Moonlight

Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky prints bring the power and glow of the sea into your home: towering storm waves, ships in peril, and calm bays under silver moonlight. Aivazovsky is considered one of the greatest marine painters of all time, and his luminous seascapes made "worthy of Aivazovsky's brush" a Russian saying for anything beautiful. Our collection of fine art prints includes his seascapes, moonlit harbours, views of Constantinople and Crimea, and landscapes.

About Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky

Ivan Aivazovsky was born on 29 July 1817 in Feodosia, a Black Sea port in Crimea, to Armenian parents, and baptised Hovhannes Aivazian. His father was a merchant. He studied at the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg from 1833, in Maxim Vorobiev's landscape class, and in 1836 met the poet Alexander Pushkin there.

After his studies he travelled in Europe and lived for a time in Italy in the early 1840s. On his return he was appointed main painter to the Russian Navy, and he kept close ties with Russia's military and political elite. He lived mostly in Feodosia.

Over a career of almost sixty years he created around 6,000 paintings, held many exhibitions in Europe and the United States, and was famous across the world. He painted from memory rather than from nature, and his visual memory was legendary. He died in Feodosia on 2 May 1900.

Style and Subjects

Aivazovsky's seas glow with light: sunrise and sunset, moonlight and storm clouds shining through huge, transparent waves. He painted quickly and from memory, building up luminous layers that make the water seem lit from within.

Most of his works are seascapes, from raging storms and shipwrecks to calm, moonlit bays. He also painted naval battles, views of Constantinople and Crimea, Armenian subjects and portraits.

Famous Works

• Battle of Chesma (1848), Aivazovsky National Art Gallery, Feodosia. The Russian fleet destroying the Ottoman navy in 1770.
• The Ninth Wave (1850), State Russian Museum, Saint Petersburg. Shipwreck survivors cling to a mast as a giant wave rises in a golden dawn.
• The Golden Horn in the Moonlight (1868). Constantinople's harbour under a silver moon.
• Rainbow (1873), Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. A ship in a storm beneath a ghostly rainbow.
• The Black Sea (1881), Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. A vast, darkening sea with nothing but waves and sky.
• Pushkin on the Black Sea Coast (1887), V. V. Vereshchagin Art Museum, Mykolaiv. The poet on the shore, painted fifty years after his death.
• The Brig Mercury in Moonlight. The famous Russian warship under a moonlit sky.

Decorating with Aivazovsky Prints

Aivazovsky's seascapes bring drama and light to living rooms, studies and hallways. A storm scene such as The Ninth Wave makes a commanding focal point above a sofa or fireplace, while his moonlit bays, such as Shipping in Moonlight, bring calm to a bedroom.

His views of Constantinople and Crimea suit a dining room or travel-themed hallway, and look best in deep gilt or dark wood frames that echo their glowing colour.

FAQ

What is Aivazovsky's most famous painting?

The Ninth Wave (1850), in the State Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg, is his best-known work.

How many paintings did Aivazovsky make?

Around 6,000 in a career of almost sixty years, making him one of the most prolific artists of his time.

Did Aivazovsky paint from life?

No. He painted from memory rather than directly from nature, far from the shore, and his visual memory was legendary.

Was Aivazovsky Russian or Armenian?

He was born to Armenian parents in Feodosia, Crimea, then part of the Russian Empire, and was a leading painter of the Russian Empire. He also painted Armenian themes.

Where can I see Aivazovsky's paintings?

Major works are in the State Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery, the Aivazovsky National Art Gallery in Feodosia and museums in Armenia, Ukraine and Turkey.

Related Artists

• Joseph Mallord William Turner: British master of light and the sea of the same era
• Ilya Efimovich Repin: leading Russian painter of the next generation
• Ivan Shishkin: Russian landscape painter of the same era