What's the difference between a castle and a palace?
If St. Michael's Castle is any indicator, a castle is like a palace's little brother-- still just as ritzy, but just slightly smaller. (It's especially interesting to go into a castle directly after going through a palace; the experience was generally a cause for much soul-searching, as I was always standing there, thinking, "So, wait... How is this different, again?")
I really liked going through this castle, not only because of the fact that it was big, beautiful, and littered with shiny statues (I like shiny statues), but also due to the fact that it actually helped me somewhat solidify my understanding of Russian history. (I'm taking Russian History at the moment, and while I'm normally hopelessly lost in class, what little I DO understand is popping up in my head whenever I see things having to do with the class, especially when there's an entire hallway filled with nothing but portraits of Russian tsars and tsarinas. Quite helpful.)
Keep in mind that castles are smaller than palaces to begin with-- so that, combined with the fact that half of the castle is off-limits for civilians and non-governmental employees means that there is very little space.
However, these people KNOW how to utilize that space.
From the corridor filled with pictures of tsars and tsarinas (shown above), to the corridor filled with amazing tapestries, the upstairs portion of this museum is just glorious. Wrapping my mind around the fact that the tsar lived in places like these always makes my head hurt; and adding works of art that are probably worth more than the entirety of my education (both now and projected), all the houses that my family lives in, and my entire lifetime's estimated (projected) income certainly adds to the "wow" factor.
Then there's the downstairs. (Cue my transformation from culturally informed young adult to hyperactive and overenthusiastic kid in a candy shop.)
Downstairs, they have a MASSIVE collection of statues. I'm not just talking about the main room that you walk into, where statues line all of the walls; there's even a collection of statues sitting on shelves in the middle of (what I'm imagining are temperature-, humidity-, and pressure-controlled) glass panels.
The last part of the museum was the one in which I wanted to take the most pictures. It was also the one in which I took the fewest.
When looking at the photo album, there is one massively important thing to keep in mind: the creators of all of these art pieces were at the very least 9, and at the very most 16 years old.
How is that impressive? Well, let's see:
Now, maybe this is just me, but seeing THIS and thinking of how old these kids are makes me sit back and go, "Huh. Well, now my life feels hugely unproductive." I mean, come on-- a ten year old made an entire nature scene entirely out of leaves. LEAVES. This kid, whoever they are, have a million times more dedication, patience, artistic talent, and access to leaves than I ever have, or ever will.
Overall, this museum is great-- students get in for free (oh yes!), photography is rather cheap, and everything is thought provoking, whether seeing glimpses from the lives of the tsars (through portraits and walking through the castle) or admiring the works of Russia's future artists. And with its prime location, St. Michael's castle is delightfully easy to get to-- it's on the other side of the street from the Summer Garden, near Mikhailovsky Park (hmm, wonder where that name could have come from), a ten to fifteen minute walk away from the Church of the Spilled Blood, ridiculously close to the Russian Museum... I could continue, but I think that in this case, overkill is overrated. As long as you're in the area, you would be served well to visit this Museum. I promise, you won't regret it.
If St. Michael's Castle is any indicator, a castle is like a palace's little brother-- still just as ritzy, but just slightly smaller. (It's especially interesting to go into a castle directly after going through a palace; the experience was generally a cause for much soul-searching, as I was always standing there, thinking, "So, wait... How is this different, again?")
I really liked going through this castle, not only because of the fact that it was big, beautiful, and littered with shiny statues (I like shiny statues), but also due to the fact that it actually helped me somewhat solidify my understanding of Russian history. (I'm taking Russian History at the moment, and while I'm normally hopelessly lost in class, what little I DO understand is popping up in my head whenever I see things having to do with the class, especially when there's an entire hallway filled with nothing but portraits of Russian tsars and tsarinas. Quite helpful.)
 |
| You knew there was a ceiling shot coming at some point-- I am the photographer of ceilings, after all. |
However, these people KNOW how to utilize that space.
From the corridor filled with pictures of tsars and tsarinas (shown above), to the corridor filled with amazing tapestries, the upstairs portion of this museum is just glorious. Wrapping my mind around the fact that the tsar lived in places like these always makes my head hurt; and adding works of art that are probably worth more than the entirety of my education (both now and projected), all the houses that my family lives in, and my entire lifetime's estimated (projected) income certainly adds to the "wow" factor.
Then there's the downstairs. (Cue my transformation from culturally informed young adult to hyperactive and overenthusiastic kid in a candy shop.)
Downstairs, they have a MASSIVE collection of statues. I'm not just talking about the main room that you walk into, where statues line all of the walls; there's even a collection of statues sitting on shelves in the middle of (what I'm imagining are temperature-, humidity-, and pressure-controlled) glass panels.
The last part of the museum was the one in which I wanted to take the most pictures. It was also the one in which I took the fewest.
When looking at the photo album, there is one massively important thing to keep in mind: the creators of all of these art pieces were at the very least 9, and at the very most 16 years old.
How is that impressive? Well, let's see:
Now, maybe this is just me, but seeing THIS and thinking of how old these kids are makes me sit back and go, "Huh. Well, now my life feels hugely unproductive." I mean, come on-- a ten year old made an entire nature scene entirely out of leaves. LEAVES. This kid, whoever they are, have a million times more dedication, patience, artistic talent, and access to leaves than I ever have, or ever will.
Overall, this museum is great-- students get in for free (oh yes!), photography is rather cheap, and everything is thought provoking, whether seeing glimpses from the lives of the tsars (through portraits and walking through the castle) or admiring the works of Russia's future artists. And with its prime location, St. Michael's castle is delightfully easy to get to-- it's on the other side of the street from the Summer Garden, near Mikhailovsky Park (hmm, wonder where that name could have come from), a ten to fifteen minute walk away from the Church of the Spilled Blood, ridiculously close to the Russian Museum... I could continue, but I think that in this case, overkill is overrated. As long as you're in the area, you would be served well to visit this Museum. I promise, you won't regret it.
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| St. Michael's Castle |
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