Arkhip Kuindzhi Facts for Kids

In this article, the patronymic is Ivanovich and the family name is Kuindzhi.

Quick facts for kids Arkhip Kuindzhi
Portrait of Kuindzhi by Viktor Vasnetsov, 1869
Born	(1841-01-27)27 January 1841 Mariupol uezd, Russian Empire (present-day Mariupol, Ukraine)
Died	24 July 1910(1910-07-24) (aged 69) St. Petersburg, Russian Empire
Education	Full Member Academy of Arts (1893)
Alma mater	Imperial Academy of Arts (1868)
Known for	Painting
Notable work	Evening in Ukraine (1878-1901) Moonlit Night on the Dnieper (1880)
Movement	Luminism
Awards	Bronze Medal (London, 1874)

Patron(s)	Pavel Tretyakov

Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi (Russian: Архип Иванович Куинджи; Greek: Αρχίπ Ιβάνοβιτς Κουίντζι; January 27, 1841 – July 24, 1910) was a famous landscape painter. He was from a Greek family in the Russian Empire.

Who was Arkhip Kuindzhi?
Artworks in the News
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Who was Arkhip Kuindzhi?

Arkhip Kuindzhi was born in a place called Mariupol uezd in what is now Ukraine. He grew up in the city of Taganrog. His first name, Arkhip, comes from a Greek word meaning "master of horses." His last name, Kuindzhi, means 'goldsmith' in the Crimean Tatar language.

Arkhip came from a poor family. His father was a shoemaker. When Arkhip was only six years old, both his parents passed away. This meant he had to start working early to support himself. He worked at a church, took care of animals, and helped at a corn shop. He learned to read and write from a family friend who was a teacher.

Learning to Paint

When Arkhip was about 13 or 14, he went to Feodosia to study art. He hoped to learn from the famous painter Ivan Aivazovsky. However, he mostly mixed paints for Aivazovsky's student, Adolf Fessler. Even so, Aivazovsky's style of painting light and powerful nature scenes influenced young Kuindzhi a lot.

For five years, from 1860 to 1865, Arkhip worked as a photo retoucher in Taganrog. He even tried to open his own photo studio, but it didn't work out. After that, he moved to Saint Petersburg to focus on painting.

He mostly taught himself how to paint. He also studied at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts starting in 1868. He later became a full member of the Academy.

Joining the Peredvizhniki Artists

Kuindzhi joined a group of realist artists called the Peredvizhniki. This group, also known as the "Wanderers," was formed in 1870. They traveled around to show their art because they didn't like the strict rules of the art academies.

In 1872, Kuindzhi left the Academy to work on his own. His painting On the Valaam Island was bought by Pavel Tretyakov for his famous art gallery. In 1873, Kuindzhi's painting The Snow won a bronze medal at an art show in London.

In the mid-1870s, he painted many landscapes that showed real-life scenes, like Forgotten Village (1874) and Chumatski Path (1875). Both of these are in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Portrait of Kuindzhi, 1870

His Unique Style

As Kuindzhi grew as an artist, he wanted to capture the most amazing light in nature. He used special ways of composing his paintings, like high horizons, to create wide, panoramic views. He used strong light effects and bright colors to make it seem like the paintings were glowing.

Some of his most famous paintings from this time include:

Evening in Ukraine (1876)
A Birch Grove (1879)
After a Thunderstorm (1879)
Moonlit Night on the Dnieper (1880)

These paintings are known for their beautiful, glowing colors.

Kuindzhi was also good friends with the famous chemist Dmitri Mendeleev, who taught at Saint Petersburg State University. Kuindzhi even attended some of Mendeleev's classes. He often visited Mendeleev and became very interested in how light, color, and what we see work together.

Teaching and Legacy

Kuindzhi became a professor at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts in 1892. He led the landscape painting workshop starting in 1894. However, he was later fired in 1897 because he supported students who were protesting.

Many famous artists were his students, including Arkady Rylov, Nicholas Roerich, and Konstantin Bogaevsky. In 1909, Kuindzhi helped start the Society of Artists, which was later named after him.

Artworks in the News

In January 2019, one of Kuindzhi's paintings, Ai-Petri. Crimea, was stolen from the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. Luckily, it was found and safely returned the very next day! The person who took it was sent to prison.

In March 2022, during a conflict, the Kuindzhi Art Museum in Mariupol was destroyed by an airstrike. None of Kuindzhi's original paintings were in the museum at the time. However, three of his original works—a sketch for Red Sunset, and two other paintings, Elbrus and Autumn—had been moved from the museum before the bombing. They were later taken by another country.