Vasilii Surikov, 'The Bronze Horseman' (1870)

#Monument to #PeterTheGreat on Senate Square in front of Saint Isaac's #Cathedral, #SaintPetersburg, #Russia

"Pressed to the railings. Darkness filled
His eyes. The prey of passions blazing
Within him, he stood sullenly
Before the royal effigy;
And quivering with fury, raising
His fist, as if compelled by some
Dark force to blind, impulsive action,
He hissed through teeth clenched in distraction:
‘You ... builder of grand schemes! I’ll come
And get you!’ – and then ran off, numb
With terror from a sudden vision:
He thought the fearsome tsar had turned
By slow degrees his face, which burned
With righteous anger and derision..."

#art #Russian #equestrian #statue #french #Falconet #sculpture #tsar #night #snow #winter #moon #poem #Pushkin #Surikov #FullMoon #horse #painting