The Russian Woman in Art

Abstract

Published in Russian in 1913, this article is unprecedented in its focus on the representation of women in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Russian painting. The author, Nikolai Nikolayevich Vrangel, who belonged to both high-society and avant-garde circles in St. Petersburg, does not differentiate between female and male artists, and reveals that “feminine” could be blended with “masculine.” He challenges notions of Tsarist “polite” society and criticizes the stereotyping of women by artists and viewers. Written in a poetic style, Vrangel offers a remarkable view of the development of Russian art and society from c.1700 to 1860, an account of Russian relations with cultural developments further west and an insight into the burgeoning Russian art history around 1910.