Dynamics of the image of Russia in the national artistic culture of the 19th - in the early 20th centuries

In the article the author traces the dynamics of the image of Russia in the national artistic culture. It is emphasized that its formation begins in the period of Ancient Rus, as evidenced by various literary monuments. Further actualization of the image refers to the 1800s. And is associated with the growth of patriotism and national self-consciousness, caused by the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812. In the second half of the nineteenth century, One of the central themes in Russian art culture is the theme of the people as one of the aspects of the image of Russia. The author analyzes the works of I. Repin and V. Surikov, in which this topic is presented most clearly. Next, the reasons for the transformation of the image of the people and its actualization at the beginning of the twentieth century are considered, among which are the change in the status of man and the set of ideas of the Silver Age (national, eschatological, etc.), the works of N. Goncharova, V. Kandinsky, K. Petrov-Vodkin, M. Chagall. In conclusion, the author concludes that, in spite ofthe difference in interpretation by these masters of the image of Russia, they are all united by a common tendency - the gravitation of the image to conventionality.