- 323
Konstantin Egorovich Makovsky
Estimate
800,000 - 1,200,000 USD
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Description
- Konstantin Makovsky
- Happy Arcadia, 1889-1890
- oil on canvas
- 88 5/8 by 143 1/4 in.
- 220 by 364 cm
Literature
Elena Nesterova, K. Makovsky, St. Petersburg: Zolotoi Vek, 2003, p. 69
Catalogue Note
Happy Arcadia is one of sixteen allegorical and mythological canvases that Konstantin Makovsky painted for the concert hall of Baron Sergei Pavlovich von Derviz's mansion in St. Petersburg (Angliiskaia Naberezhnaia, 28). Makovsky painted these murals in Paris from 1888 to 1889, and some were published in the journal Niva in 1889. The published works include Happy Arcadia, numbered 24.
Happy Arcadia is among the largest of Makovsky's Derviz murals, exceeded only by the plafond. It depicts a bucolic idyll in a happy Arcadia--a mythological kingdom of love and tranquil delights in the midst of luxurious nature. Surrounded by cupids, three young shepherdesses dance to the music of a shepherd's bagpipe and his young apprentice's pipe (the girl at left is possibly Makovsky's wife, Yulia Pavlovna). At right one cupid rides a panther, bridled with a pink halter to symbolize restrained passions.
The work was intended for a wealthy interior, and it was created in accordance with the laws of monumental murals. Its composition was provisioned by recessional angles that would expand visual space, and its color palate was designed to engage in a harmonic synthesis with the lavish setting of the Derviz mansion. Thus the mural appeared weightless, airy and decorative--a real testament to Makovsky's virtuosity. The painterly technique, compositional manner and figurative choices are all typical of his oeuvre. They leave no doubt of his authorship, though all murals were left unsigned.
In 1907 the murals were purchased by Baron Anton Alfan and shown at the Society for Encouragement of the Arts in St. Petersburg. The newspaper Novoe Vremia (November 20, 1907, no. 11371) read: "It's been a long time since we've had such a beautiful exhibit as that of Makovsky, which opened on Sunday--there have been much bigger more interesting shows, but none more beautiful." Soon the murals were reproduced as postcards, and Happy Arcadia was included under the title Dance.
Happy Arcadia is among the largest of Makovsky's Derviz murals, exceeded only by the plafond. It depicts a bucolic idyll in a happy Arcadia--a mythological kingdom of love and tranquil delights in the midst of luxurious nature. Surrounded by cupids, three young shepherdesses dance to the music of a shepherd's bagpipe and his young apprentice's pipe (the girl at left is possibly Makovsky's wife, Yulia Pavlovna). At right one cupid rides a panther, bridled with a pink halter to symbolize restrained passions.
The work was intended for a wealthy interior, and it was created in accordance with the laws of monumental murals. Its composition was provisioned by recessional angles that would expand visual space, and its color palate was designed to engage in a harmonic synthesis with the lavish setting of the Derviz mansion. Thus the mural appeared weightless, airy and decorative--a real testament to Makovsky's virtuosity. The painterly technique, compositional manner and figurative choices are all typical of his oeuvre. They leave no doubt of his authorship, though all murals were left unsigned.
In 1907 the murals were purchased by Baron Anton Alfan and shown at the Society for Encouragement of the Arts in St. Petersburg. The newspaper Novoe Vremia (November 20, 1907, no. 11371) read: "It's been a long time since we've had such a beautiful exhibit as that of Makovsky, which opened on Sunday--there have been much bigger more interesting shows, but none more beautiful." Soon the murals were reproduced as postcards, and Happy Arcadia was included under the title Dance.