В Большом театре смонтирован занавес «Въезд Минина и Пожарского в Москву»
В Большом театре смонтирован занавес «Въезд Минина и Пожарского в Москву»
According to information from Mikhail Sidorov, the official representative of the general contractor in charge of the renovation and restoration of the Bolshoi Theatre and an advisor to the President of Summa Group, work has begun on installing the main stage curtain in the run-up to completion of the Bolshoi Theatre renovation and restoration work.
”Firstly, we mounted a decorative rolling-up curtain, which is a copy of the Bolshoi Theatre original curtain ”Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow”. Artists Vladimir Chernov and Eugene Kravtsov are in charge of restoring the historical curtain.
Initially, the curtain was made in 1856 by Kozroe-Duse, the professor of painting at the Imperial Academy of Arts. Relying on the traditions of Italian masters, the artist chose one of the key moments from the history of the city where a theatre was built”, noted Mikhail Sidorov.
Kozroe-Duse’s work brought unanimous praise from the first spectators of the Bolshoi Theatre. Newspapers of the time wrote: ”It is a very precise work. It is no longer a decorative painting restricted to giving a general impression, but a true masterpiece, completed in full detail with a genuine love for art”. The creator of a new stage curtain was personally marked by Emperor Alexander II present at the opening of the Bolshoi Theatre.
Yet, even the most perfect work does not last forever. 30 years later, Kozroe Duse’s curtain decayed and had to be replaced.
During its 155 years of existence, the building restored by the architect Alberto Cavos has seen seven different curtains used by the Bolshoi Theatre troupe.
A sliding curtain was in use before restoration work started. It was made in 1955 by Mikhail Petrovsky on the basis of the designs of the USSR national artist Feodor Feodorovsky. The study of the curtain and of the wings has revealed numerous defects. The fabric was worn out, brushes and fringe bore a significant loss, while parts of the design stage did not show artistic and stylistic unity.
A unified design of the stage portal has been developed as part of restoration work. It was decided to recreate the original rolling-up curtain ”Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow”. Also, the main sliding curtains with the word Russia were designed by the artist Sergei Barkhin using Fedor Feodorovsky’s sketches.
The painting complex ‘Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow’ was recreated using the two surviving documents: a hand-painted etching dated 1859, found in the Bolshoi Theatre project records and a black-and-white archival photograph, stored in the Museum of the Bolshoi Theatre. The etching did not show the details, so the art conservators tried to ‘pull’ the vividness of poses, anatomical plasticity and the sense of perspective out of a photograph. Another source of information was the panel painting dated 1856 held in the Alexander Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace. It served as a model for the art conservators.
”The old curtain was sewn from several pieces of fabric. The fabric has now acquired perfect smoothness – a canvas woven in the workshops is 24 meters wide and 17 meters long. Curtain weight is over 700 kg.
”Firstly, we mounted a decorative rolling-up curtain, which is a copy of the Bolshoi Theatre original curtain ”Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow”. Artists Vladimir Chernov and Eugene Kravtsov are in charge of restoring the historical curtain.
Initially, the curtain was made in 1856 by Kozroe-Duse, the professor of painting at the Imperial Academy of Arts. Relying on the traditions of Italian masters, the artist chose one of the key moments from the history of the city where a theatre was built”, noted Mikhail Sidorov.
Kozroe-Duse’s work brought unanimous praise from the first spectators of the Bolshoi Theatre. Newspapers of the time wrote: ”It is a very precise work. It is no longer a decorative painting restricted to giving a general impression, but a true masterpiece, completed in full detail with a genuine love for art”. The creator of a new stage curtain was personally marked by Emperor Alexander II present at the opening of the Bolshoi Theatre.
Yet, even the most perfect work does not last forever. 30 years later, Kozroe Duse’s curtain decayed and had to be replaced.
During its 155 years of existence, the building restored by the architect Alberto Cavos has seen seven different curtains used by the Bolshoi Theatre troupe.
A sliding curtain was in use before restoration work started. It was made in 1955 by Mikhail Petrovsky on the basis of the designs of the USSR national artist Feodor Feodorovsky. The study of the curtain and of the wings has revealed numerous defects. The fabric was worn out, brushes and fringe bore a significant loss, while parts of the design stage did not show artistic and stylistic unity.
A unified design of the stage portal has been developed as part of restoration work. It was decided to recreate the original rolling-up curtain ”Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow”. Also, the main sliding curtains with the word Russia were designed by the artist Sergei Barkhin using Fedor Feodorovsky’s sketches.
The painting complex ‘Minin and Pozharsky entry into Moscow’ was recreated using the two surviving documents: a hand-painted etching dated 1859, found in the Bolshoi Theatre project records and a black-and-white archival photograph, stored in the Museum of the Bolshoi Theatre. The etching did not show the details, so the art conservators tried to ‘pull’ the vividness of poses, anatomical plasticity and the sense of perspective out of a photograph. Another source of information was the panel painting dated 1856 held in the Alexander Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace. It served as a model for the art conservators.
”The old curtain was sewn from several pieces of fabric. The fabric has now acquired perfect smoothness – a canvas woven in the workshops is 24 meters wide and 17 meters long. Curtain weight is over 700 kg.
The curtain was brought inside a special cylindrical container onto the construction site. It has been now placed on top of a teleclimber and lifted to a height of 18 meters”, said the representative of the general contractor.
As a reminder, a gala concert on the main stage is planned for October 28, 2011. Inspections of the ceremonial halls are currently underway in the historical part of the Bolshoi Theatre building.
As a reminder, a gala concert on the main stage is planned for October 28, 2011. Inspections of the ceremonial halls are currently underway in the historical part of the Bolshoi Theatre building.