The propagandist’s arrest, Repin – description of the painting
Description of the picture:
The arrest of the propagandist is Ilya Efimovich Repin. One thousand eight hundred and eighty – 1889, 1892. Oil on wood. Three hundred eighty four x 500 40 6 mm
This is one of the artist’s most recognizable paintings. It depicts the moment of the arrest of a person engaged in revolutionary propaganda. At that time it was a burning topic, and Repin could not get past it. The country was experiencing a surge of social activity, the upsurge of the revolutionary movement, which was accompanied by countless acts of violence.
The picture shows the moment when the propagandist was exposed and exposed in illegal activities. The action takes place in a regular farm hut with poor wood floors in crevices and cracks, with naked unsightly walls. Against the background of general grayness and gloom, a red shirt of the arrested person shines with a catching flame – this is the sensual center of the picture.
The composition of the picture was decided by groups, where the main element is the main character himself and the people who hold him. The corner of the picture is occupied by large figures on the frontal plane – the old gendarme reading one of the leaflets of the propagandist, and the young sovereign bending over him with a mustache. Behind their backs, a door to another room is visible, where indignant people shouting excitedly and shouting something.
The figures in the background are ordinary farmers in coarse, slippery clothes. They look warily in different directions, trying to understand the meaning of what is happening. On the frontal plane, an opened suitcase with scattered content attracts attention – the main evidence against the propagandist.
The painting is mainly painted in black expressionless colors, exceptions are only two spotless color spots – the reddish shirt of the central hero and the blue lid of the opened suitcase. This technique involuntarily forces to be fixed on these colors, emphasizing their importance.
The canvas is made in a manner appropriate for Repin – part of it is written very painstakingly, with small details, such as floorboards, a suitcase with papers, the figure of a gendarme sitting on a chair and the person next to him. All other characters are expressive and conspicuous, but they are written in a different manner – with broad, effective strokes, almost in outline. This adds liveliness to the picture, appropriates movement, extraordinary energy."