Arkhip Kuindzhi: Red Sunset on the Dnieper (1905)

February 22, 2018

Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi Red Sunset on the Dnieper

Photo: Metropolitan Museum

It’s name derived from the ancient Scythian word meaning “deep river”, the Dnieper is the forth longest river in Europe. Mentioned by Herodotus in the fifth century B.C., for thousands of years the Dnieper has been a vital Eastern artery. Beginning near Smolensk, it travels 1,368 miles emptying into the Black Sea. Many great cities arose along its banks including Arheimer, capitol of the Goths, and Kiev capitol of modern day Ukraine. For centuries, authors & artists have sung its praises & sought to capture its beauty.

Arkhip Kuindzhi was one such artist. Born in Ukraine, but raised in Russia, young Arkhip lost both his parents by the age of six and was forced to do menial labor to survive. Fortunately, one of those jobs was mixing paints for the romantic painter Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky. Arkhip took an interest in the craft of painting & his talent soon became apparent by his employer. His pupil, Adolf Fessler, was soon training the would be artist as an assistant. Eventually, he made his way to St. Petersburg where was able to study formally at St. Petersburg Academy of Arts & embark upon his vocation. His long career would be primarily be spent recording the natural wonders of the Russian Empire, including the River Dneiper seen above…

More information on Arkhip Kuindzhi here.