Vasilïĭ Vasilʹevich Vereshchagin

Vasily Vasilyevich Vereshchagin (Russian: Василий Васильевич Верещагин; 26 October 1842 – 13 April 1904) was a Russian painter, war artist, and traveller. The graphic nature of his realist scenes led to many of them never being printed or exhibited to the public.

Years of apprenticeship

Vereshchagin was born at Cherepovets, Novgorod Governorate, Russia, in 1842 as the middle of three brothers. His father was a landowner of noble birth, while his mother was of common origin and had Tatar roots. When he was eight years old, he was sent to Tsarskoe Selo to enter the Alexander Cadet Corps. Three years later, he entered the Naval Cadet Corps at St. Petersburg, making his first voyage in 1858. He served on the frigate Kamchatka, which sailed to Denmark, France, and Egypt.

Vereshchagin graduated first in his list at the naval school, but left the service immediately to begin the study of drawing in earnest. Two years later, in 1863, he won a medal from the Imperial Academy of Arts for his Ulysses Slaying the Suitors. In 1864, he proceeded to Paris, where he studied under Jean-Léon Gérôme, though he dissented widely from his master's methods.

Travels in Central Asia and related works

In the Paris Salon of 1866, Vereshchagin exhibited a drawing of Dukhobors chanting their Psalms. In the next year, he was invited to accompany General Konstantin Petrovich Kaufman's expedition in Central Asia and Turkestan. He was granted the rank of ensign. His heroism at the siege of Samarkand from 2–8 June 1868 resulted an award of the Cross of St. George (4th Class). He was an indefatigable traveller, returning to St. Petersburg in late 1868, to Paris in 1869, back to St. Petersburg later in the year, and then back to Turkestan via Siberia at the end of 1869.