The Appearance of Christ to the People

Today we will tell about the history of the creation of this amazing work of Alexander Ivanov. Over a unique picture, the author worked for 20 years in Italy. More than 500 sketches were made for the final version of the painting. During the creation and sending of the painting to St. Petersburg, there were many difficulties along the way, from the storm to the cold meeting by the public, who considered it too small a figure of Christ and to water that was not decorated in an academic manner. And to the old man on the left side of the picture, where his loincloth is reflected in the red water. Returning to St. Petersburg, the artist struck cholera and soon he died. A few hours later Emperor Alexander II bought a job for 15,000 rubles. The artist, who devoted most of his life to creating the picture, never got the money for it. I considered that this picture would allow the Russian people to be reborn, overcome their vices and shortcomings. Now this work is in the Tretyakov Gallery.