We know about the outstanding personality of Theophan the Greek (Grechanin) thanks to two historical figures and their good relations. This is Cyril, archimandrite of the Tver Spaso-Afanasievsky monastery, and hieromonk of the Trinity-Sergius monastery, a follower of Sergius of Radonezh, and later the compiler of his lives, Epiphanius the Wise.

In 1408, due to a raid by Khan Edigei, Hieromonk Epiphanius took his books and fled from danger from Moscow to neighboring Tver, and there he took refuge in the Spaso-Afanasevsky Monastery and became friends with its rector, Archimandrite Kirill.

Probably, during that period, the rector saw the “St. Sophia Church of Constantinople”, painted in the Gospel, which belonged to Epiphanius. A few years later, in a non-preserved letter, Cyril apparently asked about drawings with views of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, which impressed him and remembered him. Epiphanius responded by giving a detailed explanation of their origin. A copy of the 17th-18th centuries has been preserved. an excerpt from this response letter (1413 - 1415), titled as follows: "Written out from the message of Hieromonk Epiphanius, who wrote to a certain friend of his, Cyril."

Epiphanius explains to the abbot in his message that he personally copied those images from the Greek Feofan. And then Epiphanius the Wise tells in detail and picturesquely about the Greek icon painter. Therefore, we know that Theophanes the Greek worked "by imagination", i.e. did not look at canonical samples, but wrote independently at his own discretion. Feofan was in constant motion, as he moved away from the wall, looked at the image, comparing it with the image that had developed in his head, and continued to write. Such artistic freedom was unusual for Russian icon painters of that time. In the process of work, Feofan willingly maintained a conversation with those around him, which did not distract him from his thoughts and did not interfere with his work. Epiphanius the Wise, who knew the Byzantine personally and communicated with him, emphasized the mind and talent of the master: “he is a living husband, a glorious wise man, a cunning philosopher, Feofan, a Greek, a deliberate book iconographer and an elegant painter in icon painters.”

There is no information about the family, or about where and how Theophanes received his icon painting education. In the epistle, Epiphanius points only to the finished works of the Byzantine. Theophanes the Greek decorated forty churches with his paintings in various places: Constantinople, Chalcedon and Galata (suburbs of Constantinople), Cafe (modern Theodosius), Novgorod the Great and Nizhny, as well as three churches in Moscow and several secular buildings.

After work in Moscow, the name of Theophan the Greek is not mentioned. The details of his personal life are not known. The date of death is not exact. There is an assumption, based on indirect evidence, that in old age he retired to the holy Mount Athos and finished his earthly life being a monk.

Theophan the Greek in Veliky Novgorod

The only reliable works of the Russian-Byzantine master are considered only paintings in Novgorod the Great, where he lived and worked for some time. So in the Novgorod chronicle of 1378 it is specifically stated that “the church of our Lord Jesus Christ” was painted by the Greek master Feofan. We are talking about the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street, built in 1374 on the Trade side of the city. Apparently, the local boyar Vasily Mashkov called the Byzantine master to paint the temple. Presumably, Theophan arrived in Rus' with Metropolitan Cyprian.

The Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior has survived, and the paintings of the Greek have survived only partially. They were cleared for several decades intermittently, starting in 1910. The frescoes, although they have come down to us with losses, give an idea of ​​Theophan the Greek as an outstanding artist who brought new ideas to Russian icon painting. The painter and art historian Igor Grabar assessed the arrival of masters of the size of Theophan the Greek in Russia as a fruitful external impulse at the turning points of Russian art, when it was especially needed. Theophanes the Greek ended up in Rus' when the state was freed from the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols, slowly rose and revived.

Feofan Grek in Moscow

The Moscow chronicles testify that Theophanes the Greek created the murals of the Kremlin churches in the late 14th - early 15th century:

• 1395 - painting of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in the hallway in collaboration with Simeon the Black.
• 1399 - painting.
• 1405 - painting of what stood earlier on the site of the current one. Feofan painted the Annunciation Cathedral together with Russian masters Prokhor from Gorodets and Andrei Rublev.

Miniature of the Front Chronicle, 16th century. Feofan Grek and Semyon Cherny painting the Church of the Nativity. Inscription: “In the same year, in the center of Moscow, the Church of the Nativity of the Most Pure Theotokos and the chapel of St. Lazarus were painted. And the masters are Theodore the Greek and Semyon Cherny.

Features of the work of Theophan the Greek

The frescoes of Theophanes the Greek are characterized by minimalism in color and the lack of detail in small details. That is why the faces of saints appear stern, focused on inner spiritual energy and radiate powerful force. White spots are placed by the artist in such a way that they create light similar to that of Tabor and focus attention on details that are important in meaning. The strokes of his brush are characterized by sharpness, precision and boldness of application. The characters in the icon painter's murals are ascetic, self-sufficient and deepened in silent prayer.

Theophan the Greek's work is associated with hesychasm, which meant unceasing "intelligent" prayer, silence, purity of heart, the transforming power of God, the Kingdom of God within man. Through the centuries, following Epiphanius the Wise, Theophanes the Greek is recognized not only as a brilliant icon painter, but as a thinker and philosopher.

Works by Theophanes the Greek

There is no reliable data, but the work of Theophan the Greek is usually attributed double-sided icon"The Mother of God of the Don" with the "Assumption of the Mother of God" on the back and the deesis tier of the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin. The iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral is also distinguished by the fact that it became the first in Rus', on the icons of which the figures of saints are depicted in full growth.

Previously, it was assumed that the icon "The Transfiguration of the Lord" from the Transfiguration Cathedral of Pereslavl-Zalessky belongs to the brush of Theophan the Greek and the icon painters of the workshop that he created in Moscow. But recently, doubts about its authorship have intensified.

Don Icon of the Mother of God. Attributed to Theophanes the Greek.

Icon of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ before the Disciples on Mount Tabor. ? Theophan the Greek and workshop. ?

Theophanes the Greek. Jesus Pantocrator- R painting in the dome of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street. Velikiy Novgorod.

Theophanes the Greek. Seraphim- f a fragment of a painting in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street. Velikiy Novgorod.

Theophanes the Greek. Daniel Stylite- a fragment of a painting in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street. Velikiy Novgorod.

Theophan the Greek (circa 1340 - around 1410) - the great Russian and Byzantine icon painter, miniaturist and master of monumental fresco paintings.

Theophanes was born in Byzantium (hence the nickname Greek), before arriving in Rus', he worked in Constantinople, Chalcedon (a suburb of Constantinople), Genoese Galata and Cafe (now Feodosia in the Crimea) (only frescoes in Feodosia have survived). Probably arrived in Rus' together with Metropolitan Cyprian.

Transfiguration

Theophanes the Greek settled in Novgorod in 1370. In 1378, he began work on the painting of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street. The most grandiose image in the temple is the chest image of the Almighty Savior in the dome. In addition to the dome, Feofan painted the drum with the figures of the forefathers and prophets Elijah and John the Baptist. The paintings of the apse have also come down to us - fragments of the rank of saints and the "Eucharist", part of the figure of the Virgin on the southern altar pillar, and "Baptism", "Nativity of Christ", "Meeting", "Sermon of Christ to the Apostles" and "Descent into Hell" on vaults and adjoining walls. The best preserved frescoes of the Trinity chapel. This is an ornament, frontal figures of saints, a half-figure of the “Sign” with forthcoming angels, a throne with four saints approaching it and, in the upper part of the wall, Stylites, the Old Testament “Trinity”, medallions with John of the Ladder, Agathon, Akakiy and the figure of Macarius of Egypt.

The subsequent events of Theophanes' life are poorly known, according to some information (in particular, from a letter from Epiphanius the Wise to Abbot of the Afanasiev Monastery Cyril of Tver), the icon painter worked in Nizhny Novgorod(the paintings have not been preserved), some researchers tend to believe that he also worked in Kolomna and Serpukhov. In the early 1390s. Feofan arrived in Moscow.

Regarding the icons painted by Theophanes, no clear information has been preserved. Traditionally, his authorship is credited with "The Assumption Mother of God”, “The Don Icon of the Mother of God”, “The Transfiguration of the Lord” and the Deesis rite of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin.

There is no exact information about where and when the Assumption icon was painted, but according to indirect data, it is believed that this happened in Moscow. The icon is two-sided, on one side the plot of the Assumption of the Mother of God is written, and on the other is the image of the Mother of God with the infant Christ. The image belongs to the type of icons of the Mother of God "Tenderness", and subsequently the icon was called "Our Lady of Tenderness of the Don". In modern art history there is no consensus about the origin of these images. In addition, the icon “Transfiguration” is attributed to Feofan - the temple image of the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Savior in the city of Pereslavl-Zalessky, although artistically and figuratively it is weaker than his images and follows his style outwardly and superficially.

Theophanes the Greek led the painting of a number of Moscow churches - this is the new stone church of the Nativity of the Virgin in 1395, together with Semyon Cherny and students, the church of St. Michael the Archangel in 1399, the painting of which burned out during the invasion of Tokhtamysh, and the Church of the Annunciation, together with the elder Prokhor from Gorodets and Andrei Rublev in 1405. Also icons of the Deesis tier from the iconostasis of the Cathedral of the Annunciation are attributed to Theophanes. main feature it is that this is the first iconostasis in Russia with figures in full height. The iconostasis consists of the following icons: Basil the Great, Apostle Peter, Archangel Michael, Mother of God, Savior, John the Baptist, Archangel Gabriel, Apostle Paul, John Chrysostom.

Stylite, 1374

Trinity, 1374

Saved by the Almighty. Painting of the dome of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street in Veliky Novgorod, 1378

Three Stylites, 1378

Fresco of Theophanes the Greek Old Testament Trinity

Fresco. Forefathers Adam, Abel, Seth

Fresco Abel, 1378

The fresco Stylite Alimpiy was painted by Theophanes the Greek in 1378 in the Church of the Transfiguration on Ilyin in Novgorod

Frescoes of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street

Archangel

Don Icon of the Mother of God 1390s

Assumption, 1390s

Our Lady, 1405

Saved in strength, 1405

John Chrysostom, 1405

Apostle Paul, 1405

Apostle Peter 1405

Archangel Gabriel, 1405

Basil the Great, 1405

John the Baptist, 1405

Icons of saints and incorporeal forces

Prophet Gideon, 1405

School Day by Day - Theophanes Grek Museums of the Moscow Kremlin

Fully

The article is devoted to a brief biography of Theophan the Greek, the famous medieval master, Byzantine and Slavic icon painter, author of numerous frescoes.

Feofan's biography: early years and moving to Rus'
Theophan was born around 1340 in Byzantium, where he began his work. The works of the master of this period are practically not preserved. Judging by the surviving written source, he participated in the decoration of about 40 Byzantine churches. He moved to Rus', probably as part of a church mission.
In 1370, Feofan settled in Novgorod, where he participated in the work on decorating the Church of the Savior. The merit of the master was the main image of the temple - the Almighty Savior, he was also the author of many paintings and frescoes. The Church of the Savior is the only surviving work of art, the work on which Feofan is documented. This gives grounds to judge the features of the author's artistic style and allows for a comparative analysis to determine his authorship in other works. Feofan's manner is very individual, the images are made with great artistic brightness and scope, there is no detail. noticeably large creative work masters over the image of faces, by which one can judge the deep philosophical meaning of the frescoes, Feofan's understanding of human psychology.
Researchers note that Feofan is inherent in the denial of optimism. A person, according to the master, is initially sinful, therefore, with fear and servility, he must obediently listen to the divine manifestation and wait for the decision of his fate from him. The color palette of the frescoes is not rich, which emphasizes their ascetic character.
Feofan's work had a great influence on Novgorod art. Its traditions are reflected in the works of many Slavic masters in the field of icon painting and church painting. The influence of Theophanes is also traced in the design of the literary monuments of ancient Novgorod.
Next stage life path the master is not well known. There is information that he lived in Nizhny Novgorod, Serpukhov. The works of this period have not survived to this day.

Feofan's biography: Moscow period
In the 90s. 14th century Feofan moved to Moscow, where he was actively engaged in what he loved: he painted icons, painted churches and private houses of noble people. Engaged in the design of written works. The Greek or his disciples are credited with working on the two known gospels of the period. In decorating residential premises, in addition to church subjects, the master also used secular images.
Judging by written sources, Feofan firmly established himself in Moscow and, probably, created his own workshop, recruiting students. The master, together with A. Rublev, participated in the creation of the iconostasis of the Cathedral of the Annunciation. The joint work of the two great masters of the era, expressed in a combination of Byzantine and native Russian traditions, became the basis for the formation of classical Russian icon painting.
There is no absolutely reliable information about which icons were painted by Theophanes. Usually he is credited with the creation of the icons "Transfiguration of the Lord", "Assumption of the Mother of God" and some others. The icon-painting style of the master differs from his fresco work. There is no expressiveness in the icons, they are made in the spirit of great sorrow. Feofan's individuality is clearly manifested in the works, they are not strictly canonical and are similar to portrait images. Nevertheless, the centuries-old Byzantine church tradition is clearly traced in these icons.
The exact date of Feofan's death is unknown. Presumably this happened around 1410.
The activity of Theophan the Greek had a great influence on the history of ancient Russian art. An important factor was that the master moved to Rus' at a mature age, already having rich experience in Byzantium. He became one of those who strengthened cultural Byzantine-Russian contacts, was a conductor and bearer of rich Byzantine culture.
Rus' was the direct heir to a powerful empire and sought to imitate its achievements. Therefore, Theophan's activity was organically woven into the original Slavic art and did not seem foreign. Feofan's works were popular and became models for many subsequent Russian masters.

Painting of the Trinity chapel in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street in Novgorod.
1378

(Born around 1337 - died after 1405)

Theophanes the Greek is one of the greatest masters of the Middle Ages. His works, executed in Byzantium, have not survived. All of his famous works were created in Rus' and for Rus', where he lived for more than thirty years. He introduced the Russians to the highest achievements of Byzantine spiritual culture, which in his time was experiencing one of the last ups and downs.

Few information about Feofan is found in the Moscow and Novgorod chronicles, but a letter written around 1415 by the Moscow spiritual writer and artist Epiphanius the Wise to Archimandrite Kirill of the Tver Spaso-Afanasiev Monastery is of particular value. Epiphany's message is interesting in that it provides a unique opportunity to get an idea of ​​the principles of the master's work. In his message, he reports on the Four Gospels he kept, illustrated by Theophanes and decorated with the image of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople.

The description of the figure is given with many details. “When he depicted or painted all this, no one saw him ever look at the samples, as some of our icon painters do, who are constantly peering in bewilderment, looking here and there, and not so much paint with paints, but look at the samples. He, it seemed, paints with his hands, and he constantly walks, talks with those who come and thinks about the lofty and wise with his mind, but with his sensual eyes, he sees reasonable reason. parables" and its cunning structure".

It is known from the message that Feofan, "a Greek by birth, a deliberate iconographer of books and an excellent painter among icon painters," painted more than 40 stone churches in Constantinople, Chalcedon, Galata, Cafe (Feodosia), as well as on Russian soil.

In the Novgorod III Chronicle, Theophan's first work is mentioned in 1378. It refers to the painting by him of the Novgorod Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street - the only work of the master that has survived to this day, which has documentary evidence and still remains the main source for judging about his art.

The frescoes of the church have been preserved in fragments, so the system of its painting can only be partially restored. In the dome of the temple there is a half-figure of Christ Pantokrator, surrounded by archangels and seraphim. In the drum are images of the forefathers, including Adam, Abel, Noah, Seth, Melchizedek, Enoch, the prophets Elijah, John the Baptist. On the choir stalls in the northwestern corner chamber (Trinity chapel), the images are better preserved. The aisle is painted with images of saints, compositions "Our Lady of the Sign with the Archangel Gabriel", "Adoration of the Sacrifice", "Trinity". Feofan's manner is brightly individual, distinguished by expressive temperament, freedom and variety in the choice of techniques. The form is emphatically picturesque, devoid of detail, built with the help of juicy and free strokes. The muffled general tone of the painting contrasts with bright white highlights, like flashes of lightning illuminating the harsh, spiritualized faces of the saints. Contours are outlined by powerful dynamic lines. The folds of the clothes are devoid of detailed modeling, lying wide and hard, at sharp angles.
The master's palette is stingy and restrained, it is dominated by orange-brown, silver-blue, corresponding to the tense spiritual state of the images. "Theophan's painting is philosophical concept in colors, moreover, the concept is quite severe, far from ordinary optimism. Its essence is the idea of ​​a global sinfulness of a person before God, as a result of which he found himself almost hopelessly removed from him and can only wait with fear and horror for the arrival of his uncompromising and ruthless judge, whose image with extreme severity looks at sinful humanity from under the dome of the Novgorod temple ", - writes the researcher of Russian medieval art V. V. Bychkov.

"Stylite"

Theophanes the Greek creates a world full of drama and tension of the spirit. His saints are stern, detached from everything around, delving into the contemplation of silence - the only way to salvation. Artists tried to follow Theophan's style in Novgorod, painting the Church of Theodore Stratilates on the Brook, but on the whole the individuality of the master turned out to be exceptional for Rus' - a country far from the spiritual experience of Byzantium and looking for its own way.

After 1378 Feofan, apparently, worked in Nizhny Novgorod, but his paintings of this period have not reached us.
Approximately from 1390, he was in Moscow and briefly in Kolomna, where he could paint the Assumption Cathedral, which was later completely rebuilt. Here, in the cathedral, the later famous shrine was kept - the icon "Our Lady of the Don" (on its back - "Assumption"), later transferred to the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin (now in the State Tretyakov Gallery). Some researchers associate its performance with the work of Theophan the Greek.

The master made several paintings in the Moscow Kremlin: in the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin with a chapel of St. Lazarus (1395), where Feofan worked together with Simeon Cherny, in the Archangel (1399) and Annunciation (1405) cathedrals. He painted the latter together with Andrei Rublev and Prokhor from Gorodets. In the Kremlin, Feofan took part in the murals of the treasury of Prince Vladimir Andreevich and the tower of Vasily I. None of these works has survived. It is possible that Theophanes the Greek participated in the creation of icons of the Deesis tier, which is currently in the Cathedral of the Annunciation. However, as proven by recent studies, this iconostasis is not the original, dating back to 1405, and the Deesis tier could be moved here only after the devastating fire in the Kremlin that occurred in 1547.

In any case, the icons "The Savior in Strength", "The Mother of God", "John the Baptist", "Apostle Peter", "Apostle Paul", "Basil the Great", "John Chrysostom" reveal such features of style and such high technical skill that allow to assume here the work of a great master.

The manner of Theophan the Greek in icon painting (if we agree that the icons of the Deesis tier of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin were painted by Theophan) differs significantly from fresco. This can be explained by the specifics of icon painting. The images of the Deesis tier are impressive and monumental. Almost two-meter figures, full of inner significance and self-deepening, make up a single composition, subject to one plan - to embody thanksgiving prayer Saints Savior, creator and lord heavenly powers and their intercession for the human race in the day Doomsday. This idea determined the iconographic solution of the whole group as a whole, and of each image separately. The iconography of the rank has its origins in the altar paintings of Byzantine churches and is closely connected with the texts of the main prayers of the liturgy. A similar program of the Deesis tier with "The Savior in Strength" subsequently became widespread in Russian iconostases, but here it appears for the first time.

In contrast to fresco painting, the images of icons are not so expressive in appearance. Their drama and grief seem to have gone deep, revealing themselves in the soft glow of their faces, in the muted colors of their clothes. Each face in terms of type and expression of the emotional state is brightly individual, almost portrait. The contours of the figures are calmer; in their drawing, the classical tradition, dating back to antiquity, is more clearly visible. The icons are painted masterfully, using complex and varied techniques that only an outstanding master can do. Among the icons supposedly associated with the name of Theophanes are "John the Baptist Angel of the Desert", "Transfiguration" and "Four-part" (all in the State Tretyakov Gallery).

"Our Lady"

Icon of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin

V. Lazarev's opinion

In order to trace the main stages of Theophanes the Greek's work, it is necessary to study the cultural and historical environment that influenced the formation of him as a person and artist, to find out his significance in the Byzantine culture of the XIV century, the reasons that prompted him to emigrate, and also to understand what influence he had on Byzantine master Russian environment.

Theophanes the Greek, born in the 30s of the XIV century, entered the period of conscious life in the midst of "hesychast disputes." He undoubtedly heard talk about the nature of the Light of Tabor, about divine energies, about the communion of a deity to a person, about “intelligent” prayer. It is possible that he even took part in these discussions that agitated the minds of Byzantine society. Epiphany's testimony that Theophanes was "a glorious sage, a very cunning philosopher" speaks of the artist's erudition and the breadth of his spiritual needs. But what was the direct attitude of Theophan to Hesychasm remains unknown to us. One thing can be said with certainty - he could not remain unaffected by the largest ideological movement of his time. The severity of Theophan's images, their special spirituality, their sometimes exaggerated ecstasy - all this is connected with hesychasm, all this follows from the essence of hesychast teaching. However, Theophan's works testify to something else: they indisputably speak of the master's deep dissatisfaction with this teaching. Theophanes did not lock himself into church dogma, but, on the contrary, largely overcame it. He thought much more freely than the Hesychasts. And as he moved away from Constantinople in his wanderings, his horizons became wider and his convictions became more and more independent.

Feofan's creative growth should have been greatly facilitated by his work in Galata, where he came into close contact with Western culture. He wandered through the narrow streets of Galata, admired the beauty of its palazzos and temples, got acquainted with the works of Italian craftsmanship, saw luxuriously dressed Genoese merchants, observed free Western customs unusual for a Byzantine, followed the galleys arriving at the port, bringing goods from Italy. The life of this Genoese colony, which was a powerful outpost of early Italian capitalism, was full of efficiency. And just in this it differed sharply from the economic structure of the Byzantine society, which was in no hurry and continued to live in the old fashioned way. Probably, Theophanes, as a man of outstanding mind, should have understood that the center of world politics was steadily moving from Byzantium to the trading Italian republics and that the Roman state was tending to a rapid decline. Contemplating from the fortress towers of Galata the Golden Horn and Constantinople spread out on its banks, the best buildings of which, after the pogrom perpetrated by the crusaders, lay in ruins or were neglected and abandoned, Theophanes had every opportunity to compare the impoverished capital of his once great homeland with the rapidly growing and richest Genoese colony , which, like an octopus, stretched its tentacles in all directions, establishing one after another powerful trading posts in the countries of the East and on the Black Sea coast. And this comparison should have generated deep bitterness in Theophan's soul. In Galata, he took a sip of that new life, which carried with it the fresh trends of early humanism.

Having come into contact with Western culture, Theophan could choose two paths for himself: either to stay in Byzantium and plunge headlong into endless theological disputes about the nature of the Light of Tabor, or else to emigrate to Italy, as many of his brethren did and as those who joined later did. Italian humanists Manuel Chrysolor and Bessarion of Nicaea. Theophanes did not follow any of these paths. Dissatisfied with the situation in Byzantium, he decided to leave his homeland. But he directed his steps not to the west, but to the east - first to Kaffa, and then to Rus'. And here his work entered a new phase of development, which would have been impossible in the fanatical and intolerant Byzantium, where his art, which had outgrown the narrow confessional framework, would undoubtedly be ostracized sooner or later.

There was another reason that pushed Feofan to emigrate. Although his activity unfolded in the second half of the 14th century, when a new style, hostile to early Paleologian neo-Hellenism, had already won in Byzantium, Theophanes continued to remain entirely connected with the free pictorial traditions of the first half of the century. To some extent, he was the last representative of the great traditions of early Paleologan art.

And so he must have been especially keenly aware of the crisis of the latter. The impending academic reaction, with its narrow monastic spirit, could not but frighten Theophan, since it ran counter to his artistic views. Anyone who has ever seen the Feofanovsky murals in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, with their so pronounced picturesqueness, and mentally compared them with the dry, tortured works of the Constantinople school of the second half of the 14th century, the deep abyss that lies between these monuments will immediately become obvious. To Theophanes' great happiness, his art was a belated flower on the withered Byzantine field. artistic culture, as belated as the philosophy of Giordano Bruno or the humanism of Shakespeare in relation to the Renaissance. Similar processes of uneven development are constantly encountered in history. And only taking into account the originality of this kind of phenomena, it is possible to assign the right historical place to the art of Theophan the Greek.

The historical situation we have described, which developed in Byzantium by the 40-60s of the XIV century, largely explains the reasons for Theophan's emigration from Byzantium. He fled from the impending ecclesiastical and artistic reaction, fled from what was deeply hostile to his views and convictions. If Theophanes had not left Byzantium, he would probably have turned into one of those faceless epigones Byzantine painting, from the work of which breathes cold and boredom. Having left for Rus', Theophanes found here such a wide field of activity and such a tolerant attitude towards his bold innovations that he could never have found in materially and spiritually impoverished Byzantium.

Epiphanius reports that Theophanes, before coming to Novgorod, worked in Constantinople, Chalcedon, Galata and Caffa. Chalcedon and Galata are located near the capital of the Byzantine Empire (Galata, strictly speaking, is even one of its quarters), while Kaffa lies on the way from Constantinople to Russia. It would seem that this testimony of a writer well-informed about the artist's life leaves no doubt about Feofan's belonging to the Constantinopolitan school. Nevertheless, a very artificial and completely unconvincing theory was developed, according to which Theophanes did not come from Constantinople, but from the Cretan school. This theory, first developed by Millet, was accepted by Diehl and Breuillet. Later, the "Cretan" theory was replaced by an even less substantiated "Macedonian" theory. The latter was put forward by B.I. Purishev and B.V. Mikhailovsky, who arbitrarily made a Macedonian master out of Feofan. Only M.V. Alpatov, D.V. Ainalov and Talbot Rayet firmly regarded Theophan as a Constantinopolitan artist. Since the question of which school Theophanes came from is by no means an idle one, since our understanding of the general process of development of Byzantine painting depends on one or another of his decisions, we should dwell on this issue in detail, otherwise we will face a very real danger of misrepresenting the problem of schools and artistic traditions in the Byzantine art of the XIV century.

Millais was the first to connect Theophanes with the Cretan school, which in his fundamental work on the iconography of the gospel acquired a meaning that was not at all befitting of its real specific gravity. Apparently, during the reconstruction of the Cretan school, Millet followed in the footsteps of N.P. Kondakova and N.P. Likhachev. It is even possible that the idea that Theophan belonged to the Cretan school was suggested to him by the following cursory remark by N.P. Likhachev: “Theophan, an employee and almost a teacher of Rublev, was an innovator and representative of that neo-Byzantine, later Italian-Greek-Cretan school, with which the type of “Tenderness” is associated. Be that as it may, but by attributing Theophanes to the Cretan school and at the same time attributing three fresco cycles of Novgorod (the Church of the Assumption on the Volotovo field, the Church of Theodore Stratilates, the church in Kovalev) to the Macedonian school, Millet and Dil, following in his footsteps, thereby fell into the greatest contradiction, which P.P. Muratov: three monuments of the same direction and one pictorial style (murals of the Transfiguration of the Savior, the Church of the Assumption on the Volotovo field and Theodore Stratilat) turned out to be completely arbitrarily distributed between two schools that are fundamentally different from each other - Cretan and Macedonian. This state of affairs could only happen because Millet based his division of monuments on schools not on a stylistic, but on an iconographic principle. If the venerable French scholar had based his judgment on direct knowledge of the Novgorod murals, he would have been convinced that all these three fresco cycles came from the same school - from the school of Theophan the Greek, who had nothing to do with either Crete or Macedonia, but was typical representative of the capital's Constantinopolitan manner...

Already one letter from Epiphany leaves no doubt about Theophan's belonging to the Constantinopolitan school. The master, who painted many temples in Tsaregrad itself, in Chalcedon and Kaffa, hardly came here from Crete or Macedonia, especially since both of these places were a province compared to the capital. The wonderful art of Theophan is marked with a purely metropolitan seal, it breathes the metropolitan spirit. And this art finds the closest stylistic analogies to itself in the monuments of Constantinople, and by no means in the works of the Cretan and Macedonian masters.

If we take the images of the forefathers most characteristic of Theophanes the Greek from the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior in Novgorod and try to find the closest analogy among the monuments of Byzantine craftsmanship, then this will undoubtedly be the patriarchs from the southern dome of the inner narthex of Kahrie Jami. Although the figures of the patriarchs are made here in mosaic technique, nevertheless they are so close both in their general spirit and in details to the Theophanes saints that any doubts about the capital origin of our master immediately disappear. In Kahrie's mosaics, we encounter the same majestic severity of images, the same freedom of compositional solutions, the same bold asymmetric shifts. The figures of Adam, Seth, Noah, Eber, Levi, Issachar, Dan, Joseph reveal a special typological proximity to the Feofanovsky forefathers. There are also many points of contact with the images of Theophanes in some figures of the prophets and kings of Israel in the northern dome of the same inner narficus (cf., for example, the figures of Aaron, Hor and Samuel).

Although Theophan's manner of writing is exclusively individual, one can still find direct sources for it in the monuments of the Constantinople school. These are, first of all, the frescoes of the refectory of Kahrie Jami, which appeared at the same time when the mosaics were also made, i.e. in the second decade of the fourteenth century. Here the heads of individual saints (especially David of Thessalonica) seem to have come out from under the brush of Theophan. They are written in an energetic, free manner of writing, based on the extensive use of bold strokes and so-called marks, with which faces are modeled. These highlights and marks are especially actively used in the decoration of the forehead, cheekbones, nose crest. In itself, this technique is not new, it is very common in the painting of the XIV century, mainly its first half. What brings together the murals of Kahrie Jami and the frescoes of Theophanes is the remarkable accuracy in the distribution of highlights, which always fall into the right place, thanks to which the form acquires strength and constructiveness. In the monuments of the provincial circle (as, for example, in the paintings of the cave temple of Theoskepastos in Trebizond), we will never find such accuracy of modeling. Only having become acquainted with such provincial works, you are finally convinced of Theophan's metropolitan proficiency, who perfectly mastered all the subtleties of Constantinople craftsmanship.

The basic principles of Feofanov's art also point to the Constantinople school - the intense psychologism of images, the extraordinary sharpness of individual characteristics, the dynamic freedom and picturesqueness of compositional constructions, the exquisite "tonal coloring" that overcomes the motley multicolor oriental palette and, finally, an extraordinary decorative flair, dating back to the best traditions of Constantinople painting. With all these facets of his art, Feofan appears before us as a metropolitan artist living on the aesthetic ideals of Constantinople society. And its strength lies in the fact that it starts not from the second, but from the first stage in the development of Palaiologan painting, when the latter was still imbued with a living creative spirit. Therefore, a great acquisition for Russian artistic culture was the arrival to us of such a master, who was the bearer of the best that gave birth to Tsaregrad neo-Hellenism of the XIV century.

Literature: Alpatov L.V. etc. Art. Painting, sculpture, graphics, architecture. Ed. 3rd, rev. and additional Moscow, "Enlightenment", 1969.

The works of Theophanes the Greek. And horses, frescoes, murals

	Apostle Peter. 1405.
	Apostle Peter. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	John the Baptist. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	John the Baptist. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Mother of God. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Mother of God. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Transfiguration of the Lord, 1403 To view a large image click on the small image
	Apostle Paul. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Apostle Paul. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Assumption of the Mother of God, XIV century State Tretyakov Gallery To view a large image click on the small image
	Archangel Gabriel. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Archangel Gabriel. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Jesus Pantocrator Painting in the dome of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, Ilyina street, Novgorod, 1378 To view a large image click on the small image
	Our Lady of the Don. Around 1392 State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow To view a large image click on the small image
	Basil the Great. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	John Chrysostom. 1405. Fragment The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Prophet Gideon. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Fresco Forefather Isaac The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Saved in power. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Fresco Archangel, 1378 Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image
	Fresco Abel, 1378 Fragment of a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration, Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image
	Daniel the Stylite, 1378 Fragment of a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration, Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image
	Archangel Michael. 1405 The cycle of details of the icons of the Deesis tier of the iconostasis Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin To view a large image click on the small image
	Fresco fragment, 1378 Fragment of a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration, Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image
	Fresco fragment, 1378 Fragment of a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration, Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image
	Old Testament Trinity, 1378 Fragment of a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration, Ilyina street, Novgorod To view a large image click on the small image

Theophanes the Greek. appeared in Novgorod in the 70s of the 14th century. He was one of those great Byzantine emigrants, among whom was the Cretan Domenico Theotokopuli, the famous El Greco. The impoverished Byzantium was no longer able to provide work for its many artists. In addition, the political and ideological situation was less and less conducive to the rise of Byzantine art, which entered a period of crisis from the second half of the 14th century. The victory of the Hesychasts led to an increase in intolerance and to the strengthening of a dogmatic way of thinking, which gradually suppressed the weak sprouts of humanism of the early Paleologian culture. In these conditions the best people The Byzantines left their homeland in search of shelter in a foreign land. This is exactly what Theophanes the Greek did. In free Novgorod, among the distant Russian expanses, he gained that creative freedom, which he so lacked in Byzantium. Only here did he emerge from the jealous tutelage of the Greek clergy, only here did his remarkable talent unfold in full breadth.

A most interesting letter from the famous ancient Russian writer Epiphanius to his friend Cyril of Tver has been preserved 35 . This epistle, written around 1415, contains very valuable information about the life and work of Theophan the Greek, whom Epiphanius knew well personally. From a comparison of chronicle news with the facts reported by Epiphanius, it is clear that Theophanes was both a painter and a miniaturist, that he came to Russia as a mature master (otherwise he would not have been allowed to paint churches in Constantinople and a number of other Byzantine cities), that he worked not only in Novgorod and Nizhny, but also in grand-ducal Moscow, where he ended up no later than the mid-90s and where he collaborated with Andrei Rublev, that everywhere he aroused surprise with the liveliness and sharpness of the mind and the courage of picturesque daring. The epistle of Epiphanius allows us to draw another important conclusion. It leaves no doubt about Theophan's Constantinopolitan origin, since all the cities mentioned by Epiphanius, in which the artist worked before arriving in Rus', directly point to Constantinople as his homeland. In addition to Constantinople itself, this is Galata - the Genoese quarter of the Byzantine capital; it is located on the opposite side of the mouth of the Bosporus, Chalcedon; this, finally, is the Genoese colony of Kaffa (now Feodosia), lying on the way from Constantinople to Russia. The closest stylistic affinity of Theophan’s painting of the Savior on Ilyina with the frescoes of the pareklesia and the mosaics of the inner narfik of Kahriye Jami (southern and northern domes) only confirms Epiphany’s testimony about the artist’s Constantinople origin. Arriving in Rus', Feofan acted here as a successor of not late Paleolog With. 178
With. 179¦ traditions, marked by the seal of dry, soulless eclecticism, and advanced early Paleologic, still quite vividly connected with the “Paleologian Renaissance”, which reached its peak during the first half of the XIV century. And it so happened that Theophan sowed, first in Novgorod, and then in Moscow, those seeds that, on the parched soil of Byzantium, could no longer give rich shoots.

35 See: Lazarev V. N. Theophan the Greek and his school. M., 1961, p. 111–112.

Arriving in Novgorod, Feofan, naturally, began to carefully look at local life. He could not indifferently pass over those broad heretical movements that were unfolding with such force in this large handicraft center. Just in the years of the appearance of Theophan the Greek in Novgorod, the heresy of the Strigolniks spread here, directed with its edge against church hierarchy. Contact with the sober Novgorod environment and such ideological movements as strigolism should have brought a fresh stream to Feofan's work. It helped him move away from Byzantine dogmatism, expanded his horizons and taught him to think not only more freely, but also more realistically. Novgorodian art taught him the same. Probably, first of all, he was attracted by the wonderful Novgorod murals of the 12th century, which could not help but amaze him with the power and strength of their images, as well as the boldness of pictorial solutions. Perhaps Feofan also visited Pskov, otherwise it would be difficult to explain such a striking similarity between the Snetogorsk frescoes and his own works. Acquaintance with such works contributed to Feofan's familiarization with that laconic, strong and figurative artistic language that Novgorodians and Pskovians liked so much.

[Col. ill.] 80. Seraphim. Fresco in the dome	[Col. ill.] 81. Trinity. Fresco in the chamber in the choir. Detail	[Col. ill.] 82. Angel from the Trinity. Fresco in the choir chamber Detail	[Col. ill.] 86. Nativity. Fresco on the south wall. Detail
Theophanes the Greek. Frescoes of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, Novgorod. 1378

The only monumental work of Theophanes that has survived on Russian soil is the frescoes of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street in Novgorod. This church was built With. 179
With. 180¦ in 1374 36 and painted four years later "at the behest" of the boyar Vasily Danilovich and the inhabitants of Ilyina street 37. The painting of the Church of the Savior has come down to us in a relatively good, but, unfortunately, fragmentary form. In the apse, fragments of the hierarchical rite and the Eucharist have survived, on the southern altar pillar - a part of the figure of the Mother of God from the scene of the Annunciation, on the vaults and adjoining walls - fragments of gospel scenes (Baptism, Nativity of Christ, Candlemas, Christ's Sermon to the Apostles), on the eastern wall - the Descent of St. Spirit, on the walls and arches - half-erased remains of figures and half-figures of saints, in the dome - Pantocrator, four archangels and four seraphim, in the walls of the drum - the forefathers Adam, Abel, Noah, Seth, Melchizedek, Enoch, the prophet Elijah and John the Baptist. The most significant and best preserved frescoes adorn the northwestern corner chamber in the choir stalls (in one manuscript of the 14th century it is called the Trinity side-altar). An ornamental frieze of boards ran along the bottom of the chamber, and above were frontally placed figures of saints, a half-figure of the Sign with the image of the archangel Gabriel (on the south wall, above the entrance) and a throne with four saints approaching it on the east and adjacent walls; apparently, the composition Adoration of the Victim, popular in the 13th-14th centuries, was presented here: on the throne stood a paten with the naked Christ child lying on it. Above the second register stretched a narrow decorative frieze, consisting of diagonally lying bricks, written in compliance with all the rules of perspective. Above was the main and best preserved belt with five pillars, the Old Testament Trinity, medallions with John of the Ladder, Arseny and Akakiy and the figure of Macarius of Egypt.

36 I Novgorod chronicle under 1374 [Novgorod first chronicle of the senior and junior editions, p. 372].

37 III Novgorod Chronicle under 1378 [Novgorod Chronicles. (The so-called Novgorod second and Novgorod third chronicles), p. 243]. M. K. Karger (On the issue of the sources of annalistic records of the activities of the architect Peter and Theophan the Greek. - Proceedings of the Department of Old Russian Literature of the Institute of Russian Literature (Pushkin House) of the USSR Academy of Sciences, XIV. M.–L., pp. 567–568) believes that the testimony of the late III Novgorod Chronicle is based on the lost old inscription, which was in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior.

We are deprived of the opportunity to restore in detail the decorative decoration of the church, since only minor fragments of it have survived. Undoubtedly frescoes below the base of the drum With. 180
With. 181¦ walked in five registers located one above the other, and the vaults and lunettes were decorated with gospel scenes; in the second register there were large medallions with half-figures of the prophets (remains of medallions have been preserved). Fragments of standing figures have come down to us from the third register. The fourth and fifth registers were occupied by images of various saints (remains of two figures of warriors were discovered on the western wall of the northern arm).

The fragments of frescoes that have come down to us do not allow us to compose full view about how these friezes were arranged. And here the painting of the chamber comes to the rescue, which makes it possible to restore, due to its relatively good preservation, the compositional techniques of Theophan the Greek. What is striking in the painting of the corner chamber is the extraordinary freedom of compositional constructions. Within the second belt, the frontally standing figures of saints are boldly compared with the half-figure of the Sign and the figures of saints turned towards the altar; within the upper belt, medallions alternate with full-length figures and with a multi-figure composition of the Trinity. This brings an alarming, restless rhythm to the painting. The static and monotonous arrangement of frontally placed figures, so beloved by the masters of the 12th century, is deliberately violated by Theophan for the sake of such an interpretation in which moments of an emotional order could receive the fullest expression. The figures painted by him seem to float out of the dim silver-blue backgrounds, they seem to be randomly scattered along the plane of the wall, their asymmetric placement has its own deep meaning, since this nervous - sometimes quickened, sometimes slowed down - rhythm contributes to creating the impression of dramatic tension. The deity, as it were, appears to the viewer in a “thunderstorm and storm”, ready to disappear at any moment, in order to then reappear, but in a different form and under different lighting.

Saints of Theophan are distinguished by sharp characteristics. His Noah, Melchizedek, the pillars, Akakios, Macarius of Egypt, even his Pantokrator - all these are images of such an individual warehouse that you involuntarily perceive them as portraits, and, moreover, portraits of a purely realistic persuasion. But they also have one common feature- severity. With all their thoughts they are directed to God, for them “the world lies in evil”, they constantly struggle with the passions that overwhelm them. And their tragedy is that this struggle is given to them at a high price. They have already lost their naive faith in traditional dogmas; for them, the acquisition of faith is a matter of hard moral achievement; they need to climb high pillars in order to move away from the “evil world” and approach heaven in order to suppress their flesh and their sinful thoughts. Hence their passion, their inner pathos. Mighty and strong, wise and strong-willed, they know what evil is, and they know the means by which to fight it. However, they also knew the temptations of the world. From these deepest internal contradictions, their eternal discord is born. Too proud to tell their neighbor about it, they closed themselves in the armor of contemplation. And although on their formidable faces lies the seal of peace, internally everything bubbles and seethes in them.

In an age when heretical movements spilled in a wide stream across the territory of Western and Eastern Europe, the passionate, sharply subjective art of Theophan was to be a great success. When looking at his saints, many probably recalled their own experiences. Theophan succeeded with rare artistic persuasiveness in embodying in the saints those contradictory medieval ideals that were on the verge of disintegration and which were subjected to a radical reassessment in the coming decades. In his interpretation of the image of Saint Theophanes, he vividly reflected the "fermentation of the age." Thus, his work carried the seeds of the new, of what the future belonged to.

Theophanes the Greek emerged from the traditions of the early Paleologian artistic culture. From here he drew his brilliant painting technique. However, he brought it to such perfection that in his hands it acquired a new quality, marked by an individual seal. Feofan writes in a sharp, decisive, bold manner. He sculpts his figures with energetic strokes, with fabulous skill, overlaying juicy white, bluish, gray and red highlights over dark carnation, giving his faces extraordinary liveliness and that intensity of expression, With. 181
With. 182¦ which is usually so exciting when you look at his saints. These highlights are by no means always placed by Feofan on convex, protruding parts. Often you can find them on the most shaded parts of the face. Therefore, they cannot be compared with the trecentist light-and-shadow modeling, in which the distribution of light and shadow is subject to strict empirical regularity. The Feofanovsky highlight is a powerful tool for achieving the desired emotional accent, it is a subtly thought-out technique for enhancing the expression of the image. One has to be amazed at the incomparable confidence with which Feofan uses it. His glare always hits the right spot, without deviating even a hundredth of a millimeter, they always have their own deep inner logic. And it is no coincidence that Feofan avoids bright, colorful colors that could neutralize the impulsiveness of his highlights. Feofanovskaya color range is stingy and restrained. The master prefers muffled, sounding as if mute tones. He gives figures on silver-blue backgrounds, in faces he willingly uses a dense orange-brown tone that has a terracotta hue, Feofan paints robes in pale yellow, pearl white, silver-pink and silver-green tones. Feofan builds his palette on a tonal basis, combining all colors into a single silver scale. Only the master's favorite terracotta color breaks out of this range, which has extraordinary density and weight, due to which the highlights placed on top of it seem especially catchy and bright.

Theophan the Greek continued his work in Nizhny Novgorod and Moscow, where he painted three churches between 1395 and 1405 (the Nativity of the Virgin, the Archangel Cathedral and the Cathedral of the Annunciation). Unfortunately, none of these paintings have come down to us. In Novgorod, Feofan had a strong influence on local painters and headed a whole artistic With. 182
With. 183¦ direction, which can be conditionally called "Feofanovsky". Two murals are associated with this direction - the Church of Theodore Stratilates and the Church of the Assumption on the Volotovo Field, destroyed during the Second World War. With. 183
¦