St. Andrew’s Church Painting

A long with decorative woodcarving and ornamental plaster molding, painting occupies an important place in the interior design. Subjects of most of the paintings were based on biblical themes. From 1751-1752, twenty five paintings were made for the St. Andrew’s Church by Ivan Vishnyakov, mainly portraits or decorative panels. They clearly show that the artist was influenced by Italian art, and by early portrait painting in particular. The figures depicted in the picture are strikingly expressive and are noteworthy for their grateful proportions. Other paintings in St/ Andrew’s Church were made in 1752-1754 by the famous artist Aleksey Antropov, founder of the Russian school of realistic portrait painting. His creative approach is distinguished for being true to life and for simplicity. Antropov’s paintings adorn the pulpit, the cupola, the iconostasis and the sanctuary of St. Andrew’s Church. On the reverse side of the iconostasis you may see works by the Ukrainian artists Ivan Romensky and Ivan Tchaikovsky. The large paintings on the transversal western walls are devoted to historical themes. They were painted in the nineteenth century, the subjects being taken from the “Tale of Bygone Days.” The canvas “St. Andrew Preaching a Sermon” was painted by the Ukrainian artist Platon Borispolets in Paris in 1847. It depicts one of the legends about the foundation of Kiev.