Portrait of Chaliapin

The Portrait of Chaliapin is a painting by Boris Kustodiev, created in 1921 in Petrograd (modern day Saint Petersburg).^[1][2][3] At this time the opera singer Feodor Chaliapin was preparing to perform in Alexander Serov's opera The Power of the Fiend in the former Mariinsky Theatre. He invited Boris Kustodiev to create artwork for the performance.

The upheaval caused by the February and October Revolutions and the Russian Civil War led to desperate conditions in the cities. The currency was devalued and there was no money for the theatre to pay Chaliapin for his performance. Instead the theatre offered Chaliapin a rich fur coat, taken from a Soviet warehouse containing items confiscated from rich people during the revolution.^[4] Chaliapin wore the coat on a visit to Kustodiev to invite him to design artworks for the performance. Kustodiev was ill at the time and was unable to walk. When Kustodiev learned of the coat's history, confiscated from its previous owner, he announced his intention to paint a portrait of Chaliapin in this coat. Thus began a double work: Feodor Chaliapin brought Kustodiev to the theatre to work on the stage scenery, and Kustodiev painted Chaliapin's portrait at home. The Soviet government had allocated only a small room to Kustodiev, and there was not enough space to work on a single canvas. Instead Kustodiev painted it in parts. Chaliapin talked about himself as he posed, and at times they sang together.

El retrato de Chaliapin es típico del estilo de Kustodiev y se sitúa en un contexto festivo, concretamente en las tradiciones rusas de la Maslenitsa . Kustodiev tituló el cuadro « Nueva Ciudad» , representando una ciudad a la que Chaliapin había llegado por primera vez durante una gira. Pero el nombre no perduró, y el cuadro se conoció como «El retrato de Chaliapin» . ^{[ 3 ]} La pintura está llena de simbolismo. Chaliapin se alza sobre la gente, de la que había surgido. Viste un elegante traje y sostiene un bastón, como era la moda en la época. Kustodiev incluyó en la escena al perro favorito de Chaliapin. ^{[ 3 ]} En la esquina inferior izquierda del retrato, Kustodiev pintó a las hijas de Chaliapin, María y Marta, paseando por la plaza festiva, acompañadas por un amigo íntimo, el secretario del cantante I. Dvorictchin. Se las muestra cerca de un cartel de teatro que promociona el concierto de Chaliapin. ^{[ 1 ] [ 2 ]}

En 1922 Chaliapin emigró de Rusia, llevándose consigo el retrato. ^{[ 5 ]} Ese mismo año, Kustodiev hizo una copia en miniatura del retrato, que ahora se exhibe en el Museo Ruso de San Petersburgo. ^{[ 6 ]} El original se encuentra actualmente en el Museo Estatal de Teatro y Música de San Petersburgo .