Title of the painting: February blue

Exhibition location: permanent exhibition of the Tretyakov Gallery in Lavrushinsky Lane, 10, room 38

Igor Grabar. February blue. 1904 Tretyakov Gallery. Moscow

The artist created the picture under the direct impression of nature. Igor Grabar wrote his “February Blue” in the winter and spring of 1904, when he was visiting friends in the Moscow region. During one of his usual morning walks, he was struck by the holiday of the awakening spring, and subsequently, being already a venerable artist, very vividly told the story of the creation of this canvas.

“I stood near a marvelous specimen of birch, rare in the rhythmic structure of its branches. Looking at her, I dropped the stick and bent down to pick it up. When I looked at the top of the birch from below, from the surface of the snow, I was stunned by the spectacle of fantastic beauty that opened before me: some chimes and echoes of all the colors of the rainbow, united by the blue enamel of the sky. Nature seemed to be celebrating some unprecedented holiday of azure skies, pearl birches, coral branches and sapphire shadows on lilac snow“. It is not surprising that the artist passionately wanted to convey “ at least a tenth of this beauty“.

I. Grabar has repeatedly admitted that of all the trees in central Russia, he loves the birch most, and among the birches, its “weeping” variety. This time the artist He quickly returned home to get the canvas, and then in one session he sketched a sketch of the future painting from life. The next day, taking another canvas, he began to paint a sketch from the same place, which became everyone’s favorite “February Blue.” Further above this picture I. Grabar he worked outdoors, in a deep trench that he specially dug in the snow.

February blue (fragment)

In “February Blue” I. Grabar achieved extreme color saturation; he painted this landscape in pure color, applying brush strokes in a dense layer. It was precisely these tiny strokes that revealed the volumes of tree trunks, the patterns of branches, and the mounds of snow. The low point of view opened up the opportunity for the artist to convey all the gradations blue color– from light green at the bottom to ultramarine at the top.

Grabar. February blue

Igor Grabar, having mastered the best achievements of impressionism, found his own artistic style in art - unique and original. The nature of Russia acquired a completely new look in his landscapes, sparkled with rainbow colors, and was filled with a feeling of space and light. In this regard, Grabar continued and developed the principles that appeared in the works of I. Levitan, V. Serov, K. Korovin and other outstanding Russian landscape painters.

Biography of Igor Grabar

Igor Emmanuilovich Grabar was born on March 13, 1871 in Budapest, in the family of the Russian public figure E. I. Grabar. In 1876, his parents, who were among the supporters of the Slavic liberation movement, moved to Russia.

Igor's childhood was not easy. The boy was often separated from his parents, remaining in the care of strangers. Since childhood, he dreamed of painting, tried to be closer to artistic circles, visited all exhibitions, studied the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery.

From 1882 to 1989, Grabar studied at the Moscow Lyceum, and from 1889 to 1895 at St. Petersburg University at two faculties at once - legal and historical-philological. After graduating from university, he entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts

In 1895, he studied in the workshop of Ilya Repin, where Malyavin, Bilibin and Somov studied at the same time.

Summer 1895, during the holidays, Grabar travels around Europe, visiting Berlin, Paris, Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples.

Returning to Russia in 1901, the artist was again shocked by the beauty of Russian nature. He is mesmerized by the beauty of the Russian winter, admired by the “grace” and “magnetism” of the magical birch tree. His admiration for Russia after a long separation was expressed in the paintings: “White Winter”, “February Azure”, “March Snow” and many others.

In 1910-1923, he moved away from painting and became interested in architecture, art history, museum activities, and monument protection.

He conceives and publishes the first “History of Russian Art” in six volumes, writes the most important sections for it, and publishes monographs on Isaac Levitan and Valentin Serov. Igor Grabar also published other art publications.

In the period from 1913 to 1925, the artist headed Tretyakov Gallery. Here Grabar carried out a re-exposition, placing and systematizing all works of art in historical sequence. In 1917 he published a gallery catalog, which has significant scientific value.

Igor Emmanuilovich is one of the founders of museology, restoration work and the protection of monuments of art and antiquity. In 1918, the artist created the Central Restoration Workshop. He helped save many works of ancient Russian art and the result of the work of the workshops was the discovery of numerous outstanding monuments of ancient Russian art - icons and frescoes in Novgorod, Pskov, Vladimir and other cities.

From 1924 until the end of the 1940s, Grabar again returned to painting, paying special attention to portraits, depicting his loved ones, scientists and musicians. Among his famous portraits are “Portrait of a Mother”, “Svetlana”, “Portrait of a Daughter against the Background of a Winter Landscape”, “Portrait of a Son”, “Portrait of Academician S. A. Chaplygin”. Two self-portraits of the artist “Self-portrait with a palette” and “Self-portrait in a fur coat” are also widely known.

In Soviet times, Grabar became interested in the works of Andrei Rublev and I. E. Repin. In 1937, he created a two-volume monograph “Repin”. This work brought Grabar the Stalin Prize. Since 1944, Grabar was the director of the Institute of Art History of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

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1. Organizational moment.

2. Announcing the topic of the lesson.

3. Biography of the artist.

Igor Emmanuilovich Grabar (1871–1960). Born in Budapest, in the family of a Russian public figure. In 1876, his parents moved to Russia. Igor's childhood was not easy. The boy was often separated from his parents, remaining in the care of strangers. Since childhood, he dreamed of painting, trying to be closer to artistic circles, visited all exhibitions, studied the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery.

From 1882 to 1889, Grabar studied at the Moscow Lyceum, and from 1889 to 1895 at St. Petersburg University at two faculties - law and history and philology. Then he entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts and studied in the workshop of Ilya Repin.

During the holidays he travels a lot around Europe: Berlin, Paris, Venice, Rome, Naples.

Returning to Russia, I was shocked by the beauty of Russian nature. His admiration for Russia after a long separation was expressed in the films: “White Winter”, “February Blue”, “March Snow” and many others.

4. View the artist’s paintings.

“September Snow”, “Rook’s Nest”, “Sunrise”, “ Winter morning”, “Winter Evening”, “March Snow”, “March”, “February Azure”.

5. The history of the creation of the painting.

“I stood near a marvelous specimen of birch, rare in the rhythmic structure of its branches. Looking at her, I dropped the stick and bent down to pick it up. When I looked at the top of the birch from below, from the surface of the snow, I was stunned by the spectacle of fantastic beauty that opened before me: some chimes and echoes of all the colors of the rainbow, united by the blue enamel of the sky. Nature seemed to be celebrating some unprecedented festival of azure skies, pearl birches, coral branches and sapphire shadows on lilac snow.”

It is not surprising that the artist passionately wanted to convey “at least a tenth of this beauty.”

6. What is a description?

Description is a type of speech with which you can present an object, characterizing it from different sides.

7. What is a landscape?

A landscape is an image of a painting.

8. Conversation with the class.

Why is the painting called “February Blue”?

What is the main palette of the painting?

Why exactly white and blue colors are used by the artist?

9. Consulting a dictionary.

A) light blue color. Pale as a lily in the azure of cornflowers. (Batyushkov)

B) the color of the sky, sea. Below him is a stream of lighter azure. (Lermontov)

B) sky blue. One star shines above me in the clear azure. (Pushkin)

D) paint light blue. Prussian blue.

10. Conversation with the class.

What is shown in the foreground of the picture?

What is the symbol of birch?

What do you feel when you look at Grabar’s painting “February Azure”?

What emotions does the birch tree painted by the artist in the foreground evoke in you?

Look at the sky, are there any clouds on it?

How does the color of the sky change towards the horizon?

Consider the snow. Does its color change in the sun and in the shade?

What colors does the artist use? Why?

Select a dictionary of colors and shades from the picture.

11. Image objects.

Sky: above, on the horizon.

Snow: in the sun, in the shade.

Birch: trunk, branches.

12. Words are helpers.

Sky: azure, blue, light blue, bottomless.

Snow: snow-white, pearl, azure.

Snow: sparkles, shines, sparkles, shines.

13. Synonyms - helpers.

An artist depicted, wrote, created a picture.

Painting – landscape, canvas, reproduction.

Birch is a Russian beauty, a symbol of Russian forests.

14. Expressions are helpers.

The artist's love for depicting the joyful state of nature.

Festival of Lights.

Admiration for the Russian beauty.

Pearl shimmers of white and blue.

Lacy weave of branches.

Azure sky.

Premonition of spring.

15. Example of a descriptive essay.

In front of me is a reproduction of Grabar’s most beautiful painting, “February Azure.” Everything about it is simple and incomparable. An amazing February day is depicted. Frosty and sunny. The weather was favorable. There's not a cloud in the sky. It is azure and blinding with blue. Near the horizon it is light blue, but above it is blue, and this blueness goes into infinity. The snow sparkles and sparkles. It is lilac in the sun and blue in the shade.

In the foreground is a beautiful branchy birch tree. Its trunk is pearly white, and its branches and last year’s foliage at the top red-brown color. Other birches are common, they are less majestic. Along the horizon line in the background you can see a bush stretching like a solid wall, also red-brown in color.

The artist conveyed the beauty of nature on his canvas. When you first meet the painting, you are struck by the blue glow coming from it. The color blue, the main color of the painting, helped convey the fantastic beauty. In nature, everything is immersed in azure light, which is why the painting is called “February Blue.”

This landscape evokes a joyful and festive mood. I would like to visit here and see everything with my own eyes.

16. Essay plan.

• The author of the painting is I.E. Grabar.
• The time of year depicted in the painting.
• Author Image Items:
  • birch in the foreground (its structure, color of the trunk, branches)
  • trees in the background
• Image of the sky, snow near the trees.
• What mood does the painting evoke?

17. Homework.

Using the lesson material, write a descriptive essay based on I.E. Grabar’s painting “February Azure.”

Description of Grabar’s painting “February Blue”

Description of Grabar’s painting “February Blue”

I admire I.E. Grabar’s painting “February Azure”. Frosty sunny morning. The sky, birch trees, snow all breathe with cold freshness.

Huge azure sky. All around is white and white. Shadows from birch trees fall on the snow. This makes him appear blue.

In the foreground is a tall, slightly curved birch tree. She spread her branches wide, like the arms of a dancer in her dance.

There are many birch trees in the middle ground. It feels like they are dancing in a circle at the edge of the forest.

Visible in the distance birch grove. Like spectators admiring the dance, she stands at a distance and surrounds the edge of the forest. The painting is made in transparent azure-blue tones. Only in this color scheme You can convey the frosty breath of winter.

I like this painting because the artist depicted it very accurately and beautifully. It evokes a joyful and festive mood. It’s as if you are there, near the birches and inhaling this frosty air.

February blue

When I look at this picture, I immediately understand that it depicts beautiful Russian nature, because against the background of a snow-white carpet there is a birch grove. Each branch of the birch tree that is located in the foreground is shrouded in frost, like lace. How it sparkles and shimmers on this clear, sunny day! The entire edge is flooded with light.

The snow glistens and sparkles cheerfully in the rays of the last winter sun, and the intertwined branches of birch trees cast shadows in the form of a bizarre pattern on the snow blanket. An immense azure sky spreads over the endless birch grove. February is the most amazing month of the year. It smells so cool, but you can already feel the fresh, warm aroma of spring, which means that soon the grove will bloom like spring and put on a green outfit.

The main character of this stunning picture is the white-trunked birch tree. Its trunk is gracefully and gracefully curved, which conveys not only the splendor of the tree, but also its strength. It seems that she is alive and, tired of the cold, exposes her sides to the gentle sun to warm up. In the distance her cheerful friends are visible, who are no less beautiful and elegant. How realistic they look! It seems that you stretch out your hand and are about to touch the trunk.

Painting by I.E. Grabar’s “February Azure” is mesmerizing. I would especially like to note the skill of the creator. The artist used mainly cool colors when creating the painting. But the foliage that remains from last year and the trunks of birch trees, immersed in the rays of the sun, shine welcomingly with gold. How contrasting it looks against the backdrop of cold white snow and a clear blue sky, which emanates freshness. It is this warm radiation that helps the viewer understand what is in front of him. last month winter.

The peace and quiet of this painting invites you to find yourself in the middle of a beautiful birch grove depicted on canvas, which leaves wonderful, joyful impressions and evokes the brightest memories. It is impossible not to note the subtle sense of beauty and love for nature of the creator who had a hand in painting this picture.

Description 2

Before us is the painting “February Azure”. On it is the famous Russian artist I.E. Grabar depicted a frosty February morning. The picture seems to be filled with a blue glow. The snow sparkles and shimmers under the sun's rays. Birch is permeated with sunlight.

The azure sky is cloudless, towards the horizon the color becomes lighter and turns to sapphire. In February it is still quite cold, but the sun is already warming the air well.

We see that there is more lying around large number snow. In the sun, pure snow pierces the eyes with a light blue glow. Shadows fall from the birch trees, and in the snow they turn dark blue and purple.

The birch trunk is slightly curved, like the waist of a young dancing girl. Toward the bottom it becomes dark in color, and at the height it becomes snow-white. Thin snow-white branches are covered with frost, shining in the sun, as if decorated with diamond chips. At the very top of the tree, last year's withered foliage is still visible.

The artist chose a perspective from which the tree appears to the viewer from bottom to top. Like a sculpture capturing the beauty of nature.

Behind the main Russian beauty, there are young birch trees that are not yet strong enough. They resemble a round dance dancing girls. The artist managed to convey the dance of nature, its rejoicing in connection with the approaching spring.

The branches of the birch trees are intertwined like thin silk lace. In the distance you can see a dense forest, which separates the sky and the earth with a dark stripe. If it weren't for him, they would have merged into one. There, in the dark and cold forest, winter still reigns. And here in the clearing spring is already beginning to awaken.

Igor Grabar is rightfully considered the poet of Russian winter. His picture is so realistic that you just want to come up and hug this thin-trunked birch tree, which with its branches is ready to hug you back. Breathe in the fresh frosty air of a sunny February day. Hear the creak and crunch of fresh snow falling under your feet. And most importantly, enjoy the silence of nature.

The artist shared with the world a piece of the indescribable beauty that is found in Russia. The picture is filled with an abundance of bright colors and streams of sunlight that hurt the eyes. The canvas exudes the frosty freshness and purity of virgin nature.

Essay description of the painting February Blue by Grabar

I. Grabar, a talented Russian landscape artist, depicted a winter landscape on his canvas that amazes the imagination.

A winter February day plays with the bright colors of snow-white colors, diluted with heavenly azure, so deep and bright. Many shades of blue convey the entire depth of the canvas, echoing and merging together, they create a motley magical mosaic.

In the still frosty air, a light breeze is felt, foreshadowing the change of season and the coming warmth. Sunlight illuminates the forest edge. Usually February is harsh, full of blizzards and blizzards, today it is gentle and quiet, the bad weather has receded, clear days have come, foreshadowing the birth of a new life, warmth, and at the same time, hope.

In the foreground, proudly straightening up and spreading its still naked spreading branches, stands a young birch tree. The figure of the snow-white Russian beauty delights and attracts the eye with its almost unearthly beauty. So tall, reaching towards the heavens, she seems to be spinning in a dance.

Her birch friends, standing behind in an even formation, flash their white trunks with black stripes. It seems that they are about to spin in a round dance on the creaking snow crust.

Through the branches of the trees, the sky turns into a multi-colored kaleidoscope, there are many colors and shades - lilac, blue, indigo, violet, ultramarine. Delicate pastel colors are pleasing to the eye and make you look at the details of the picture again and again. In the background you can see the line of the forest, trees tightly lined up next to each other, forming a dense wall, depicted as a blurry dark almost merging stripe.
The space is full of light and air, creating the impression of an open space. The contrast of turquoise skies and the white earth wrapped in a blanket of snow creates an unforgettable landscape incomparable in charm. How many joyful emotions are captured in this gentle winter landscape!

This picture can safely be called an ode to spring, the trees are ready to welcome the warmth, and the birds that will fly in from distant warm countries are already throwing off their silvery snow coverings in anticipation, but, despite the fact that it is now February, everything is breathing in spring, the last The winter days are about to fade into oblivion and the long-awaited warmth will come.

The painter revealed an ordinary spring plot in an unusually bright and colorful way, playing it out in his own specific manner, he showed that in simple things grace, mystery and versatility are hidden.

Option 4

When you see winter, you see different shades of blue. Azure is an even better word to describe it. This color, by name, hints at the mineral lapis lazuli, but by association it is associated with some kind of space and something immense.

In fact, such a thought can be traced in this picture; here the artist acts only as a conductor of the beauty created by nature. He simply tells the viewer, but does not invent anything of his own; on the contrary, Grabar tries most purely, but at the same time quite vividly, to convey the improbability of this entire phenomenon. When you look at the February blue, you become immersed in the picture and begin to strive to take in all these vast expanses with your gaze.

Although the perspective of the picture is obscured by the forest and as such the space is not visible here, in fact the feeling of it arises, because Grabar even by the name itself hints at this comprehensiveness. When we look at the picture, we know how the azure sky stretches over all Russian forests, how it is reflected in the snowy fields, how cold the air is permeated, how the snowflakes sparkle, how colorful the trees are, how beautiful this space is. It is beauty that is the prevailing factor here.

In fact, Grabar, describing a specific phenomenon, writes about the beauty of nature. This is the task of the artist - to spread and establish beauty in the world. In this picture, Grabar coped with his task.

This essay is usually written in 4th grade and 5th grade. exercise 358

June 11, 2015

They say that a landscape is a portrait of nature. And in a good artist it is full of dynamism, a certain secret that is revealed to the viewer only on an intuitive-sensual level. He observes an ordinary, even unremarkable sketch of nature - alone standing tree, a turbulent sea or a mountainous area - and yet he never ceases to admire the unusual perspective of what is depicted, the photographically accurately noted mood, and the impressionistic play with colors. All these features can characterize the paintings of Igor Grabar. Let’s try to give a description of the painting “February Blue”.

History of creation

As a rule, evidence of the history of the creation of a particular work of art is extremely short-lived. Some time passes - and the artist himself no longer remembers exactly when the idea of ​​​​capturing something on paper came to him. Fortunately, the history of the painting “February Azure” has not sunk into oblivion. It is known that the canvas was created when Grabar was visiting the hospitable philanthropist Nikolai Meshcherin in Dugino. The Dugin period is considered perhaps the most fruitful in the artist’s work; the paintings he painted over 13 years were gladly received by museums and exhibitions.

One fine February morning, the artist simply decided to take a walk - without paints or an easel. One of the birches seemed especially beautiful to Grabar, he looked at it and... dropped his stick. And while lifting it, he looked up at the tree. The effect was simply extraordinary! The artist rushed to get his supplies and sketched what he saw, so that within a few days he could begin creating a full-fledged painting. To do this, Grabar dug a trench in the snow, covered the canvas with an umbrella, which enhanced the effect of the presence of blue, and began to create. He worked for about two weeks, and all this time nature spoiled the artist with beautiful weather.

Subject of the image

Let’s start the description of the painting “February Blue” with the main thing - the birch tree in the foreground. The tree is shrouded in the finest winter lace, capable of sparkling cheerfully even on a cloudy day. A little further you can see the smaller friends of the white-trunked queen, small birch trees. This is how a comparison comes to mind with girls who spin in a round dance, calling out spring and saying goodbye to February. It seems that if you stay a little longer next to the canvas, you will hear a song about the symbol of our country, the birch.

The tree is depicted against the backdrop of a snow-white blanket and a piercing blue sky. That is why its branches, which give the birch an interesting, even somewhat strange shape, look mysterious, fabulous, bewitched. It’s as if the white-trunked beauty has just woken up and is reaching out to the sky to welcome spring, which makes it seem like the birch tree is akimbo.

Color solution

We continue the essay “Description of the painting “February Azure””. It would seem that the image of the winter month requires using all the white paint. However, Grabar acted differently. On the canvas, the viewer can clearly see that the snow is no longer very clean, thawed patches can be seen here and there, which means spring is approaching. At the same time, the artist generously uses pastel and bright colors. It is believed that in the canvas he reached the limit of color saturation, essentially painting with pure light. We will see many shades of blue and ultramarine. All of them merge into the unique music of painting, the main goal of which is to convey another moment from the life of nature, sometimes invisible to the common man. With such an installation, the canvas that Grabar created - “February Azure” - comes close to the masterpieces of the French impressionists, such as “Poppies” by Claude Monet.

Dominant mood

The main ideological message of the painting can be described as expectation. Winter cold will definitely be replaced by warm weather, the depicted birch tree will dress in a beautiful outfit of green leaves, and nature will begin a new round of its development. This explains the extraordinary, optimistic emotional background of the canvas. This description of the painting “February Blue” should be taken into account.

Other facts

Grabar gained fame as a painter of the winter season. There is even an interesting parallel between the mentioned Dugin period and Pushkin’s Boldino autumn as one of the most fruitful periods of the poet’s activity. However, Grabar - “February Azure” and other “winter” paintings do not count! - captured other seasons, as well as people’s faces. The artist worked very fruitfully throughout his life: not every painter can create almost non-stop for about 60 years!

Initially, the artist called the canvas we are interested in “Blue Winter” - an analogy with other paintings by Grabar - but when he gave his brainchild to the Tretyakov Gallery, he renamed it. The masterpiece remains there to this day. Visitors look at the canvas and are surprised to discover something that even the most skillful reproductions are unable to convey: brushstrokes, individual dots that make up the canvas. This is also a trace of one of the art movements - divisionism.

At this point, the description of the painting “February Blue” can be considered complete.