Alexandre Benois's father was Nicholas Benois, a noted Russian architect.
14 Facts About Alexandre Benois
2.
Alexandre Benois's brothers included Albert, a painter, and Leon, a notable architect.
3.
Not planning a career in the arts, Alexandre Benois graduated from the Faculty of Law, Saint Petersburg Imperial University, in 1894.
4.
Three years later while in Versailles, Alexandre Benois painted a series of watercolors depicting Last Promenades of Louis XIV.
5.
Alexandre Benois wrote and published several monographs on 19th-century Russian art and Tsarskoye Selo.
6.
In 1903, Alexandre Benois printed his illustrations to Pushkin's poem The Bronze Horseman, a work since recognized as one of the landmarks in the genre.
7.
In 1901, Alexandre Benois was appointed scenic director of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, the performance space for the Imperial Russian Ballet.
8.
Alexandre Benois moved to Paris in 1905 and thereafter devoted most of his time to stage design and decor.
9.
Alexandre Benois worked primarily as a set designer after settling in France.
10.
In 1894, Alexandre Benois married Anna Karlovna Kind from a renowned Russian music family.
11.
Anna and Alexandre Benois were married for 60 years and are buried together at Batignolles Cemetery in Paris.
12.
Alexandre Benois played a central role in the Russian artistic community both before and after the Revolution.
13.
Alexandre Benois's presence was positively remembered in the artistic circles with several mentions by artist like Mstislav Dobuzhinsky.
14.
Alexandre Benois was a model painted by Leon Bakst, Valentin Serov, Zinaida Serebriakova, and others.