KRYZHITSKY Konstantin Yakovlevich

May 17, 1858 (Kiev) — April 4, 1911 (St. Petersburg)

Painter, graphic artist

Konstantin Kryzhitsky was born to a merchant family. He studied in the non-classical secondary school in Kiev. He also attended Kiev Drawing School in 1875–1876, studied under the guidance of N. I. Murashko. In 1877–1884 he studied in the Imperial Academy of Arts (IAKh), in the landscape class of M. K. Klodt. During his studies, Kryzhitsky was awarded medals several times: in 1879 — small silver medals for the painting Kiev Outskirts and landscape drawings, and big silver medal for the painting Willows; in 1881 — small silver medal for the drawing from nature; in 1883 — small gold medal for the landscape Oaks. In 1884 Kryzhitsky took part in the contest for big gold medal with the painting View of Kiev Province, but he did not succeed; in the same year Kryzhitsky graduated from the Academy with the title of class artist of the 1st degree. In 1889 he was conferred the title of academician for the painting Forest Expanses and for the artist’s mastery of landscape painting.

Kryzhitsky lived in St. Petersburg. He painted landscapes, worked a lot in watercolour. In his art Kryzhitsky followed the academic traditions in landscape painting. The artist often travelled through many cities and provinces of Russia, Ukraine and Baltics. In 1890 he made a trip to Germany and France. In 1910 Kryzhitsky had an idea of a series of paintings dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Patriotic War of 1812; he considered going all the way of Russian and French armies in order to paint a series (the project was not realized).

The artist showed his works at the Academy exhibitions (1883–1911, with intervals), at the All-Russia exhibition of Industrial art in Moscow (1882), the All-Russia industrial and agricultural exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod (1896), the Paris World Fair (1900), and the International art exhibition in Munich (1909; gold medal). Kryzhitsky was a member and active participant of the exhibitions of the Society of Russian Watercolorists (1890–1911; membership since 1892). Since 1881 Kryzhitsky was a member of the society Myussarovskie Ponedelniki (“Myussar’s Mondays”). He also was one of the founders of St. Petersburg Society of Artists (1890) and the A. I. Kuindzhi Society of Artists (1909; in 1909–1911 — chairman of the board of the Society).

In 1911 the artist committed suicide. The memorial exhibitions of Kryzhitsky were held in St. Petersburg (1911) and in Moscow (1913).

The painter handed down a great artistic legacy. Works by Konstantin Kryzhitsky are in many museum collections, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum, the Research Museum of the Russian Academy of Arts and others.