
View of the New Hermitage building from Millionnaya Street
Luigi Premazzi
1861
Watercolour
View of the New Hermitage building from Millionnaya Street
Photo 2022
Premazzi produced this exterior view of the New Hermitage in 1861 after the completion of all the work on the set. The Imperial Museum is placed centrally in this watercolour. Its main façade runs along Millionaya Street and is emphasized by a portico supported by ten magnificent atlantes, carved in grey granite by Alexander Terebenev. Visible behind the new museum building are the Small Hermitage and the Winter Palace.
The artist has placed his depiction of the New Hermitage in a real-life cityscape executed in the manner of Italian vedute. He introduces into the composition the figures of citizens out for a stroll on a pleasant day, like the carriages, coaches and carts rattling over the cobbled roadway, they bring a lively breath of spring to the view of the street. The bright, warm, resonant range of colours, founded on contrasts, fills the artist's work with abundant sunshine.