Page 1013 - ANNA KARENINA
P. 1013
Anna Karenina
historical, realistic, or genre painting—he set to work to
paint. He appreciated all kinds, and could have felt
inspired by any one of them; but he had no conception of
the possibility of knowing nothing at all of any school of
painting, and of being inspired directly by what is within
the soul, without caring whether what is painted will
belong to any recognized school. Since he knew nothing
of this, and drew his inspiration, not directly from life, but
indirectly from life embodied in art, his inspiration came
very quickly and easily, and as quickly and easily came his
success in painting something very similar to the sort of
painting he was trying to imitate.
More than any other style he liked the French—
graceful and effective—and in that style he began to paint
Anna’s portrait in Italian costume, and the portrait seemed
to him, and to everyone who saw it, extremely successful.
1012 of 1759
