Moscow Tretyakov Gallery

One of the most popular Moscow attractions and museums for both local Moscow residents and foreign visitors is the Tretyakov Gallery which was first opened by Pavel Tretyakov in 1856 and was later donated to the city of Moscow. This Moscow attraction houses a large selection of painting from both famous Russian artists as well as foreign artists.

The Tretyakov Gallery is open daily except on Monday from 10:00 until 19:30.

The gallery's history starts in 1856 when the Moscow merchant Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov (1832-98) acquired works by Russian artists of his day with the aim of creating à collection, which might later grow into à museum of national art. In 1892, Tretyakov presented his already famous collection to the Russian nation.

The gallery building was designed by the painter Viktor Vasnetsov in a peculiar Russian fairy-tale style. It was built in 1902-04 to the south from the Moscow Kremlin. During the 20th century, the gallery expanded to several neighbouring buildings, including the 17th-century church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi. A new building, located in the Krymskiy Val, is dedicated to promoting contemporary Russian art.

The collection contains more than 130000 exhibits, ranging from Theotokos of Vladimir and Andrei Rublev's Trinity to the monumental Composition VII by Wassily Kandinsky and the Black Square of Kazimir Malevich.

Metro (subway): Tretyakovskaya , Novokuznetskaya

tel. 953-5223, 238-2054