Had Russia’s leading seascape painter Ivan Aivazovsky lived today, he would probably make a career in Hollywood. The creator of The Ninth Wave and other blockbuster paintings will be featured at Sotheby’s where one of his epic works is up for sale.
The View of Constantinople and the Bosporus, estimated at nearly $3 million, will be the centerpiece of Sotheby’s auction of Orientalist Art later this month.
The masterpiece has been described as a “tour de force in its evocation of light and atmosphere.”
Aivazovsky visited Constantinople in 1845 as part of his duties as official painter to the Russian Admiralty. Completed in 1856, his View celebrates the beauty and dynamism of the busy port, with the Nusretiye Mosque the main focus. The work also depicts an eye-catching blend of Baroque and Islamic architecture.
Aivazovsky’s creations fetch seven-figure prices at auctions across the globe and are much sought-after by art dealers from the UK, France, America and Russia, where the artist is especially loved.