The 19th century was the era of creating the Russian national music. Its forefather was Mikhail Glinka (1804 - 1857). Aspiring to create the national Russian opera, the composer addressed the Russian history of the 17th century, in particular, to the feat of the peasant Ivan Susanin.

The Russian artists who turned to genre painting were V. M. Maksimov (1844-1911), G. G. Myasoyedov (1835-1911), A. I. Korzukhin (1835 - 1894), V. E. Makovsky (1846-1920), and others.

The Itinerants aimed at polygonal display of contemporary life. They took an active part in development of national art schools in Russia. The artists developed all genres of fine arts, especially genre, historical, portrait and landscape painting.

The 1830s and 1840s saw the development of Realism, founded in Russian culture by Alexander Pushkin. In the tragedy Boris Godunov, reviving “the bygone century in all its truth” he depicted “the truth of passions and credibility of feelings in assumed circumstances”.

Portrait painting reached higher heights in the 19th century and was great success. Splendor of portraits of the 18th century gave way to cordiality and sincerity.

The outstanding characteristics of architecture and monumental art were most vividly embodied in creativity of architects A. Voronikhin, A. Zakharov, and Thomas de Tomon.

The 19th century was the epoch of brilliant development of the Russian culture, which played the leading role in the spiritual and ethical development of the Russian society.

In the 18th century notable changes took place in Russian music as well, though they were not as profound as in other art forms.

The 18th century became the heyday of Russian painting. Russian portrait painting grew up to the level of the paragons of European art. Founders of the portrait genre were A.M. Matveyev and I.N. Nikitin. The former painted Self-Portrait with the Wife and portraits of the Golitsyn spouses.

Russian architecture was influenced by the Western culture more than any other spheres. The new capital of Russia - St. Petersburg — was in drastic contrast to Moscow.

The art culture of the 18th century Russia was also going through profound changes. It was becoming more and more secular under the growing influence of the West. By the middle of the 18th century the main European styles, namely Classicism and Baroque took shape in Russia.

The 18th century became the epoch of creating the system of secular education and science, which were practically absent earlier in Russia.

The 18th century became truly earthshaking in the history of Russia. It was the time of radical changes caused by Peter I’s reforms. Peter the Great made a U-turn for Russia towards the West. This turn and its consequences for development of Russia and Russian culture became controversy for scientists and thinkers, from the 19th century till nowadays.

Cultural life of the 17th century as well as public life of that epoch in general was at the crossroads, where “the antiquity and the novelty were mixed together”, according to contemporaries.

A large high relief “Thanks to the Soviet People, the Standard-Bearers of Peace!” by the author of the monuments “Warrior-Liberator” and “The Motherland Calls” Yevgeny Vuchetich was found during the work on the improvement in the Central Pavilion of ENEA (Exhibition of Economic Achievements).

Moscow architecture adopted traditions of Vladimir, Suzdal, Pskov and Novgorod architecture. New status of the city required development of great public buildings.

At the turn of the 16th century the unification of Russian lands was completed and dependence on the Golden Horde khans was gone. There came to be the Russian centralized state which unlike the mononational states of the Western Europe was initially formed as multinational.

The second half of the 14th century marked a new uplift in Russian culture. Russian princes being weakened after many years of the Tatar Mongol yoke and feudal disunity at last started joining forces, which resulted in consolidation of the statehood and gave rise to cultural development.

Corvee and quitrent were the forms of peasants’ political and economic dependence on their feudal lords in the heyday of feudalism and setting of serfdom in Old Russia.

If you're heading to Yusupov Gardens from Sennaya Square, prepare yourself for inevitable ominous atmosphere of Dostoevsky novels: the most "grass-roots" of the central quarters, no matter what was done with it, in fact never changes.