Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky was born into the family of a merchant of Armenian origin in the town of Feodosia, Crimea. His parents were under strained circumstances and he spent his childhood in poverty. With the help of people who had noticed the talented youth, he entered the Simpheropol gymnasium, and then the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, where he took the landscape painting course and was especially interested in marine landscapes. In the autumn of 1836 Aivazovsky presented 5 marine pictures to the Academic exhibition, which were highly appreciated.
1835. Oil on canvas. The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
1836. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1837. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1840. Oil on canvas. The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
1840. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1841. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1842. Oil on canvas. The Aivazovsky Art Gallery, Feodosia, Ukraine.
1843. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1844. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1844. Oil on canvas. The Central Naval Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1846. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1846. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1848. Oil on canvas. The Aivazovsky Art Gallery, Feodosia, Ukraine. Read Note.
1848. Oil on canvas. The Aivazovsky Art Gallery, Feodosia, Ukraine. Read Note.
1848. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1848. Oil on canvas. The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
1849. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1850. Oil on canvas. The Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1853. Oil on canvas. The Aivazovsky Art Gallery, Feodosia, Ukraine.
1853. Oil on canvas. Taganrog Art Gallery, Taganrog, Russia.
Ivan Aivazovsky. by N.S. Barsamov. Moscow. 1962. (in Russian)
I. K. Aivazovsky. by L.A. Vagner and N.S. Grigorovich. Moscow. 1970. (in Russian)
Aivazovsky. “Russian Painters” Series. Aurora Art Publishers. Leningrad. 1972.
I.K. Aivazovsky. by V.N. Pilipenko. 1817-1900. Leningfrad. 1980. (in Russian)
Russian Painters. St. Petersburg. 1998. (in Russian)
The Art and Architecture of Russia (Pelican History Art) by George Heard Hamilton. Yale Univ Pr, 1992.
A Dictionary of Russian and Soviet Artists 1420-1970 by John Milner. Antique Collectors' Club, 1993.