Top 10 biggest paintings in the world

“Great is seen from a distance” is a line from a poem by Sergei Yesenin, which has long become winged. The poet spoke of love, but the same words can be applied to the description of the paintings. There are many art paintings in the world that impress with their size. It is better to admire them from afar.

Artists have been creating such masterpieces for years. Thousands of sketches were drawn, a huge amount of consumables was spent. For large paintings, special rooms are created.

But the record holders are constantly changing, many artists want to capture their name at least in this way. For others, it is an opportunity to emphasize the significance of an event or phenomenon.

If you are interested in art or love everything outstanding, you will definitely like our ranking of the largest paintings in the world.

10 “The Birth of Venus”, Sandro Botticelli, 1,7 x 2,8 m

This masterpiece is kept in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Botticelli began work on the canvas in 1482 and finished in 1486. “Birth of Venus” became the first large painting of the Renaissance, dedicated to ancient mythology.

The main character of the canvas is standing in the sink. She symbolizes femininity and love. Her pose exactly copies the famous ancient Roman statue. Botticelli was an educated man and understood that connoisseurs would appreciate this technique.

The painting also depicts Zephyr (the west wind) along with his wife and the goddess of spring.

The picture gives the audience a sense of calm, balance, harmony. Elegance, sophistication, conciseness – the main characteristics of the canvas.

9. “Among the waves”, Ivan Aivazovsky, 2,8 x 4,3 m

The painting was created in 1898 in record time – only 10 days. Considering that at that time Ivan Konstantinovich was 80 years old, this is fantastically fast. The idea came to him unexpectedly, he just decided to paint a big picture on the marine theme. This is his favorite “brainchild”. Aivazovsky bequeathed “Among the Waves” to his beloved city – Feodosia. She is still there, in the art gallery.

On the canvas there is nothing but a raging element. To create a stormy sea, a wide range of colors was used. Iridescent light, deep and rich tones. Aivazovsky managed to do the impossible – to depict water in such a way that it seems to be moving, alive.

8. Bogatyrs, Viktor Vasnetsov, 3 x 4,5 m

You can admire this painting in the Tretyakov Gallery. Vasnetsov worked on it for two decades. Immediately after the completion of the work, the canvas was acquired by Tretyakov.

The idea of ​​​​creation was born unexpectedly. Viktor Mikhailovich decided to perpetuate the vast Russian expanses and heroes who stand guard over peace. They look around and notice if there is an enemy nearby. Bogatyri – a symbol of the strength and power of the Russian people.

7. Night Watch, Rembrandt, 3,6 x 4,4 m

The exhibit is in the Rijksmuseum Art Museum in Amsterdam. There is a separate room for him. Rembrandt painted the painting in 1642. At that time, she was the most famous and largest in Dutch painting.

The image is militant – people with weapons. The viewer does not know where they are going, to the war or to the parade. Personalities are not fictional, they all existed in reality.

“The night Watch” – a group portrait, which people close to art consider strange. The fact is that all the requirements for the portrait genre are violated here. And since the picture was written to order, the buyer of Rembrandt was dissatisfied.

6. “The Appearance of Christ to the People”, Alexander Ivanov, 5,4 x 7,5 m

The painting is in the Tretyakov Gallery. It is currently the largest. A separate hall was built especially for this canvas.

Alexander Andreevich wrote “The Appearance of Christ to the People” 20 years. In 1858, after the death of the artist, it was bought by Alexander II.

This painting is an immortal masterpiece. It depicts an event from the Gospel. John the Baptist baptizes people on the banks of the Jordan River. Suddenly they all notice that Jesus himself is approaching them. The artist uses an interesting method – the content of the picture is revealed through the reaction of people to the appearance of Christ.

5. “Appeal of Minin to the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod”, Konstantin Makovsky, 7 x 6 m

The painting is stored in the Nizhny Novgorod Art Museum. The largest easel canvas in our country. Makovsky wrote it in 1896.

At the heart of the picture are the events of the Time of Troubles. Kuzma Minin calls on the people to make a donation and help in the liberation of the country from the Poles.

History of creation “Appeal of Minin to the Nizhny Novgorod” quite interesting. Makovsky was so struck by Repin’s painting “The Cossacks writing a letter to the Turkish Sultan” that he decided to create an equally significant masterpiece. He achieved a high result, and now the canvas has a serious cultural significance.

4. “Marriage in Cana of Galilee”, Paolo Veronese, 6,7 x 10 m

The exhibit is in the Louvre. The plot of the picture was an event from the Gospel. Veronese painted it in 1562-1563 by order of the Benedictines of the monastery church of San Giorgio Maggiore (Venice).

“Marriage in Cana of Galilee” is a free interpretation of the biblical story. These are luxurious architectural scenery, which could not be in a Galilean village, and people depicted in costumes from different eras. Paolo was not at all embarrassed by such a discrepancy. The main thing that he cared about was beauty.

During the Napoleonic Wars, the painting was taken from Italy to France. To this day, an organization that protects the cultural heritage of Italy is trying to achieve the return of the canvas to its homeland. This is unlikely to be done, legally the picture belongs to France.

3. “Paradise”, Tintoretto, 7 x 22 m

“Paradise” called the crowning art of Tintoretto. He painted it for the Doge’s Palace in Venice. This order was to receive Veronese. After his death, the honor of decorating the end wall of the Great Council fell to Tintoretto. The artist was happy and grateful to fate that at the dawn of his life he received such a gift. At that time, the master was 70 years old. He worked on the painting for 10 years.

This is the largest oil painting in the world.

2. “Journey of Humanity”, Sasha Jafri, 50 x 30 m

The picture was painted by our contemporary. Sasha Jafri is a British artist. “Journey of Mankind” he wrote in 2021. The dimensions of the painting are comparable to the area of ​​two football fields.

Work on the canvas was carried out in a hotel in Dubai for seven months. When creating it, Sasha used drawings of children from 140 countries of the world.

The picture was created with good intentions. Jafri was going to divide it into 70 parts and sell them at auctions. He was going to donate the money to a children’s fund. As a result, the picture was not cut, it was purchased by Andre Abdoun. He paid $62 million for it.

1. “Wave”, Dzhuro Shiroglavich, 6 m x 500 m

This picture is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. Dzhuro Shiroglavic wrote it in 2007. The goal is obvious – setting a world record. Indeed, the dimensions are impressive. Have you ever seen a 6 km long painting? 2,5 tons of paint, 13 thousand m². But what to do with her? It cannot be hung in the gallery, even the creation of a separate hall here is pointless.

However, the artist does not want to be “Wave” was gathering dust and was unclaimed. He decided to divide it into parts and sell it at auction. Dzhuro donated the proceeds to a charitable foundation that provides assistance to children who disappeared during the war on the Balkan Peninsula.