Vasily Ivanovich Surikov (1848 -1916) was the foremost Russian painter of large-scale historical subjects. His major pieces are among the best-known paintings in Russia. He is principally noted for his treatment of episodes from the 17th century and the medieval period of Russian history. These works are remarkable for their thoroughly researched and detailed rendering of settings and costume and the drama of their presentation. Continue reading
1872-1915, the Russian pianist, mystic, visionary, virtuoso, and composer, Scriabin dedicated his life to creating musical works which would, as he believed, open the portals of the spiritual world. Scriabin took piano lessons as a child, joining, in 1884, Nikolay Zverov’s class, where Rachmaninov was a fellow student. From 1888 to 1892, Scriabin studied at the Moscow Conservatory, where his teachers included Arensky, Taneyev, and Safonov. Although Scriabin’s hand could not easily stretch beyond an octave, he developed into a prodigious pianist, launching an international concert career in 1894. Continue reading
Taken from the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (1890-1907).
English Russia has posted a great selection of Pre-Communist Russian dirigibles. Click here to check them out! See if you can match some of them up!
“Night, street, lamp, drugstore” (1912)
Night, street, lamp, drugstore,
A dull and meaningless light.
Go on and live another quarter century -
Nothing will change. There’s no way out.
You’ll die – start from the beginning anew,
And all will repeat, just like before:
Night, icy ripples on a canal,
Drugstore, street, lamp.
Ночь, улица, фонарь, аптека,
Бессмысленный и тусклый свет.
Живи еще хоть четверть века -
Все будет так. Исхода нет.
Умрешь – начнешь опять сначала
И повторится все, как встарь:
Ночь, ледяная рябь канала,
Аптека, улица, фонарь.
Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Blok (Алексáндр Алексáндрович Блок, (1880 – 1922) was one of the most gifted lyrical poets produced by Russia after Alexander Pushkin. Continue reading
