Lev Stepanovich Igorev (Russian: Лев Степанович Игорев; 10 February 1821 in Komarovka,

Saratov Governorate Saratov Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR. History On December 25, 1769, the Saratov province was established as part of the Astrakhan Governorate. On January 11, 17 ...

– 29 December 1893 in

Saratov Saratov ( , ; , ) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Saratov Oblast, Russia, and a major port on the Volga River. Saratov had a population of 901,361, making it the List of cities and tow ...

) was a Russian portrait painter in the

Academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

style.

Biography

His father was the sexton at a small church.Brief biography
@ the Diocese of Saratov and Volsk website. He attended a religious school in Petrovsk then, in 1838, he and his brother Sergei entered the Saratov Theological Seminary; graduating in 1844.Biographical notes
@ RusArtNet. During his stay, he made drawings of several church officials, including Bishop Yakov, who became his patron. He was initially assigned to the village of Rudno in

Kamyshinsky District Kamyshinsky District () is an administrativeLaw #139-OD district (raion), one of the thirty-three in Volgograd Oblast, Russia. As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Kamyshinsky Municipal District.Law #1022-OD It is located in the north ...

, but the portraits he had done at the seminary made him interested in pursuing formal studies in art, so he applied to the

Saint Petersburg Theological Academy The Saint Petersburg Theological Academy () is a higher education institution of the Russian Orthodox Church, located in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The academy prepares theologians, clergymen, singers and icon writers for the Eastern Orthodox Chu ...

for lessons that would enable him to become an art teacher at a religious school. Igorev-Wenzel

While there, he also audited classes at the

Imperial Academy of Arts The Imperial Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by Ivan Shuvalov, the founder of the Imperial Moscow University, under the name ''Academy of th ...

and his work won praise from Fyodor Tolstoy. In 1850, he was awarded the title of "Artist" and, in 1853, was named an Academician for his portrait of

Macarius Bulgakov Metropolitan Macarius (, born Mikhail Petrovich Bulgakov, ; –), was the Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna in 1879–82 and member of many learned societies, including the Russian Academy of Sciences. In 1841, he graduated from the Kiev Theol ...

. In 1855, he became a teacher at the Theological Academy. At that time, he created icons for numerous churches in rural districts, as well as Saint Petersburg. He also created a medallion with the image of

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

for presentation to the Tsarina, Maria Alexandrovna.

Mission to China

After less than two years as a teacher, he volunteered for the fourteenth Russian Spiritual Mission to Beijing and, in 1857, became the mission's official artist. The mission was delayed by events related to the

Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a civil war in China between the Qing dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The conflict lasted 14 years, from its outbreak in 1850 until the fall of ...

, so he spent a year in

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and , ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 587,891 Irkutsk is the List of cities and towns in Russ ...

. While there, he painted portraits of prominent Siberian statesmen such as

Nikolay Muravyov-Amursky Count Nikolay Nikolayevich Muravyov-Amursky (also spelled as Nikolai Nikolaevich Muraviev-Amurskiy; ; – ) was a Russian general, statesman and diplomat, who played a major role in the expansion of the Russian Empire into the Amur River basin a ...

and .

While in Beijing, his primary mission was replacing Albazinian icons that had been destroyed in 1685 by the

Qing Army The Qing dynasty (1644–1912) was established by conquest and maintained by armed force. The founding emperors personally organized and led the armies, and the continued cultural and political legitimacy of the dynasty depended on their abilit ...

(and were destroyed again during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

). In 1863, he was charged with delivering a diplomatic message to Admiral Popov in Shanghai. Upon returning to Saint Petersburg in 1864, he mounted a major exhibition at the Academy, with

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

scenes and portraits of Chinese officials and their families. He was also awarded the

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus (, ), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Poniatowski of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It remained under the Congress Poland, Kingdom of Pola ...

. Following that, he worked primarily as an icon painter, working in

Kostroma Kostroma (, ) is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Volga and Kostroma. In the 2021 census, the population is 267, ...

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...

Vologda Vologda (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the river Vologda (river), Vologda within the watershed of the Northern Dvina. Population: The city serves as ...

and

Arzamas Arzamas (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Tyosha River (a tributary of the Oka River, Oka), east of Moscow. As of 2024, it has a population of 103,629. History Arzamas ...

. In 1885, he did most of the decorative work for the newly rebuilt Church of the Intercession in Saratov. In 1890, he went to live there with his widowed sisters and wrote his memoirs. He died of paralysis after several trips to the village of Sleptsovka to make funeral arrangements for another sister. Most of his church works were destroyed during the Soviet period. The current locations of all but two of the works he painted in China are unknown. In 1950, an unfinished posthumous portrait of

Alexander Griboyedov Alexander Sergeyevich Griboyedov (; 15 January 179511 February 1829) was a Russian diplomat, playwright, poet, and composer. His one notable work is the 1823 verse comedy '' Woe from Wit''. He was Russia's ambassador to Qajar Persia, where he and ...

was identified as his.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Igorev, Lev 1821 births 1893 deaths People from Kuznetsky Uyezd (Saratov Governorate) 19th-century painters from the Russian Empire Russian male painters Russian portrait painters Russian Christian missionaries Eastern Orthodox missionaries Russian expatriates in China Christian missionaries in China Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (House of Romanov)