Oleg Torbosov's lecture "Mecenaty" (Patrons of the Arts) in Dubai

Mecenaty: The Patrons Who Changed Russian Art
A lecture by Oleg Torbosov at TODA

Some people collected art. Others changed a whole culture. In this lecture, Oleg Torbosov tells the stories of three Moscow merchants whose passion shaped Russian art, surrounded by TODA's 360° projections.

Pavel Tretyakov started buying paintings at 24 and spent the next forty years building one of the world's great art collections. He hunted for masterpieces, competed with Emperor Alexander III for the best Russian canvases, and in the end gave his gallery to Moscow.

Savva Mamontov, the railway tycoon, turned his Abramtsevo estate into a home for Russian art, hosting Repin, Vasnetsov, Serov and Vrubel. He founded theatres, discovered talent and spent fortunes on art, until the man they called "Savva the Magnificent" was arrested and lost almost everything.

Sergei Shchukin was thought mad by his contemporaries for buying Matisse, Picasso, Monet and Gauguin when the public laughed at them. A century later, his collection is recognised as one of the greatest of modern art.

A lively evening about art, fortunes, family dramas and great discoveries, with visuals created with the help of AI to bring the era to life around you.