Finz Rubo

Finz Rubo

Panoramic artist (<Defense of Sevastopol>, "Battle of Borodino>).
Date of Birth: 17.06.1856
Country: France

Content:
  1. Biography of Franz Roubaud
  2. Specialization in Battle Painting and Panoramic Art
  3. Works on the Caucasus Wars
  4. Creation of the Sevastopol Panorama
  5. Other Notable Panoramas
  6. Later Years and Legacy

Biography of Franz Roubaud

Franz Alekseyevich Roubaud was a Russian artist and master of panoramic painting. He was born into a family of French merchants who had settled in Russia. Roubaud studied at the Odessa School of Drawing (1865-1877) and then at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich (1878-1883).

Specialization in Battle Painting and Panoramic Art

Roubaud specialized in battle painting and, like many other battle painters of his time, also turned to the art of wide-angle panoramas. The combination of a painting with a three-dimensional model gave the illusion of a historical event unfolding before the viewer's eyes.

Works on the Caucasus Wars

Upon his return to Russia, Roubaud received a commission from the Tiflis Museum of "The Temple of Glory" to create a series of paintings depicting the history of the Caucasus Wars. In addition to these paintings, created between 1885 and 1895, his extensive studies of the Caucasus resulted in the panorama "The Assault on the Aul of Akhulgogh" (1890). This panorama was first exhibited at the Arts and Crafts Exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod in 1896. However, only fragments of it remain, which are now housed in the local history museum in Makhachkala.

Creation of the Sevastopol Panorama

From 1902 to 1904, under Roubaud's leadership, a group of German artists created the panorama "The Defence of Sevastopol" in the suburbs of Munich. It was opened in 1905 in a specially constructed building in Sevastopol. Although the panorama suffered significant damage during the defense of the city in 1941-1942, it was restored and reopened in 1954.

Other Notable Panoramas

Another famous panorama by Roubaud was "The Battle of Borodino." The work on it was carried out under the participation of I.G. Myasoedov and was opened in 1912 in a special pavilion at Chistye Prudy in Moscow. After extensive restoration, it was recreated in a new building on Kutuzovsky Prospect in 1962. Among Roubaud's characteristic battle paintings are "The Attack of the Novocherkassk Regiment in the Battle on the River Shahe" (1907) and "The Battle of Borodino" (1913), both of which are housed in the Artillery Historical Museum in St. Petersburg.

Later Years and Legacy

In 1903, Roubaud became a professor and head of the battle painting workshop at the Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, where one of his students was M.B. Grekov. In 1912, he permanently settled in Germany. In his later years, Roubaud lived in almost complete obscurity, as he did not receive significant commissions.

© BIOGRAPHS