Poster by Sergei Veprev for Tatiana Day, based on a painting by Ghirlandaio
Tatiana Day is a russian religious holiday, also celebrated in Ukraine and Belarus, and observed on January 25. It is devoted to Saint Tatiana, patron saint of students, and is so popular that Anton Chekhov wrote in 1885 "This year everything was drunk, except the water from the Moscow river, and only because it was frozen". It marks the end of the school year and is a russian version of the american Spring Break.
Detail from a painting by Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1488
The painting is a portrait of Giovanna Tornabuoni, a 20 year old noblewoman from Florence, Italy. She died in childbirth the same year the painting was made. In the inscription in the background the painter apologizes that "he is not able to do full justice to her character and soul, otherwise it would be the most beautiful painting on earth".
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