DK Travel : St Petersburg : Russian Museum

Russian Museum

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While the Hermitage is home to art collected from all over the world, the Russian Museum is an exclusively Russian affair, its exhibits ranging from priceless 12th-century icons to the avant-garde paintings of Kandinsky and Malevich. Opened to the public for the first time in 1898, the museum was nationalised after the 1917 Revolution and its collection swelled by works confiscated from palaces and churches. From the 1930s until Gorbachev’s restructuring (see 1991 Coup ), however, it exhibited mainly Socialist Realism art. The museum is housed in the 19th-century Mikhaylovskiy Palace, one of the finest Neo-Classical creations of Carlo Rossi, the Italian architect also responsible for Palace Square .
It is worth buying an audio guide to accompany you on your visit to the museum. These are available in English and can be hired at the ticket office. After visiting the museum, try some real Russian pancakes (blinis) in the restaurant/café on the ground floor.

Top 10 Features

1. The Last Day of Pompeii

1. The Last Day of Pompeii

One of the first Russian paintings to attract attention abroad, Karl Bryullov’s (1799–1852) magnificent creation was the result of his visit to Pompeii immediately after an eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1828.
2. The Zaporozhye Cossacks Writing a Mocking Letter to the Turkish Sultan

Ilya Repin’s colossal piece is based on the Ukrainian Cossacks’ fight with Turkey in the 17th century.
3. Perfected Portrait of Ivan Kliun

This distorted portrait, by leading avant-garde painter, Kazmir Malevich (1878–1935), is a typical example of his obsession with simple geometric shapes.
4. Knight at the Crossroads

A symbol of Russia’s uncertain future at the fin-de-siècle, Viktor Vasnetsov’s (1848–1926) brooding and mournful knight deserves to be seen as more than mere allegory. The hyper-realistic painting is remarkable for its imaginative use of colour.
5. Descent into Hell Icon

Created sometime in the 15th century, this icon, which survived the anti-religion purges after the 1917 Revolution, has been attributed to the Pskov school of icon painters.
6. Pine Grove

Ivan Shishkin (1832–98), a contemporary of the Wanderers , was renowned for his soothing forest landscapes. The serene Pine Grove is a classic example of his desire to depict nature in its pure, unadorned beauty.
7. Living Head

Despite having his work suppressed by the Soviets, Pavel Filonov (1883–1941) refused to sell any of his heavily detailed paintings, such as Living Head, to foreign collectors. A contemporary and close acquaintance of the writer Daniil Kharms , Filonov perished during the siege of the city.
8. Wrestlers

Natalia Goncharova (1881–1962), who had links to the Pushkin family, was deeply inspired by the primitivism of Russian folk art. She was also an accomplished costume designer. Wrestlers (1908–09) is an example of her welding of cubism and pre-revolutionary Russian avant-garde.
9. Portrait of the Poetess Anna Akhmatova

Anna Akhmatova’s portrait, by Russian Cubist painter Nathan Altman (1889–1970), was completed in 1914, when Akhmatova was 25.
10. Old Russian Decorative and Applied Art

This section of the museum has a collection of porcelain, furniture, glass and fascinating artifacts that has been built up since 1895.

Practical Information

It is worth buying an audio guide to accompany you on your visit to the museum. These are available in English and can be hired at the ticket office. After visiting the museum, try some real Russian pancakes (blinis) in the restaurant/café on the ground floor. Inzhenernaya ulitsa 4 595 4248 Open 10am–5pm Mon, 10am–4pm Wed–Sun closed Tue Adm: adults 300 roubles; children 150 roubles Disabled visitors call 314 6424 www.rusmuseum.ru