Wednesday, July 21, 2010

State Hermitage, St Petersburg, Russia

Think of every famous artist you've heard of. Michaelangelo, da Vinci, Raphael (only 3 of the 4 TMNTs - Donatello was missing), Renoir, Monet, Cézanne, van Gogh, Rodin, Gauguin, Picasso, Matisse, Kandinsky, Rubens, Rembrandt...

Now place their artwork in rooms of incredible beauty, rooms that are works of art themselves. Add crown jewels, ancient treasures, and Egyptian mummies, and you'll begin to imagine the scope of the State Hermitage.

My jaw dropped when I walked into each room. I didn't know what to look at first - the floor, the ceiling, the artworks on display? Some rooms were overwhelming, and required several viewings.

The collection is housed in the Winter Palace and Small, Large, and New Hermitages. I spent 2 full days there and still didn't see everything.


Detail of mosaic on the floor of the Pavilion Hall


The Raphael Loggias (copies of the frescoes done by Raphael at the Vatican)


Detail, the Raphael Loggias


Large Italian Skylight Hall


My favourite room: The Gallery of the History of Ancient Painting


Detail, the Gallery of the History of Ancient Painting


Detail, the Gallery of the History of Ancient Painting


The Boudoir


"The Eternal Spring" by Auguste Rodin


"Dance" by Henri Matisse


"Music" by Henri Matisse


"Absinthe" by Pablo Picasso


Jupiter


The Twenty-Column Hall

Next: Kraków, Poland (including Auschwitz-Birkenau)...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wow. I can only imagine how beautiful it be in person, as from the photographs it looks stunning. Definitely now on my travel list. Thanks for sharing.