Boyaryshnya – Konstantin Egorovich Makovsky

The famous work by Konstantin Yegorovich Makovsky “Boyaryshnya” is a portrait of a beautiful but melancholy girl from his “Russian Beauties and Boyar Womebn” series. The master was a sought-after artist, painting in various genres, but the best known for his portraits created in the “boyar style”.
The loveful Makovsky conveyed his whole admiration for the female beauty in more than sixty works. When looking at the painting titled "Boyaryshnya" one feels his respect for the fragility and modesty of youth. The girl in this picture has her own world and dreams, just like all others from many of his other works.

Konstantin Yegorovich also used to work in the genre of historical painting, where everything depicted by him, including the outfits and jewelry, dishes and furniture and up to the buttons, was painted from nature. That is the reason why he managed to convey so accurately the class of a beauty. Her lush and rich clothing depicted in bright colors adds elegance to the painting. The juicy colors of the image and the master's attention to the surroundings shown in less bright colors and in details accentuate her facial expression and even her feelings, as well as the emotions.

However, there is no social load in this canvas, it is only beauty. The pictorially plastic and compositional solution of this work both emphasize the integrity of the heroine’s physical condition and emotional mood. Her magnificent attire, conveyed with maximum accuracy, is impressing. The background, in turn, is there only to further focus on the beautiful girl.

Makovsky detailed the nice facial features, masterfully depicting her sorrow look. It feels like there are tears in her eyes. Her tiny pink and closed lips with their corners lowered corners serve as a sign of discontent due to unpleasant fate, which is against her will. Perhaps this young beauty is a marriageable Boyar girl.

This painting created by the great Russian portrait master is an important work as a museum item; however, the masterpiece replenished some private collection.