Customer Reviews

Masterpieces of the Hermitage Museum of St. Petersburg

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Two video disks packed with 8 hours of viewing magnificent works of art and coupled with historical comments. This set of DVDs is a wonderful reference companion for the art history major and a treasure for the artist and the art connoiseur. It is my most valued DVD.

Portrayed are masterpieces that were hidden from the eyes of Westerners for centuries. The precious disks reveal beautiful video images of art specimens never published in our Western art history books. The video allows the viewer to pause and zoom throughout the entire presentation, although the camera scan of the images and the selected angle shots are perfect without using this unique feature.

Disk one commences with an interesting historical presentation of Russia in the Age of Peter the Great followed with episodes of art and art history through the 14th century. Disk two commences with an exciting description of the museum's architecture followed with episodes and chapters of art and history from the 15th century to the 20th century.

The educational content in this film is beyond any documentary film of art I have seen, the historical implication is outstanding, it is a delightful tour of the world's great art collections.

This disc demonstrates one thing that DVD can do very, very well. While the narrator drifts through a series of images of patingings, sculptures, etc., you are free to PAUSE wherever you wish. This is a wonderful way to view an art program, and the TV screen is a lovely way to look at artistic materials (with its inner glow, it shows off the images). A TV tour is NOT the same as a museum, but few of us actually live in St. Petersburg, and a program such as this can be a worthy substitute.

The materials are loosely grouped by nationality and by period (high renaissance is one 1/2 hour program, Spanish masterpieces another, etc., etc., etc.). Menu access is easy.

In short, this is a fine presentation of a fantastic museum collection, and highly recommended.

The masterpieces presented and the tour of the extensive
galleries, with a first rate presentation, as the DVD medium
can provide.
A must for any art lover.

All paintings (overalls and closeups) are shot from oblique angles not perpendicular to the painting surface. This results in distorted images. This is done consistently throughout the 2 DVDs as if on purpose to frustate anyone serious about studying paintings.

We were going to go to Russia on vacation, but we had to cancell. Bought this instead and it wonderful, complete stories of the area, building and the art. Great video. I get to watch this in the comfort of our home.

The Hermitage is one of the places to see both for its architecture and for its art. In two discs, this set tries to give those who, like me, have never been, and never will be, there a glimpse of what we are missing. In a series of episodes of moderate length, a narrator provides a rapid review of the museum and its contents. The building is a combination of a structure built for the purpose of displaying art and the winter palace of several of the Czars. Wonderful what one could do in those days with a bottomless treasury, near absolute power, and what amounts to almost slave labor. Nevertheless, it is impressive on film with every promise of being overwhelming in reality. There are technical faults in sound, photography, and writing style (for the narrator), which I imagine have been improved in the later edition, but still it is a package well worth getting in this format if one can do it on the cheap. The paintings and sculpture (given one episode to itself) is world class in quality and quantity. Obviously, as on any tour, there is little time to do more than take a quick look (helped by the closeups of each object) but putting all the pieces together one does get a sense of just what riches the Czars were able to accumulate with the riches they had accumulated through their empire building.
I would recommend this version for anyone who has a desire to get a sense of what a trip to the Hermitage might involve. While I have not seen the revitalized version, if it is available at somewhere near the price of this one, or money is no object, that would probably be the better choice. This one, however, is not a poor alternative.

This DVD is a complete piece including history lessons of the Saint Petersburg fondation in the 18 century and rich descriptions of the masterpieces of the HERMITAGE MUSEUM. For me and my wife it is representing a fantastic material to prepare my visit in November 2010 to this incredible city and its Hermitage Museum.

I enjoyed this video not only for it's lovely introduction to this amazing museum but for it's well narrated educational theme.If you love museums and love art you will enjoy this intro to the Hermitage.I especially like that it's done in the proper time line and that the material is varied so you get to enjoy many different treasures of the collection.All that's required is a good pot or two of coffe rainy weekend some fuzzy slippers and you are on your way to St.Petersburg.

The quality of video and sound of this DVD set is low like of its VHS original of 1992. A much better is the newer set titled Hermitage Masterpieces of 2004, which was remasterd.