Customer Reviews

The Itinerants: The Masters of Russian Realism : Second Half of the 19th and Early 20th Centuries (Schools & Movements)

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I would highly recommend this book to any person who takes interest in Russian painting. "The Itinerants" is an excelently illustrated volume that provides invaluable information on Russian art of the end if 19th century. The number of reproductions is really very impressive. The Itinerants (The Peredvizhniki) were the most important movement in the history of Fine Arts in Russia of the late 1800s. Unfortunately, their art is not very well known in the United States. This book could be a great introduction.

This is surely one of the most unpredictable, long-overdue art books it has been my privelege to find. Look in virtually any anthology of `world art` and you will usually look in vain for Repin, Polenov, Shishkin (the Russian Constable?), the marvellous Nikolai Ge (pronounced Gyay) whose profound religious paintings have been scandalously ignored by most critics, the great Isaac Levitan, who was Chekhov`s friend and seemed to be able to paint stillness and silence itself...and so on.
You will discover riches here - a world of seemingly neglected art by masters, many the equivalent of the accepted greats of Western art. This is a book to lose oneself in. Much has been said about the `Russian soul`, but here you may well find it. A book of unexpected beauty which, along with the artists themselves, should be far better known.

I was lucky to purchase this book about 12 years ago when it was still in publication. It has great reproductions with vivid colors. Repin's paintings look fantastic, among others. It is a quality book with a wide range of styles from various artists of the period. This book truly opened my eye with regards to Russian paintings as if looking through a gate to a rarely seen artistic El Dorado. That said, I can not believe how much some vendors are charging for the book unless it is in such high demand among collectors. If you can afford it, grab a copy.