“Lake Ladoga”
“Lake Ladoga” is a beautiful oil on canvas painting from 1873 by the Russian artist of Greek descent, Arkhip Kuindzhi. Kuindzhi was part of the Peredvizhniki art movement, the Russian counterpart to the Realism movement in Europe. The Peredvizhniki artists included such greats as Ivan Shishkin and Ilya Repin, amongst others. Kuindzhi’s art is known for its contrast of colors and his talent at depicting how light plays in the atmosphere.
Lake Ladoga is a freshwater lake just northeast of Saint Petersburg in northwest Russia. It has a long and disputed history, but at the time this was painted, it was within the Russian Empire. It is the largest freshwater lake in all of Europe. Kuindzhi had recently finished his schooling at the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts and was working as a freelance artist. His art techniques were maturing, and he sought to perfect his depictions of illumination, such as seen in the diffused light in “Lake Ladoga”.
Kuindzhi’s favorite subject at the time was the Russian landscape, in all its realism, which at times can be quite austere. Though his paintings are of scenes that are true to life, Kuindzhi added a touch of the sublime through luminism techniques and intense skies.
“Lake Ladoga” is in the collections of the State Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
For more on Arkhip Kuindzhi, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
