History of St. Petersburg: New exhibit opens celebrations of 300th anniversary of Counts Sheremetev’s estate

A new exhibition “O. A. Kiprensky in the Fountain House” is kicking off on December 21st 2011 and is opening a series of celebrations marking 300th anniversary of Counts Sheremetev’s estate. The exposition covers works, which used to be the part of the Fountain House’s collection: paintings the artist brought from Italy; pictures he created in the Fountain House; works which Kiprensky gave to D. N. Sheremetev as he returned from Russia to Italy. Before the 1917 revolution the heritage of Kiprensky was widely represented by the collection of Counts Sheremetev. After re-organization of the Museum of Russian Nobility in 1931 (the palace was called so after the revolution of 1917), Kiprensky’s works were dispersed among museum collections of Russia and abroad. At present they can be found in the State Tretyakov Gallery, State Historical Museum, State Russian Museum, which have provided them for the exhibition in the Fountain House.

The exhibition also showcases master’s paintings and drawings which are owned by Alexander Pushkin Memorial Museum-Flat and St. Petersburg Museum of Theatre and Music Art, Music Museum, and a number of cultural monuments which have memorial value. The time of maturity and flowering of works by Orest Koprensky (1782-1836) – an outstanding master of Russian art, who won recognition in Europe, fell on 1823-1828 – at that time he worked in a workshop, which was provided to him by Count Dmitry Sheremetev (1803-1871) in the Fountain House. It was here that in 1827 a famous portrait of Alexander Pushkin was created.