Masterpieces by Ivan Aivazovsky

Ivan Aivazovsky – was one of the most magnificent and incredibly talented artists of the last few centuries.

Ivan Aivazovsky is famous for his works depicting magnificent seascapes. The artist is also recognized as one of the best authors in this category in the entire history of art. Being a real genius of marine painting, he created thousands of paintings. Half of all his works depict scenes of the sea, port cities, unusually beautiful sunsets, painted clouds, ships, and raging waves. The creation of The Ninth Wave was the culmination of his artistic career. This painting made his art truly eternal.

10 facts about the artist

1. The artist has Armenian roots, and at birth, his name was Hovhannes Ayvazyan.
2. He is officially recognized as the most prominent Armenian painter of the 19th century.
3. The artist painted all his famous seascapes in his studio, and not from nature.
4. Waiting for the guests, the painter removed the labels from the bottles and replaced them with his own, which he painted himself. The new labels depicted the sea.
5. Envious people often accused Aivazovsky of dishonest methods, and in order to dispel public doubts, he more than once organized sessions of public painting, striking those present with the speed and clarity of his work.
6. During his life, Ivan Aivazovsky painted over 6,000 paintings.
7. The Pope was so impressed by his painting Chaos. World Creation that he wanted to buy the painting, but the artist did not take the money but simply gave the painting to him.
8. Aivazovsky was the first Russian artist whose paintings were exhibited in the French Louvre.
9. Even during the life of Aivazovsky, 6 cities in different countries made him their honorary citizen. They are St. Petersburg, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Stuttgart, and Florence.
10. At the age of 20, Ivan Aivazovsky received an honorary gold medal for the painting Calm, becoming the youngest owner of this award.