Paintings for Russian Royalty Exhibit Shows How Women Artists Contributed to Imperial Collection by Heather Nalbone ìAn Imperial Collection: Women Artists From the State Hermitage Museum,î now on display at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, is more a commentary on Russian aristocracy than it is about art. Before Soviet ballet and cultural centers, and long before St. Petersburg became Leningrad, there was a time when all art considered great in Russia actually came from outside the country. Nowhere is this more evident than in the works collected by Catherine the Great, 49 of which are on loan from the State Hermitage Museum for this exhibit, which examines how women patrons and painters contributed to the Russian imperial, social and cultural makeup. Every painting, sculpture and watercolor here was originally commissioned for Russian royalty. Few, however, were created by Russian artists. Scottish native Christina Robertson, for instance, was the painter of choice for life-size portraits ordered to hang in the Winter Palace. French sculptor Marie-Anne Col lot was a personal favorite of Catherine the Great, who showered the artist with gifts and paid large sums for her works. Russian royalty also coveted artistsí works from Switzerland, Italy, Denmark and other Western European countries. These pieces would become collectorsí items and would later be revered throughout Russia. Finding fashionable artists to help produce flattering displays, according to an informational description compiled by the museum, was ìessential to establishing and maintaining prestige and reputation on the international stage.î By todayís standards, there isnít anything particularly spectacular in these paintings and watercolors. Most are portraits, although there are a handful of still lifes and mythological portrayals. The largest paintings feature prominent womenólots of themóin flowing gowns and precious jewels. Creativity seemingly took a backseat to prestige and the high commissions that reputable artists could reap from princes, duchesses, empresses and noblewomen back when portraiture was a symbol of modernity and power. What the paintings and sculptures lack in extravagance, however, is made up for in the progressive stories of the artists behind them. Anna Dorothea Therbusch-Lisiewska abandoned her mother-in-lawís demands for eternal homemaking to pursue a career in painting. The popularity of Collotís sculpturesówhich began when her marble portrayal of Peter the Great was favored over that of her mentor, Etienne-Maurice Falconetómade her the first female member of St. Petersburgís Imperial Academy of Arts. Angelica Kauffman not only gained success by painting mythological and historical subject matter otherwise left to male artists, she also had her husband working as her administrator. It was these works that rapidly came to symbolize Russiaís cultural status and prosperity. Catherineís eminent collection, initially amassed as a personal refuge, included more than 14,000 paintings and drawings and surpassed a number of collections in Western Europe. But for all of Russiaís significance as a cultural icon and major power under Catherine the Great, her collection bears a bit of irony: It wouldnít be until the late 19th century that Russian women would have career opportunities comparable to their Western counterparts. ìAn Imperial Collection: Women Artists From the State Hermitage Museumî runs through June 18 at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, 1250 New York Ave., NW. For more information, please call (202) 783-5000 or visit www.nmwa.org. Heather Nalbone is a freelance writer in Silver Spring, Md.