environs, she addressed the architecture of the city, urban landscapes and suburbs. Among the significant works is the album “Landscapes of Pavlovsk”, as well as works in the technique of lithography and watercolors.

The exposition allows you to trace the development of the artistic language of the two masters, to see the variety of graphic techniques. In addition, the exhibition deals with the theme of creative continuity. As the song says, “The teacher continues in his disciple.”.