Ilya RepinUcraina, 1844–1930They Did Not Expect Him
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Galleria Tret'jakov
Mosca, Russia
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- I dati di collezione del museo stesso
About the painting
They Did Not Expect Him (Russian: Не ждали, lit. 'Didn't expect') is a painting by realist artist Ilya Repin made between 1884 and 1888. It depicts the return of a narodnik from exile and his family's reaction. The painting is part of Repin's "Narodniki" series, which includes four other artworks.
Repin began working on early versions of the canvas in 1884, at his country house in Martyshkino. He displayed it the same year in the 12th travelling exhibition of the Peredvizhniki, a group of Russian realist artists who travelled around Russia to host art exhibitions, first in Saint-Petersburg and then in other cities of Russia. It was purchased by Pavel Tretyakov in 1885 for display in his gallery. However, Repin continued to work on the painting after it was purchased, making several changes in 1885, 1887 and 1888, primarily to the face of the man entering the room.
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Russian artist and art critic Igor Grabar wrote that the paintings They Did Not Expect Him and Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan became the pinnacles of Repin's career, while art historian Dmitry Sarabyanov described the painting as "one of the pinnacles of Russian art in the nineteenth century". Art scholar Aleksei Fedorov-Davydov called They Did Not Expect Him "the most significant and monumental" of the artist's works on revolutionary themes.
Scheda
- Numero di inventario
- 740
Fonti
- Galleria Tret'jakov: the museum's own open data · acquisita 5 giorni fa
- Immagine: Galleria Tret'jakov — Museum open access
Nel frattempo, nella vita di Ilya Repin
Tutta la vita1887
Razvod s Veroy Alekseyevnoy
При разводе поделили детей: старшие остались у отца, младшие — у матери. Стасов беспокоился о душевном самочувствии друга.
1887
Garshin’s portrait at the 15th Wanderers’ exhibition
From their first meeting Repin wanted to paint the writer, struck by “Garshin’s eyes, full of serious bashfulness”; Garshin would enter the studio noiselessly, like a bodiless angel. Shown in 1887, the portrait split the reviewers — some thought Repin had painted Garshin mad, others had never seen finer eyes and a brighter brow; today it is in the United States, in the Metropolitan Museum.
1888
Second trip for the “Zaporozhians” — with his son Yuri
Eight years after the first trip Repin again set off for Little Russia, this time with his son Yuri, drawing everything the canvas might need — huts, utensils, costumes, weapons. He called his state “a creative binge” and the future characters “a merry folk”.
1890
Meets Natalia Nordman
He met Natalia Nordman (1863–1914), the daughter of an admiral, a writer, feminist and campaigner for better working conditions who advocated a simple life close to nature; she became his common-law wife.
