Portrait of A.V.Balashova and her daughter is a 1907 portrait by the Russian artist Victor Stember.
The family of the artist viewed this delightful painting on our visit to Russia in 2006. It is beautifully displayed in the restored Royal family quarters of the Czar in the Hermitage.
The Hermitage identifies the sitters as Alexandra Vasilievna Balashova, née Gendrikova (1882-1919), and her daughter Sofia. Alexandra Vasilievna appears to have been the elder sister of Countess Anastasia Hendrikova, the Empress Alexandra's lady-in-waiting, who was murdered by the Bolsheviks at Perm in September 1918.1 The reference number there is #1396 and is listed under the artist Shtemberg, an alternate to Stember. The painting measures 130.5 x 107.5 cm and entered the Hermitage in 1946 from the Museum of Ethnography of the Peoples of the USSR (inventory ЭРЖ-1396).
The painting was featured in Victor Stember's Jubilee celebration of 25 years of being a painter. See photo #2 in the Photo gallery.
1 Unconfirmed. Her maiden name and dates fit the family of Count Vasily Alexandrovich Gendrikov, whose daughter Anastasia (1887-1918) served the Empress. No document naming Alexandra Vasilievna as Anastasia's sister has been found yet. Sources: Hermitage digital-collection record 168516 and Wikidata Q21727842 for the sitter, and standard accounts of the Gendrikov family for Anastasia.
This Work Appears In
- Studio photograph 2 : Before the arrival of guests for the 25th Anniversary Celebration, the artist Stember enjo
- Studio photograph 68 : This lovely portrait hangs in the family quarters area of the Hermitage Museum in St. Pete
Do you have information about this portrait, such as its location, provenance, or a better photograph? Please contact the family.