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Student Artwork Guide

Pieta

Mikhail Vrubel, 1884

Name Class Date
Mikhail Vrubel, Pieta (1884). Public domain. See this canvas under a moving light: the drawing, the true colour under the varnish, the bare pigment

The facts

Artist
Mikhail Vrubel topimpressionists.com/en/artists/mikhail-vrubel/
Artist’s dates
1856 – 1910
Painted
1884
Movement
Symbolism Pictures where objects stand for ideas — a flower or a door meaning something beyond itself.

Copyright This work is in the public domain. Mikhail Vrubel died in 1910; copyright lasts 70 years after the artist’s death, so it ended in 1980.

Source: TopImpressionists.com — accessed Sept. 24, 2026

Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel Part 1 · The artwork

In context

Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel

When was this painted?

  1. 1850
  2. 1860
  3. 1870
  4. 1880
  5. 1890
  6. 1900
  7. 1910

Row above: the years. Row below: how old the artist was at the start and at the end of each span — 0 at birth, 54 at death.

Painted when the artist was 28. The artist lived to 54. 11 of the 137 dated works by this artist in our catalogue came earlier.

Shaded: the lifetime of Mikhail Vrubel (1856–1910) ▲ this work, 1884 every dated painting, decade by decade

First works: up to 1886 Main working years: 1886–1900 Late works: from 1900

Those three bands split the works this catalogue has a date for into a first quarter, a middle half and a last quarter. They are not the artist’s complete output: a thin stretch may be a gap in the record rather than a quiet spell. The same years with the artist’s life laid along them

Compare with

Pick one work above: name two things it shares with this one, and one thing that's different.

More works to set beside this one: topimpressionists.com/en/art/similar/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/

Colours

Measured from the image

    Main colour

    Driftwood #a18665

    Catalogued palette

    • #A18665
    • #4B321D
    • #2E6280
    • #765F43

    These colours inside the artist’s whole palette Find other paintings by colour

    Palette
    Earthy The dominant colour family in the image.
    Main colour name
    Driftwood
    Intensity
    Balanced How saturated and varied the colours are, from a single toned-down hue to many bright ones.
    Contrast
    Gentle How much the colours differ in lightness and saturation across the picture.
    Harmony
    Strong Color Unity How well the colours work together, from clashing to fully unified.
    Brightness
    Balanced How light or dark the picture reads overall, from deep shadow to bright highlight.
    Saturation
    Balanced Soft How pure and strong the colours are, from near-grey to fully vivid.

    Where in the world is this painting looked at?

    • under 1%
    • 1–3%
    • 3–8%
    • 8–20%
    • 20% and over
    This painting alone has too few recorded visitors to map, so the plate reads every work by Mikhail Vrubel over the last twelve months — 12 countries in all. Where these figures come from

    The ten leading countries

    1. 1 China 54.5%
    2. 2 Portugal 7.6%
    3. 3 United States of America 6.1%
    4. 4 Germany 4.5%
    5. 5 Greece 4.5%
    6. 6 Poland 4.5%
    7. 7 Slovakia 4.5%
    8. 8 Georgia 3.0%
    9. 9 Italy 3.0%
    10. 10 Papua New Guinea 3.0%
    11. · 2 other countries 4.8%

    Find the three darkest countries on the map. Is the museum that keeps this painting in any of them? Write down one reason people far away might look at it.

    The 20 most looked-at works by Mikhail Vrubel

    1. 1 The Seated Demon 16.5%
    2. 2 Seated Deamon, 1890 7.1%
    3. 3 Swan-Princess, 1904 4.7%
    4. 4 Pieta, 1884 this painting 4.7%
    5. 5 Duel of Pechorin and Grushnitsky, 1891 3.5%
    6. 6 Flight of Faust and Mephisto, 1886 3.5%
    7. 7 The Judgement of Paris, 1893 3.5%
    8. 8 Sadko, 1899 3.5%
    9. 9 The Six Winged Seraph, 1904 2.4%
    10. 10 Red Azaleas, 1886 2.4%
    11. 11 Walking on Water, 1891 2.4%
    12. 12 Valkyr, 1899 2.4%
    13. 13 Princess Volhova, 1900 2.4%
    14. 14 Playing naiads and tritons, 1897 2.4%
    15. 15 Demon by the walls of monastery, 1891 2.4%
    16. 16 Hamlet and Ophelia, 1883 1.2%
    17. 17 Persian Prince, 1886 1.2%
    18. 18 Spring, 1900 1.2%
    19. 19 The Six Winged Seraph, 1905 1.2%
    20. 20 Swan, 1901 1.2%

    Together these works take 69.8% of all the attention this artist's paintings received over the last twelve months. The catalogue holds 204 works by this artist, of which 46 were looked at at least once. This painting ranks 4 of them, with 4.7% of that attention. The same counts, month by month

    Bars measure attention, not quality. Pick the work at the top and this one: name one thing that might make a painting famous beyond how well it is painted.

    Source: TopImpressionists.com — accessed Sept. 24, 2026

    Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel Part 2 · In context

    Artist and museum

    Artist

    Mikhail Vrubel

    Born in Omsk, Russia

    early life and education

    mikhail aleksandrovich vrubel, a renowned russian painter, was born on march 17, 1856, in omsk, russia. his family's noble heritage and his father's military career influenced vrubel's early life. despite graduating from the faculty of law at st petersburg university in 1880, vrubel's true passion lay in art. he entered the imperial academy of arts, studying under pavel chistyakov, where he exhibited exceptional talent for drawing and an idiosyncratic style.

    artistic career

    vrubel's artistic journey was marked by his unique blend of symbolism and art nouveau. in 1884, he was commissioned to recreate the lost 12th-century murals and mosaics in the st. cyril's church of kiev. this project led him to study medieval christian art in venice, resulting in a palette of strong, saturated tones reminiscent of precious stones.

    seated demon (1890), a large painting that brought vrubel notoriety, was praised by art patron savva mamontov as "fascinating symphonies of a genius."

    his work on the hotel "metropol" in moscow, particularly the mosaic panel princess of dream, showcased his mastery of applied arts.

    vrubel's interest in oriental arts and persian carpets influenced his texture imitations in paintings like the demon downcast (1901).

    notable works and collaborations

    * mikhail vrubel's collaboration with opera singer nadezhda zabela led to his design of stage sets and costumes for her performances in mamontov's private opera theatre. * his acclaimed pieces, such as pan (1899), the swan princess (1900), and lilacs (1900), showcased his talent for russian fairy tales.

    legacy and later life

    vrubel's mental illness, complicated by tertiary syphilis, led to a severe nervous breakdown in 1906. he ceased painting and eventually passed away on april 14, 1910. despite his untimely end, vrubel's contributions to russian symbolism and art nouveau remain unparalleled. explore more of mikhail vrubel's works on AllPaintingsStore: mikhail vrubel | 204 artworks the socialist realism art movement (for context on the broader art movement in russia) * alfred roller (another artist who, like vrubel, was part of the vienna secession)

    Where to read more

    Find this online

    QR code linking to the download page for Pieta

    topimpressionists.com/en/art/download/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/

    Cite this artwork

    MLA
    Vrubel, Mikhail. Pieta. 1884, https://topimpressionists.com/en/art/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/
    APA
    Vrubel, Mikhail (1884). Pieta [Painting]. https://topimpressionists.com/en/art/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/
    Chicago
    Mikhail Vrubel. Pieta. 1884. https://topimpressionists.com/en/art/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/
    Harvard
    Vrubel, Mikhail (1884) Pieta. Available at: https://topimpressionists.com/en/art/mikhail-vrubel-pieta-8XYKP4-en/

    Source: TopImpressionists.com — accessed Sept. 24, 2026

    Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel Part 3 · Artist and museum

    Look closely

    Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel

    Look closely

    Answer in your own words. There are no wrong answers here — only answers you can explain.

    1. What catches your eye first, and why?
    2. Which colours or shapes create the mood — and what is that mood?
    3. Our catalogue files this work under: religious iconography, suffering and grief, mary and jesus. Do you agree? What would you add, or take away?
    4. Look back at Swan-Princess (1904), earlier in this guide. Name two things it shares with this work, and one that is different.
    5. Symbolism: Pictures where objects stand for ideas — a flower or a door meaning something beyond itself. Where can you see that in this work?

    Your response

    Write a short paragraph about this artwork. Use the facts from the earlier parts of this guide, and your answers above.

    Source: TopImpressionists.com — accessed Sept. 24, 2026

    Pieta — Mikhail Vrubel Part 4 · Look closely

    Questions & Answers

    What color harmony does "Pieta" by Mikhail Vrubel display?

    The colors of "Pieta" by Mikhail Vrubel show a strong color unity harmony. Harmony describes how the colors relate to each other.

    Does "Pieta" by Mikhail Vrubel use strong contrasts or soft harmonies?

    The color analysis of "Pieta" by Mikhail Vrubel records a gentle contrast and a strong color unity harmony.

    From which country does the Symbolism work "Pieta" come?

    The Symbolism work "Pieta" was made by an artist born in Russia.