Tip 1: What is a ceremonial portrait

Culture and Society

Tip 1: What is a ceremonial portrait

The front portrait is a phenomenon typical forcourt culture. Its main task is not only to transfer the similarity, but also to exalt the customer, who, more often than not, was a high-ranking individual or even a monarch.

Features of the genre of the ceremonial portrait

The front portraits received widedistribution at court. They glorified royal people and their associates. As a rule, a person was portrayed in full growth, standing or sitting on a horse. The background was usually a landscape or architectural structures. The artist, first of all, focused on the social role of his model. At the same time, her spiritual qualities often receded into the background. Among the distinctive features of the ceremonial portrait is the theatrical posture of the character, the image of numerous regalia, a lush entourage.

The ceremonial portrait in the works of Levitsky

In Russia the flourishing of the art of the ceremonial portraitaccounts for the second half of the 18th century. The largest representative of the genre was Dmitry Grigorievich Levitsky. One of the artist's best works, as well as one of the most unusual ceremonial portraits in all world art, was "The Portrait of Prokofy Akinfievich Demidov." A well-known patron of art is depicted against the background of the columns of the Educational House, one of the trustees of which he was. In this case, Demidov himself is dressed in a home dressing gown, he leans on a watering can and is surrounded by indoor plants. Levitsky says here that his hero is as caring towards orphans from the Upbringing House as to delicate indoor plants. To this genre one should include a series of portraits of the pupils of the Smolny Institute of Noble Maidens. Charming young people are depicted during performances on theatrical stage, as well as studying science and art. This series has become a new version of the ceremonial portrait for Russia - the so-called "portrait in a role", where the subject of the image is not a real but emphatically theatricalized life.

The artistic originality of the portrait of Catherine II Borovikovsky

One of the most peculiar examples of the paradeportrait was a picture of Levitsky's younger contemporary - Vladimir Lukich Borovikovsky - "Catherine II on a walk in the park of Tsarskoe Selo". The artist depicted the Empress in ordinary clothes, not reminiscent of her royal majesty. At the feet of Catherine sports her beloved dog. It is interesting that although the Empress herself treated her portrait of Borovikovsky's brush very coolly, in the future he was recognized as one of the best. It is in this image that Catherine appears before Masha Mironova on the pages of Pushkin's story "The Captain's Daughter." Thus, talented artists often managed to overcome the rather rigid framework of the genre of the ceremonial portrait.

Tip 2: What is Entourage

Those who often happen in museums know how muchthe environment that surrounds the exhibits is important. The same applies to theatrical productions, where the action takes place on a certain, pre-conceived and prepared background. Elements of the environment surrounding the central object, around which the main events unfold, it is customary to call entourage.

Entourage in the theater and cinema

In French, the term "entourage"literally means "environment, environment, environment". So usually called the conditions of any activity, the features of the place where the events unfold. A characteristic example of entourage - artificial scenery in the shooting pavilion or on the stage of the theater. Cleverly and tastefully selected entourage introduces a special atmosphere, corresponding to the unfolding action. Creation of a truly spectacular entourage can specialists in the field of design, architects, artists and decorators. It is these people who have to realize the director's plans, implement his ideas, and sometimes even combine contradictory demands on the situation. The work of the artist forming the entourage of the theatrical performance is very much appreciated, since the success of the future performance largely depends on its quality.

Architectural entourage

The term "entourage" directly applies tograph used to visualize architectural projects. This is usually called the image on the perspective projections of the future object. In this respect, the entourage becomes a natural background surrounding the architectural complex: a green lawn, trees, neighboring buildings and structures. The entourage can be executed in a flat and volumetric form. The elements entering into the structure of the architectural entourage become a kind of indication of the scale of the future structure and are in essence the models of the environment in which the object is included. The graphic image of the situation allows us to visualize how organically the structure will look in such an entourage. Assessing the situation in this model, the architect can easily assess the merits and demerits of the project, as well as make changes in its stylistics.

Entourage in the game reality

In modern role-playing games there is also a placefor work on the creation of entourage. Game wizards who are members of the team of computer strategy developers spend a lot of time thinking and drawing details of the situation in which the game action will unfold. Create a fascinating atmosphere helps to know the features of the historical era or technological reality, corresponding to the scenario. After passing through the stages of the computer game, its participants are able to immerse themselves in a fictional reality. This is not the last thing achieved by creating a unique entourage. Details of the situation, auxiliary characters, quirky elements of the game environment - all this creates a presence in the players. Experts in the field of computer games believe that specialists in creating entourage do for their projects no less than script writers and developers of game missions.