Ekaterina A. Skvortsova
(St.Petersburg State University, Russia)

The role of J. A. Atkinson in the development of panoramas in Russian art

The article is dedicated to the role of J. A. Atkinson in the development of panoramic views in Russian art. It offers careful scrutiny of the meaning of a term «panorama» and its transformation and an overview of the evolution of the phenomenon in both European and Russian art with an emphasis on the difference between genuine panoramas and what we usually call so now. The author reaches the conclusion, that Atkinson was one of the pioneers of this genre in Russia and the first artist to display a panorama of Russian city in Europe. In the 19th century panoramas were widespread in our country. Up to the end of the 19th century circular panoramas of Russian cities and battles were made by foreigners. The type of moving panorama, however, was adopted by eminent Russian masters.