Dear friends! For your attention our next Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Artistic Heritage release dedicated to the wall painting of Sts. Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk Church.

The representation of the Patriarch Jacob was depicted by Ivan Izhakevych both in pencil sketch and on the friso of the Refectory Church in its final version. It is an example of the author’s ability to shift radically psychological focus in the interpretation of the same character. In two versions, black-and-white and color one, Ivan Izhakevych reflected two different states of mind of Jacob: “Existential conflict permeates the whole life of Jacob, giving it a tragic color”. Jacob is depicted in a state of acute internal conflict - in the mortal anxiety of thoughts, feelings, contradictions that cut his soul; overcoming uncertainty and hesitation; filled with courage on the eve of a fateful battle. The artist's pencil skillfully conveys the contrasts of light and shadow. Jacob's eyes become the main psychological key to the character's personality and absorb all the nuances of his experiences.

Ivan Izhakevych highlighted Jacob's personality in a different way with the help of pictorial means. The color and finish of the mural painting largely eliminate the moral contradictions that overcame the soul of Jacob in the drawing version. The gesture of the hands is softened, and at the same time, in the sketch, Jacob's fingers are pressed to the whiteness. There are other psychological nuances in the glance of the prophet. It is enlightenment. Jacob, who fought with God, the heir of the Old Testament forefathers, is depicted in the fresco in the new guise of the patriarch of the people of Israel, chosen by God. He is a man who was able to comprehend both his own transformation and the future renewal of all mankind.

The text was prepared by Olena Pitateleva, the senior research worker

of the Research Division for the Study of Artistic Heritage

Picture captions

Fig. 1. Ivan Izhakevych. Forefather Jacob. The early 20th century. Wall painting of Sts. Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk Church.

Fig. 2. Ivan Izhakevych. Forefather Jacob. The early 20th century. Sketch to the wall painting of Sts. Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk Church.