Alexander Ivanov, Three Visitors Announce to Abraham the Birth of Isaac, early 19th century.
Alexander Ivanov was a 19th-century Russian painter from Saint Petersburg. Trained at the Imperial Academy, Ivanov was committed early in his career to an academic, neoclassical style. After he moved to Rome, Ivanov’s style was influenced by a group of Viennese romantic painters called the Nazarenes, who worked predominantly in Rome. The Nazarene group wished to combat neoclassicism, much as did the English Pre-Raphaelites. This sketch with ink or watercolor was a study for a painting. The three pilgrims lounge on the ground before Abraham, sharing a meal. Sarah emerges from a tent, her hands in the air. Abraham, standing in the center of the composition in a black and vermillion robe, and the central pilgrim look expectantly at Sarah.
