This is the lower gallery and because it's a basement room, it's a good place to hang pictures that don't want to see the light – watercolours and pastels and works on paper.
The main theme in this room is a series of pictures that are connected with music in different ways.
At the beginning of the circle round the room, you'll see the sketch of Einstein [1], who's playing his violin. This was made in the period when Leonid was painting his portrait, which you've seen in the Garden Room. Einstein was a keen amateur musician. And he was kept happy sitting for his portrait by Rosalia playing the piano to him, which is something she often did with the formal portraits that her husband was painting. But Einstein also wanted to take part in the musical life of the family, and probably Rosalia was accompanying him while he was playing his violin in this sketch.
On the opposite corner of the room is a large portrait in charcoal of the pianist and composer Rachmaninov [2]. He played quite often in the Pasternak's household, where of course there was a grand piano. [3]
Another musical picture in this room is in the far left-hand corner, and this is the famous Russian operatic bass, Chaliapin[4]. Chaliapin was a close friend of Leonid's. They socialised together frequently[5] [and shared a similar sense of humour]. This sketch was made in Moscow [in 1912]. [Note the tell-tale cowlick!
Leonid and Chaliapin later coincided in Berlin in 1924, when Leonid visited Chaliapin in the Hotel Bristol, and sketched him rehearsing.[6] When Leonid showed Chaliapin the finished sketch, Chaliapin said ‘I can do better than that!’, seized a sheet of the hotel’s headed notepaper, turned it over, dipped a matchstick in the inkwell, and drew his own self-caricature (also with the cowlick) [7], which Leonid kept, of course.
The Pink Room
Einstein, Rachmaninov, and Chaliapin
Make sure your volume is on
This is the lower gallery and because it's a basement room, it's a good place to hang pictures that don't want to see the light, watercolours and pastels and works on paper.
The main theme in this room is a series of pictures that are connected with music in different ways.
At the beginning of the circle round the room, you'll see the sketch of Einstein who's playing his violin. And this was made in the period when Leonid was painting his portrait, which you've seen in the Garden Room. Einstein was a keen amateur musician. And he was kept happy sitting for his portrait by Rosalia playing the piano to him, which is something she often did with the formal portraits that her husband was painting. But he also wanted to take part in the musical life of the family and probably Rosalia was accompanying him while he was playing his violin in this sketch.
On the opposite corner of the room is a large portrait in charcoal of the pianist and composer Rachmaninov. He played quite often in the Pasternak's household where of course there was a grand piano. And on one occasion he was playing and the family were listening, but in the audience there was also Tolstoy listening to the concert.
The other musical picture in this room is in the far left-hand corner, and this is the famous Russian operatic bass singer Chaliapin. Chaliapin was a friend of Leonid's. They socialised together frequently and this sketch was done in 1912.
It seems that both of them coincided in Munich because Leonid visited Chaliapin in his hotel, the Hotel Bristol. And sketched him while he was rehearsing for an opera I suppose, that he was participating in.
And Leonid did this sketch and then showed it to Chaliapin, and he said: 'Oh, you're very good, very good, but I can do better', and seized a sheet of the Hotel note paper and dipped a matchstick in the inkwell, and did a very brief sketch of himself as a round face and a round mouth and a little curly lick of hair at the top, which is characteristic of him and inscribed it to Leonid.
