The years of life of the outstanding icon painter Theophanes the Greek are determined approximately: he was born around 1340, died around 1410. He came to Russia from Byzantium in the second half of the XIV century and spent here the most fruitful period of his work, which lasted about 30-40 years.
Brief biography and personality portrait of Theophanes the Greek
We know about the outstanding personality of Theophanes the Greek (Grechanin) thanks to two historical persons and their good relations. These are Cyril, archimandrite of the Tver Spaso-Afanasyevsky monastery, and the hieromonk of the Trinity-Sergius monastery, a follower of Sergius of Radonezh, and later the compiler of his lives, Epiphanius the Wise.
In 1408, due to the raid of Khan Edigei, Hieromonk Epiphanius took his books and fled from danger from Moscow to neighboring Tver, and there he took refuge in the Spaso-Afanasyevsky monastery and became friends with its abbot, Archimandrite Kirill.
Probably, at that time, the abbot saw the "Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople", painted in the Gospel, which belonged to Epiphanius. A few years later, in a letter that was not preserved, Cyril apparently asked about the drawings with views of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople, which impressed him and was remembered. Epiphanius responded with a detailed explanation of their origin. A copy of the 17th – 18th centuries has survived. an excerpt from this reply letter (1413-1415), titled as follows: "Excerpted from the epistle of Hieromonk Epiphanius, who wrote to a certain friend of his Cyril."
Epiphanius in his epistle explains to the abbot that he copied those images with his own hand from the Grechin Theophanes. And then Epiphanius the Wise tells in detail and picturesquely about the Greek icon painter. Therefore, we know that Theophanes the Greek worked "according to imagination", i.e. did not look at the canonical samples, but wrote on his own at his own discretion. Theophanes was in constant motion, as he moved away from the wall, looked around the image, comparing it with the image that had formed in his head, and continued to write. Such artistic freedom was unusual for Russian icon painters of that time. In the process of work, Feofan willingly kept up a conversation with those around him, which did not knock him out of thought and did not interfere with his work. Epiphanius the Wise, who knew the Byzantine personally and communicated with him, emphasized the mind and talent of the master: "he is a living husband, glorious wise man, a very clever philosopher, Theophanes, Grechin, a deliberate iconographer and an elegant painter in an icon painter."
There is no information about the family, or about where and how Feofan received his icon-painting education. In the letter Epiphanius indicates only the finished works of the Byzantine. Theophanes the Greek decorated forty churches with his paintings in various places: Constantinople, Chalcedon and Galata (the outskirts of Constantinople), Cafe (modern Feodosia), in Novgorod the Great and Nizhny, as well as three churches in Moscow and several secular buildings.
After the work in Moscow, the name of Theophanes the Greek was not mentioned. The details of his personal life are not known. The date of death is not accurate. There is an assumption based on indirect signs that in his old age he retired to the holy Mount Athos and ended his earthly life as a monk.
Theophan the Greek in Veliky Novgorod
The only reliable works of the Russian-Byzantine master are considered only the paintings in Novgorod the Great, where he lived and worked for some time. So in the Novgorod Chronicle of 1378 it is specifically indicated that "the church of our Lord Jesus Christ" was painted by the Greek master Theophanes. We are talking about the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street, built in 1374 on the Trade side of the city. The Byzantine master was apparently called by the local boyar Vasily Mashkov to paint the temple. Presumably, Theophanes arrived in Russia with Metropolitan Cyprian.
The Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior has survived, and the Greek's murals have survived only partially. They were cleared for several decades with interruptions, starting in 1910. The frescoes, although they have come down to us with losses, give an idea of Theophanes the Greek as an outstanding artist who brought new ideas to Russian icon painting. The painter and art critic Igor Grabar assessed the arrival of masters of the magnitude of Theophanes the Greek to Russia as a fruitful external impulse at the turning points of Russian art, when it was especially needed. Theophanes the Greek ended up in Russia when the state was liberated from the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols, slowly rose and revived.
Theophanes the Greek in Moscow
Moscow chronicles indicate that Theophanes the Greek created murals of Kremlin churches in the late 14th - early 15th centuries:
- 1395 - the painting of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in the entryway in collaboration with Simeon the Black.
- 1399 - painting of the Archangel Cathedral.
- 1405 - painting of the Annunciation Cathedral that stood earlier on the site of the present one. Theophanes painted the Annunciation Cathedral together with Russian masters Prokhor Gorodets and Andrei Rublev.
Features of the work of Theophanes the Greek
The frescoes of Theophanes the Greek are characterized by minimalism of colors and lack of elaboration of small details. That is why the faces of the saints appear harsh, focused on the inner spiritual energy and radiate powerful force. The stains of whitewash are laid by the artist in such a way that they create a light similar to that of a favor, and focus attention on important details. Sharpness, precision and boldness are inherent in his brush strokes. The characters of the icon painter's murals are ascetic, self-sufficient and deep in silent prayer.
The work of Theophanes the Greek is associated with hesychasm, which implied incessant "intelligent" prayer, silence, purity of heart, transforming the power of God, the Kingdom of God within man. Through the centuries, following Epiphanius the Wise, Theophanes the Greek is recognized not only as a brilliant icon painter, but as a thinker and philosopher.
Works of Theophanes the Greek
There is no reliable data, but the work of Theophanes the Greek is usually credited with a double-sided icon of the "Donskoy Mother of God" with the "Dormition of the Mother of God" on the back and the Deesis rank of the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral in the Kremlin. The iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral is also distinguished by the fact that it became the first in Russia, on the icons of which the figures of saints are depicted in full growth.
Earlier it was assumed that the icon "The Transfiguration of the Lord" from the Transfiguration Cathedral of Pereslavl-Zalessky belongs to the brushes of Theophanes the Greek and the icon painters of the workshop he created in Moscow. But recently doubts about his authorship have increased.
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