Masterpieces of the Russian Museum. "Smolyanka" by Dmitry Levitsky

Double-height hall, Exhibition complex of the Historical Museum

The joint project with the Russian Museum continues a series of jubilee exhibitions dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the Historical Museum, which will be widely celebrated in 2022. The basis of the exposition is a series of portraits from the series "Smolyanka" by the famous Russian artist of the second half of the 18th century - Dmitry Grigorievich Levitsky. In addition to portraits, the exposition is complemented by a number of works: portraits of the founders of the Smolny Institute - Catherine the Great and II Betsky, objects of applied art and historical photographs. In total, the exhibition features over 90 items from the collection of the Russian Museum.

The series of portraits of "Smolyanka" never completely left the permanent exhibition of the Russian Museum, only sometimes individual canvases were transferred to temporary exhibitions. In the Historical Museum, all seven portraits of the pupils of the Smolny Institute will be exhibited in full for the first time outside the walls of the Russian Museum.

"Smolyanka" by D. G. Levitsky are not only significant works for Russian art, but also recognized masterpieces of world significance. We are grateful to our colleagues from St. Petersburg for such a valuable and truly unique gift for the 150th anniversary of the Historical Museum, ”says Director of the Historical Museum Alexei Levykin.

The exhibition opens with portraits of Catherine II, I. I. Betsky and D. G. Levitsky, demonstrating the main theme of the exhibition - the connection between the Smolny Institute, the Smolny Monastery and the Imperial Court in the Age of Enlightenment. The portrait series is also considered at the exhibition as a "visiting card" of the outstanding brainchild of the educational policy of Catherine the Great, brought to life by II Betsky - the Imperial Educational Society for Noble Maidens (Smolny Institute), established in 1764 at the Smolny Monastery in St. Petersburg. Smolny Institute is the first exemplary educational institution of its kind, created in the spirit of the ideas of the Enlightenment, which laid the foundation for women’s education in Russia.

The center of the exposition is the series "Smolyanka" by D. G. Levitsky: young students appear before the viewer in the learning process - some are in classrooms, others are shown during music, dance and dramatic art lessons. On the artist’s canvases, one can see the uniforms that were appropriate for pupils of different ages, theatrical costumes and many small details that characterize the process of education and life of the institute in the 18th century. Portraits are distinguished by pictorial innovations and a variety of compositional and figurative solutions. In each image, the artist demonstrates the dignity and value of the human person, the breadth of its creative possibilities, the wealth of the spiritual and the beauty of the material world. The series of portraits "Smolyanok" became a high achievement of the national school of painting,rightfully entered in the second half of the 18th century in the circle of European national art schools.

Another section of the exhibition is dedicated to the Smolny Monastery, where the Institute for Noble Maidens was located from 1764 to 1806. The majestic architectural image of the monastery, which was erected in the middle of the 18th century by K.B. Rastrelli, is presented in the graphic sheets of the first half of the 19th century. The idea of the monastery is complemented by a complex consisting of the royal gates and fragments of the iconostasis of the Catherine Church of the monastery, which served as the house church of the Smolny Institute.

According to the plan of Catherine II, the institute was supposed to accept mainly girls from poor noble families, and the best graduates were to become maids of honor. The embodiment of this idea of the empress can be seen in the portraits of D.G. Levitsky, where, along with representatives of famous ancient Russian surnames, such as the princes Khovansky, Khrushchev, Rzhevsky, pupils from modest families are depicted. The important connection between the Institute and the Imperial Court is symbolically demonstrated by two exhibits: the code of the maid of honor of Catherine II and the code of the best graduate of the Smolny Institute.

In a separate section of the exhibition, photographs from the album of the famous St. Petersburg photographer KK Bulla, dedicated to the Smolny Institute, are exhibited. They allow you to see the environment in which the pupils lived and feel the spirit of discipline, tireless work and creativity that reigned in the classes of the institute.

“Ideas of understanding the space of the hall, scenography and design of the exposition enrich the perception of the exhibition as an artistic whole. The flowing ribbon motif that unites the entire exposition dates back to the aesthetics of the 18th century as one of the most popular and expressive decorative elements of the era, degrading literally all areas of art and everyday life, adorning the Smolyanka’s costumes, ”notes the exhibition’s architect Agniya Sterligova.