EKATERINA PAVLOVNA BAKUNINA FROM THE MIDDLETON WATERCOLOR ALBUM

Creator(s): Petr Fedorovich Sokolov (After)

Currently in storage

About this object

As a child, Ekaterina Pavlovna Bakunina (1795-1869) traveled a great deal with her parents, diplomat Pavel Petrovich Bakunin (1766-1805) and Ekaterina Alexandrovna Sablukova (1777-1846); first to Germany, then Switzerland, and finally, England. In 1804, the family returned to Russia. After the death of her father, Ekaterina and her family moved in with their Sablukov relatives. During the 1810s, Ekaterina’s brother Alexander attended the famous Tsarskoe Selo Lyceum, where Alexander Pushkin was also a student. This is how Ekaterina met Pushkin and became one of his first loves. In 1817, Ekaterina became a lady-in-waiting to Empress Elisabeth Alexeevna. She was part of her close suite. The Middletons, especially the young daughters, were part of the Sablukov and Bakunin families’ circles and attended many events hosted by them. Ekaterina became friends with the poet Vasily Zhukovsky (1783-1852) and took art lessons from the artist Alexander Briullov. She became a talented painter and copied many works, especially portraits. The Middleton sisters sat for her, among others. Ekaterina was portrayed by famous Russian painters such as Orest Kiprensky and Petr Sokolov, including in a drawing from 1816 and a work dated 1828. The latter, now in the State Literature Museum in St. Petersburg, served as a model for the Middleton Album portrait. Sokolov portrayed her again in the early 1830s, probably in 1834, when she married Alexander Alexandrovich Poltaratsky (1792-1855).

The half-length portrait depicts Ekaterina Pavlovna Bakunina facing partly left, eyes looking slightly left, against a background of light grey clouds. Her dark hair is elaborately styled in an Apollo knot. She wears a white transparent veil over a pink dress with a bow and white trim along the neckline. Her only jewelry is a pair of gold girandole earrings.

Object name:

EKATERINA PAVLOVNA BAKUNINA FROM THE MIDDLETON WATERCOLOR ALBUM

Made from:

Watercolor on paper

Date made:

1828-1834

Size:

H. 7 in., W. 5 1/8 in.

Detailed information for this item

Catalog number:

52.39.37

Signature marks:

Inscription Melle de Bacounin Dem'elle d'Honneur a présent Mme de Paltoratsky Bottom of page In cursive

Credit line:

Museum Purchase, 2004