Silivanovich, Nikodim Yuryevich

Self Portrait (1890)

He was born in a peasant family, but received his education at the Molodechno five-year-old noble school of the Vilna province . Parents: Yuri Ivanovich Silivanovich (1799-1883) and Anastasia. Researchers of the artist believe that he was born in the family of a state peasant. But this is not so. Tsintsevichi belonged to the Rabunsky estate of Bernardines of the Vilna Monastery of St. Michael. And the peasants of the estate, including the father of the artist Yuri, were serfs. And only in 1841 the village went to the treasury department.

The Molodechno landowner, from whom Silivanovich taught children, noting a young man's penchant for drawing, sent him to study at the St. Petersburg Society for the Promotion of Arts , created in 1820, at his own expense to study and prepare for admission to the Imperial St. Petersburg Academy of Arts . In 1856, Nicodemus passed the exams at the Academy and entered the portraiture department. His teachers were professors F. Bruni , A. Markov, and T. Neff . After graduating from the Academy in 1863, he received the title of free artist .

In the years 1864-1866 Silivanovich lived in Vilna , earning portraits and designing churches. Here he married Pelageya Vikentievna Prankavicheva.

Then he lived in his native Tsintsevichi, decorated the surrounding churches, painted portraits and genre paintings. In 1864, the Lida county government entrusted him with the design of all county churches. In addition to the design itself, Silivanovich painted several icons for the temples that have not been preserved. It is known that among them was the icon of St. Alexander Nevsky.

For work performed in Tsintsevichi, in 1866 he received the title of class artist of the 3rd degree and was accepted to the Mosaic Department of the Academy, which he graduated in 1870. Since 1876, academician of mosaic.

After the death of his wife he himself raised children. They can be seen in the paintings "Children in the yard", "To school."

In 1881, Silivanovich was awarded the Order of St. Stanislav of the 3rd degree.

At the end of 1898, the titular adviser , academician of painting Nikodim Silivanovich, filed a resignation letter and in 1901 he moved for permanent residence in the town of Birshtany of the Troksky district , where he equipped a small workshop in his own house.

In March 1909, by order of the Vilnius bishopric, he painted 14 scenes of the “ Way of the Cross of Jesus Christ ”, in 1910 for the church under construction, the icon “St. The Apostle Judah Thaddeus. "

With the outbreak of World War I , Silivanovich went to his native Tsintsevichi.

Almost all of Nikodim Silivanovich’s creative heritage is kept in Vilnius . There is one work in Minsk - “The Soldier with the Boy”, and in one of the Vileyka churches the icon “St. Anthony of Padua. " Mosaic works are in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

In 2009, a memorial sign dedicated to Silivanovich was installed in Tsintsevichi.

The Ministry of Communications of Belarus has issued a marked envelope for the anniversary of the artist.

During his studies at the Academy and life in Tsintsevichi, N. Silivanovich wrote a number of portrait works: “The Old Shepherd”, “The Head of a Girl”, “Portrait of a Jew”, “Portrait of a Father”, etc.

In 1866, the rector of the mosaic department F. Bruni instructed Silivanovich to make a copy of the Savior’s image with oil paints, and then create the first mosaic image. A year later, Silivanovich took part in the creation of the mosaics “Savior in Glory” and “Savior on the Throne” for the tomb of Princes Pozharsky in the Suzdal Spaso-Evfimyevsky Monastery .

In 1873, he was included in the mosaic group of the image of the Mother of God with a baby for the tomb of the Counts of the Shuvalovs in Wiesbaden .

In the early 1870s. Silivanovich, among other artists, as having experience in the design of churches, was invited by the Academy of Arts to work on painting the St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg. For the mosaic “The Last Supper” (together with Ivan Laveretsky ) for the main iconostasis of the cathedral, he was appointed the main mosaic and was awarded the title of academician of painting.

He also, together with other artists, created mosaic compositions “The Evangelist Luke”, “The Evangelist Matthew”, “The Evangelist Mark”, “The Kiss of Judas” (together with Mikhail Schetinin ), etc.

The artist’s interest in ordinary people is remarkable. These are people understandable to Silivanovich, he knows their life firsthand. The painting “A Shepherd from the Sventyanschina” depicts an old Belarusian, leaning on a shepherd’s staff. His head is bare. Long gray strands of hair fall on a high forehead. Knotted fingers squeeze the staff. Big dark eyes look tired. The picture attracts with psychological depth and imagery. In terms of execution, there is no longer the academic convention of color that still existed in the works of other artists.

• In the homeland of Silivanovich in the city of Vileyka there is an exhibition hall named after him.
• In the village of Tsintsevichi, Vileika district, a memorial sign to Silivanovich was opened ^[2] .

• Katser M.S. Fine art of Belarus of the pre-revolutionary period. - Mn., 1969.
• Gistoryya Belarus mastastva at 6 vols. - Mn., 1989. - T. 3. - S. 200-208.
• Drobaў L. M. Belaruska mastaki XIX stagodzzya. - Mn., 1971.
• Juozapavičius P. Nikodemas Silvanavičius. Kraštotyra, 1958, 18, p. 102-112.
• Sabaitė A. (1989, vasario 4). Pagerbėme tapytoją akademiką N. Silvanavičių. Naujas gyvenimas, p. 3.
• S. N. Kondakov. Anniversary Directory of the Imperial Academy of Arts. 1764-1914 . - St. Petersburg: Partnership R. Golike and A. Vilborg, 1915. - T. 2 (Biographical part). - S. 177. - 459 p.
• Tarandaitė D. Dailininkas Nikodemas Silvanavičius. Literatūra ir menas. Peržiūrėta, 2006

• Nikodim Silivanovich
• Life and career of an undeservedly forgotten academician
• Children's plein air dedicated to Silivanovich
• The artist and his descendant
• B. Tsitovich. Engraving "Nicodemus Silivanovich"
• Tarandaitė D. (2005). Dailininkas Nikodemas Silvanavičius. Literatūra ir menas, 3076. Peržiūrėta 2006, spalio 20, adresu
• Tarandaitė D., (2005). Prisimenant dailininką Nikodemą Silvanavičių. Literatūra ir menas, 3075. Peržiūrėta 2006, spalio 20, adresu
• Silvanavičius Nikodemas. Peržiūrėta 2007, rugpjūčio 24, adresu