Roerich Art School

Categories / Science. Education/Educational Institutions
ROERICH ART SCHOOL (88/2 Grazhdansky Avenue) is a special secondary school: it is the oldest art school in Russia. It shares its history with the Auditors Drawing School that was opened by the Ministry of Finances in the Custom House (2 Birzhevaya Square, 2) in 1839. Its founder and director was a member of the Academy of Sciences K. Kh. Reissig. In 1858, the school was given to the Society of Arts Assistance. In 1878, it moved into a new building (38 Bolshaya Morskaya Street) where its curator was D.V. Grigorovich. Its director from 1906 to 1918 was N.K. Roerich. The arts and crafts preparatory school’s teachers include A.I. Charlemagne, I.Y. Bilibin, L.N. Benois, P.P. Chistyakov, I.N. Kramskoy et al.; its pupils include F.A. Vasilyev, M.A. Vrubel, V.V. Vereshchagin, M.V. Dobuzhinsky, I.E. Repin, K.A. Somov. In 1918, the school was closed and in 1921 the Crafts Technical School was opened instead, which moved to the Foundry Yard of Academy of Arts in 1927 (2, the 3d Line of Vasilievsky Island). In 1932, the Artistic Pedagogical School was created on the basis of its pedagogy department (19 Obvodny Canal Embankment). In 1934, it merged with the Shablovsky Art School-Workshop (Shablovsky was its director until 1950) and transformed to the Art Pedagogue Technical School (from 1937 it was the Art Pedagogue School and from 1945 the Art School), which prepared general drawing teachers; situated at 35 Tavricheskaya Street. Studies were not interrupted even during the Siege of 1941-44). The school moved to 5 Proletarskoy Diktatury Street in 1961. Since 1989, it has been situated at its present-day address. In 1968, it was named after V.A. Serov, and in 1992 it was renamed after Roerich. It has the faculties of painting and pedagogic, design, sculpture and restoration, at which over 360 people studied and 62 pedagogues taught in 2001.

Reference: Художественное училище имени Николая Рёриха: Страницы истории / Авт.-сост. Э. М. Романовская. СПб., 2001.

S. V. Boglachev. Benois Leonty Nikolaevich
Bilibin Ivan Yakovlevich
Charlemagne Adolf Iosifovich
Chistyakov Pavel Petrovich
Dobuzhinsky Mstislav Valerianovich
Grigorovich Dmitry Vasilievich
Kramskoy Ivan Nikolaevich
Reissig Kornily Khristianovich
Repin Ilya Efimovich
Roerich Nikolay Konstantinovich
Serov Vladimir Alexandrovich
Shablovsky Yan Konstantinovich
Somov Konstantin Andreevich
Vasilyev Fedor Alexandrovich
Vereschagin Vasily Vasilievich
Vrubel Mikhail Alexandrovich
3d Line of Vasilievsky Island/Saint Petersburg, city, house 2
Birzhevaya Square/Saint Petersburg, city, house 2
Bolshaya Morskaya St./Saint Petersburg, city, house 38
Grazhdansky Ave/Saint Petersburg, city, house 88, litera корп. 2
Obvodny Canal Embankment/Saint Petersburg, city, house 19
Proletarskoy Diktatury St./Saint Petersburg, city, house 5
Tavricheskaya St./Saint Petersburg, city, house 35
Художественное училище имени Николая Рериха: Страницы истории / Авт-сост. Э. М. Романовская. СПб., 2001. Foundry Yard
Siege of 1941-44