Drawings of Literary Characters

A series of pencil drawings based on the works of renowned European and Ukrainian portrait painters of the 18th and early 19th centuries, demonstrating a focused study of the stylistic and compositional decisions of three famous artists: Dmytro Levytskyi, Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt, and Volodymyr Borovykovskyi. The author of these drawings clearly not only practised copying, but also conducted in-depth stylistic and plastic research, probably with the aim of further using the motifs in his own artistic practice. The first drawing on the sheet depicts a woman with a high neckline and luxurious hairstyle, stylistically similar to Dmytro Levytskyi's formal female portraits. The figure is depicted in profile, with a slight turn of the shoulders, which gives the image a sense of dynamism. The lines are soft and careful, skilfully reproducing the volume of the body and the delicacy of the facial features. The hairstyle is pulled up high, structured, and conveyed with particular attention to the plasticity of the strands, characteristic of the fashion of the second half of the 18th century. This drawing is not so much a direct copy as a careful stylisation that captures the spirit and visual rhythm of D. Levytskyi, his ability to combine solemnity with psychological warmth. The second portrait, depicting Denis Diderot, also refers to the work of Levytskyi. The author of the drawing reproduces the composition characteristic of Levytskyi: a half-turn, soft modelling of the face, and light chiaroscuro sculpting of shapes. The attention to the gaze indicates an attempt to penetrate the depth of the psychological characterisation of the subject. At the same time, the simplicity and restraint of the lines preserve the freedom and delicacy of the drawing. Of particular interest is the portrait of Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, a copy after a work by the Dutch artist Michiel Jansz van Mierevelt. The drawing reproduces the master's characteristic type of formal male portrait: a stern image, a solemn posture, and a dignified figure. The author carefully conveys the plasticly modelled facial features, sparse, restrained, yet confident lines that form the image of an elderly man with a short beard, wearing a headdress. Light and shadow are used judiciously, without excessive contrast, as a means of defining volume rather than dramatisation. The last portrait in the series is that of Kateryna Arsenieva, based on the work of the same name by Volodymyr Borovykovskyi. The author recreates the face and part of the shoulder girdle of a young woman, focusing on the soft outline of the silhouette, the gentle expression of the face, and the slightly raised eyebrows, which give the gaze a slightly pensive character. The hairstyle and part of the headdress are rendered with decorative ease, in accordance with the aesthetics of sentimentalism characteristic of Borovykovskyi. Particular attention is paid to the face: subtle hatching and delicate play of half-shadows allow us to feel the inner world of the model, not ceremonial, but intimate and contemplative. Overall, this series of pencil drawings demonstrates the author's profound knowledge of the traditions of European and Ukrainian portrait art, as well as the purposefulness of his research method. Such drawings were obviously not mechanical copies, but rather exercises in mastering stylistic models, plastic techniques, and ways of interpreting the human image, which could serve as a basis for further individual artistic decisions.

From left to right: "From Levytskyi"; "3/8 62"; "From Levytskyi"; "3/8 62"; "From Mierevelt"; "2/8 62"; Yulian Zaiats' signature; "From Borovykovskyi"; "4/8 62".

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery