Emperor Alexander III, who ruled for a mere 13 years (1881–1894), went down in history with the reputation of a conservative who fortified the institutions of the monarchy and halted the growth of the revolutionary movement in Russia. Despite its many contradictions, the era of short-lived political calm connected with Alexander III turned out to be a positive phenomenon in a number of ways. In part, even contemporaries noted the upsurge in culture and the arts, which to a large extent laid the groundwork for subsequent achievements in Russian art at the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. Today it is clear that much of the credit for this should go to the Emperor himself. Since his youth he had been an avid collector of painting and applied artwork, supported museums, workshops, and individual artists regardless of their artistic focus, and devoted much attention to arts education and training in both big cities and provincial areas. And Alexander III did not just follow growing social demands – he took the lead. As a result, his personal tastes managed to have an influence on architecture, painting, graphic art, jewellery, and the production of porcelain, furniture, and other applied artwork. The Emperor’s most important contribution to Russian culture was his promotion of an idea to open a state museum of Russian art in St Petersburg, which he did not manage to see implemented in his lifetime. It is for good reason that the Russian Museum, founded by a special decree from his son Nicholas II just a few months after Alexander’s death, was named in his honour and was intended to be his most significant memorial.
The Russian Museum exhibition is organised thematically. It reflects various aspects of the life and work of Alexander III connected with his enthusiasm for collecting and artistic predilections. The exhibition begins with paintings, sculptures, and applied art objects from the Emperor’s personal collection in his residence – Anichkov Palace, and ends in St George’s Room with a vivid demonstration of “Russian style”, which became the dominant aesthetic in the age of Alexander III.
Dedicated to the 175th year since the birth of Emperor Alexander III, the exhibition includes approximately 300 works from the Russian Museum, the Hermitage, the Tretyakov Gallery, the Historical Museum, the Museum of the History of Religion, the Museum of Fine Arts of the Republic of Karelia, the Pskov Museum-Reserve, the Gatchina, Pavlovsk, and Tsarskoye Selo Museum-Reserves, the Yusupov Palace, the State Archive of the Russian Federation, the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, and various private collections.
