User:Golden/sandbox/art

Quiet Abode (Тихая обитель) is an 1890 oil painting by the Russian artist Isaac Levitan. The painting depicts a monastery standing by a river bend. It has been housed in Moscow's Tretyakov Gallery since 1970.

The painting, which depicts the artist's impressions of several monasteries, was completed in 1890, following Levitan's trip to the Volga. The painting was displayed at the 19th exhibition of the Society for Travelling Art Exhibitions, held in Saint Petersburg and then Moscow in 1891. Quiet Abode was a hit with exhibition attendees and received high marks from art critics, confirming Levitan's reputation as one of the foremost Russian landscape painters.

The painting was purchased in 1891 for a private collection. The traces of the painting were lost following the 1917 October Revolution, and its location remained unknown until 1960 when it was discovered in the private collection of Russian conductor Nikolai Golovanov. Quiet Abode was later moved to the State Tretyakov Gallery in 1970.

History
Isaac Levitan had the idea for a painting depicting a monastery in the setting sun in 1887, while living in Slobodka near Zvenigorod and observing the Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery at sunset. Two years later, while in Plyos, Levitan visited Yuryevets in search of new motifs for paintings and came across a small monastery, which rekindled his desire to create such a landscape. As a result, the plots of future works became intertwined with visions of these two monasteries.

Quiet Abode was completed shortly after Levitan's return from his trip to the Volga and was a big hit at the Society for Travelling Art Exhibitions' (Peredvizhniki) 19th exhibition, which opened in Saint Petersburg in March 1891. On 16 March 1891, Russian playwright Anton Chekhov wrote in a letter to his sister Maria:: "I went to see the Peredvizhniki Exhibition. Levitan is celebrating his magnificent muse's birthday. His painting has caused quite a stir [...] In any case, Levitan's success is extraordinary." Chekhov later used an image of the painting in his story "Three Years" (1894), in which the heroine, Julia, ponders the landscape at the exhibition.

Due to the success of Quiet Abode at the Peredvizhniki's exhibition, Levitan was finally acknowledged as one of the foremost Russian landscape painters. His paintings were eagerly exhibited and bought for a good price, resulting in a significant improvement in the artist's financial situation. He became a full member of the Society for Travelling Art Exhibitions in March 1891, having previously been an exhibitor.