Leonid Pasternak Facts for Kids

Self-portrait (1908)

Leonid Pasternak (born Yitzhok-Leib Pasternak; 1862 – 1945) was a famous Russian painter. He is known for his beautiful paintings and illustrations. Leonid Pasternak was also the father of Boris Pasternak, a well-known poet and writer.

About Leonid Pasternak
- His Education and Early Career
- Artistic Style and Friendships
His Career Highlights
- Achievements and Later Life
Works
See also

About Leonid Pasternak

Self-portrait (before 1916)

Leonid Pasternak was born in Odessa, Russia, on April 4, 1862. His family was Jewish. He was the youngest of six children. His father earned money by renting out a guest house. Leonid loved to draw from a very young age.

His family worried that drawing would stop him from studying. But Leonid kept drawing! His first supporter was a local street cleaner who bought his art when Leonid was only seven years old.

His Education and Early Career

From 1879 to 1881, Leonid studied at the Grekov Odessa Art school. After that, he went to Moscow State University from 1881 to 1885. He first studied medicine, then law. But he really wanted to be an artist. So, he decided to focus on art.

He then went to the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich in Germany and finished his studies in 1887. After returning to Russia, he served two years in the army. In 1889, he started his career as a full-time painter.

Night before the exam (1895)

Alexander Pushkin at the seashore (1896)

Leonid Pasternak's art career started very well. His first painting that was shown in public was bought by Pavel Tretyakov. Tretyakov was a very important art supporter in Russia at that time. Leonid quickly became a popular painter. He joined a group of artists called the Polenov circle. This group included other famous painters like Valentin Serov and Isaac Levitan.

In 1889, he married Rosa Isidorovna Kaufman, who was a talented pianist. They moved to Moscow. In 1890, their first child, Boris Pasternak, was born. Boris later became a very famous writer.

Artistic Style and Friendships

Leonid Pasternak was one of the first Russian painters to call himself an Impressionist. This style of painting focuses on capturing the feeling of a moment, often with visible brushstrokes and bright colors. Being an Impressionist was quite new and exciting in Russia during the 1880s and 1890s.

He was also part of other art groups, like the Peredvizhniki and the Union of Russian Artists. Leonid Pasternak was good friends with the famous writer Leo Tolstoy. He even lived at Tolstoy's home, Yasnaya Polyana, for several months. During this time, he painted many portraits of Tolstoy. He also created illustrations for Tolstoy's famous novels, War and Peace and Resurrection.

His Career Highlights

Leonid Pasternak's sons Boris (left) and Alexander (1900s)

Leonid Pasternak's children (1914)

Leonid Pasternak was very busy illustrating Tolstoy's novel Resurrection. His son Boris remembered how quickly his father had to work. The book was published in parts, and the illustrations had to be ready for each part. Tolstoy kept changing the story, so Leonid had to make sure his drawings still matched.

Leonid's drawings were so good because he visited the places Tolstoy wrote about. He saw the courtrooms, prisons, and countryside. This helped his art match the story perfectly. To make sure the drawings arrived on time, special train conductors helped deliver them. Boris remembered seeing a conductor waiting at their kitchen door to pick up the finished illustrations.

Achievements and Later Life

Leonid Pasternak won a medal at the World Fair in Paris in 1900 for his amazing illustrations of Tolstoy's novels. In 1905, he became a member of the Imperial Academy of Arts. He also taught art at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture.

In 1921, Leonid Pasternak needed eye surgery. He traveled to Berlin, Germany, with his wife and two daughters, Lydia and Josephine. His sons, Boris and Alexander, stayed in Russia. After his surgery, he decided not to go back to Russia. He lived in Berlin until 1938.

Because of the rise of the Nazis in Germany, he had to move again for safety. He found refuge in Great Britain. In 1924, he painted a portrait of the famous scientist Albert Einstein. Leonid Pasternak passed away in Oxford, England, on May 31, 1945.