The unique collection of art treasures in the historical center of Moscow turned out to be connected with the name of the great Russian poet largely by chance. The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts has one of the most significant collections of Western European art in the world from antiquity to the twentieth century, but everyone has long been accustomed to the name of the poet, and it does not raise any objections. Russian culture and art are presented in completely different museums.
Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. How was it created?
The man to whom we owe the very existence of this museum was Ivan Vladimirovich Tsvetaev. The idea of creating such an institution in Moscow has long been circulating in the circles of the aristocracy and the enlightened Russian intelligentsia. But the distance between the idea and its embodiment seemed insurmountable to many. To do thiswas destined for the historian and art theorist I. V. Tsvetaev. He put his whole life into this.
Such a grandiose idea could not be translated into reality without equally grandiose financial costs. In order for the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts to exist in the form in which it is known to us today, two factors had to merge together - the financial power of Russian entrepreneurship, which was gaining momentum at the beginning of the century, and the talent of architects and builders. Honored Professor of Moscow University and Doctor of Roman Literature Tsvetaev succeeded in bringing merchants and industrialists together with architects, artists and builders. We had to overcome many difficulties, both financial and technical. The construction, unique in scale and complexity, lasted for 14 years. IV Tsvetaev was the first director of the museum. He died shortly after its opening.
How the collection was formed
The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts was completed with plaster copies of antique sculptures and architectural fragments during the construction process. They were made according to casts from originals from the famous museums of the world. The art collection was formed from various sources throughout the twentieth century. Part of the funds was transferred in Soviet times from the Hermitage. But the pride of the collection are paintings by French impressionists and post-impressionists from the collections of Shchukin and Morozov. This gathering has become one of the most representative in the world.
But the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is famous not only for its main exposition. Exchange exhibitions with leading museum centers around the world are held here regularly. Each time they become significant cultural events in the life of Moscow. The "tail" of the queue has become a familiar sign of this place. People stand in it for tickets to the museum.
Metro station "Kropotkinskaya", Volkhonka street, 12 - even those who come to Moscow for the first time know this address well. The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is a must to visit. It is not uncommon for people from afar to travel to Moscow just to visit here.
