IVAN

AIVAZOVSKY
(1817-1900)
 EARLY BIOGRAPHY
Aivazovsky was born in the
family of a merchant of
Armenian origin in the town of
Feodosia, Crimea on the 29th of
July in 1817. His parents were
under strained circumstances
and he spent his childhood in
poverty.
House in Feodosia
 THE FIRST PERIOD
In 1833, Aivazovsky arrived in the Russian capital,
Saint Petersburg, to study at the Imperial Academy of
Arts in Maxim Vorobiev's landscape class.
In 1835, he was awarded with a silver medal and
appointed assistant to the French painter Philippe
Tanneur.
In October 1837, he graduated from the Imperial
Academy of Arts with a gold medal, two years earlier
than intended.
Aivazovsky returned to Feodosia in 1838 Crimea and
spent two years in his native. Etude Air over the Sea
1835
 FIRST VISIT TO EUROPE

In 1840, Aivazovsky was sent by the Imperial Academy of

Arts to study in Europe. Aivazovsky was heavily influenced
by Italian art and their museums became the "second
academy" for him.
Pope Gregory XVI awarded him with a golden medal. He
then visited Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands and
Britain. In an international exhibition at the Louvre, he was
the only representative from Russia. In France, he received a
gold medal from the Académie royale de peinture et de
sculpture.
He returned to Russia in 1844.
 RETURN TO RUSSIA AND FIRST MARRIAGE

In 1845, Aivazovsky settled in his hometown of Feodosia, where he

built a house and studio.He isolated himself from the outside world,
keeping a small circle of friends and relatives.
In 1847, he was given the title of professor of seascape painting by
the Imperial Academy of Arts and elevated to the rank of nobility. In
the same year, he was elected to the Royal Netherlands Academy of
Arts and Sciences.
In 1848, Aivazovsky married Julia Graves, an English governess.
They had four daughters: Elena (1849), Maria (1851), Alexandra
(1852) and Joanne (1858). They separated in 1860 and divorced in
1877 with permission from the Armenian Church, since Graves was Photograph of Aivazovsky
a Lutheran. with his first wife, Julia, and
their four daughters
 RISE TO PROMINENCE
Between 1856 and 1857, Aivazovsky worked in
Paris and became the first Russian (and the first non-
French) artist to receive the Legion of Honour. In
1857, Aivazovsky visited Constantinople and was
awarded the Order of the Medjidie. In the same year,
he was elected an honorary member of the Moscow
Art Society. He was awarded the Greek Order of the
Redeemer in 1859 and the Russian Order of St.
Vladimir in 1865.
Aivazovsky opened an art studio in Feodosia in 1865
"View of Constantinople"
and was awarded a salary by the Imperial Academy
(1851).
of Arts the same year.
 SECOND MARRIAGE

Aivazovsky's second wife, Anna

Burnazian, was a young Armenian
widow 40 years his junior.
Aivazovsky said that by marrying
her in 1882, he "became closer to
[his] nation", referring to the
Armenian people.

Aivazovsky's painting of his

second wife Anna Burnazian
(1882)
 LATER LIFE

Aivazovsky was deeply affected by the

Hamidian massacres that took place in
the Armenian-inhabited areas of the
Ottoman Empire between 1894 and
1896. He painted a number of works
on the subject such as The Expulsion
of the Turkish Ship, and The Armenian
Massacres at Trebizond (1895). He
threw the medals given to him by the
Ottoman Sultan into the sea.
This picture is filled with a
storm, in the literal sense of
the weather phenomenon, and
in the sense of overflowing
emotions. It was written in
1850, at that time literally in a
short time became a famous
masterpiece.
This picture fell into the
palace of Nicholas I. The well-
known collector P. M.
Tretyakov did not miss the
news about the successes of
the young marine painter
Aivazovsky, he became
interested in his works. The Ninth Wave
1850
The painting was created in 1887,
oil on canvas. On it, the artist
demonstrates the greatness of the
natural element, which he
worshiped all his life. Aivazovsky
was in love with the sea and
admired all his states: from
complete calm to an all-
destructive storm. 
The painting “Brig” Mercury “,
attacked by two Turkish ships,
was painted by the artist in
1892, many years after the
events depicted in the
painting.
In 1829, the “Mercury”, which
had 18 guns at its disposal
and a small team, left the port
to patrol the Bosphorus Strait.
The scene of the capture of
the Russian ship in the trap
and the exchange of the first
shots and captured in his
picture the artist.
 DEATH

Aivazovsky died on 19 April (2 May in New Style) 1900 in Feodosia. In

accordance with his wishes, he was buried at the courtyard of St. Sargis Armenian
Church.

After his death, his wife Anna led a generally secluded life, living in several rooms
she had retained after nationalization, until 1941. She died on 25 July 1944 and
was buried next to Aivazovsky.Two of his daughters (Maria and Alexandra) left
Russia following the Revolution of 1917, while the other two died shortly
thereafter: Yelena in 1918 and Zhanna in 1922.