The Finest Collection of Impressionist Art in Russia – The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts

By MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network, Reported by Chen Guanxin

The world’s largest country—Russia, after transitioning from the communist era to a capitalist society, has rapidly developed as one of the BRICS nations. Amidst the opulent fabric of sophistication and refined taste, its grand shopping malls and exquisitely designed cafes reveal the splendid radiance of a deep-rooted literary, musical, and artistic heritage. The museums and art galleries here offer not just chronological accounts of Russian history or bourgeois salons flaunting taste, but footprints of time walked by ancestors and Europe, as well as the centuries-long dialectic between the artistic and political nature of “beauty.” The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, located in the southwest of Moscow, houses a collection spanning Byzantine, Ancient Egyptian, and Renaissance periods. Not only does it rank second in collection size in Russia, but it also boasts the nation’s premier collection in both quantity and quality of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artworks.

From its exterior to its interior design, the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is infused with Neoclassical style. In addition to temple-like columns and triangular pediments, it features numerous statues and decorative elements. As early as the late 19th century, O. Tsvetaeva, the head of the Art Department at Moscow University, proposed establishing a museum to preserve and study global art. With the assistance of Tsar Alexander III, an architectural design competition was held publicly, and the Neoclassical-style design by architect Roman Klein was ultimately selected. Since the project was initiated under the name of the Moscow University Museum of Art, the Moscow City Council approved a plan to gift the land free of charge, while the construction costs were funded by donations from several capitalists. It was named the Pushkin Museum in 1937.

The two-story Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts houses an extensive collection, ranking second in Russia only to the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. The artworks on display are broadly categorized by era and region: (1) Ancient art, including works from ancient Egyptian, Greek, Byzantine, and Roman civilizations. (2) European art from the 13th to 16th centuries, featuring works by artists from Italy, Flanders, and the Netherlands, including famous pieces by Rembrandt. (3) 17th–18th-century art, encompassing Renaissance, Baroque, and works by Russian émigré painters.

Particularly noteworthy is the museum’s collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artworks, which ranks foremost in both quantity and quality nationwide. These collections mainly come from two visionary and affluent art collectors: Sergey Shchukin and Ivan Morozov. The former owned many works by Cézanne, Picasso, and Matisse before they became famous, demonstrating astonishing discernment and an impressive collection of 220 pieces. The latter primarily collected works by Van Gogh and Gauguin. After the revolution, these collections were all nationalized and are now displayed in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts and the State Hermitage Museum.

Later, due to expansion needs, 19th and 20th-century artworks in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts—such as French Impressionist paintings by Renoir, Monet, Cézanne, Van Gogh, and Gauguin, as well as Cubist and Fauvist works by Picasso and Matisse—were moved to the newly established “Gallery of 19th and 20th Century European and American Art.” The “Private Collections Museum,” located to the right of the main entrance, mostly contains artworks donated or confiscated during the Soviet era. Additionally, two museums dedicated to Russian Realist painters (the Rerikh Museum and the Glazunov Gallery) are also just a short walk away.