In the second half of the 19th century, Russian art, under the influence of the progressive ideological trend of revolutionary democracy, formed a strong and progressive artistic trend, such as the establishment of the traveling exhibition school and the talent training of the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. of cultivation.

The outstanding representative of democratic art in the 1960s was Belov. He used the creative method of critical realism to depict the social outlook of Russia after the abolition of serfdom. His representative works include "Easter Religious Procession" (1861), "Funeral" (1865), "Troika" (1866), etc. Belov showed deep concern for the unfortunate lives of the civilian class. Belov graduated from the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, and later became a professor and actual leader of the school. He enjoyed high prestige in the Russian intelligentsia and was known as the "Pope of Moscow."

Traveling Exhibition School: This was the most important progressive art group in the second half of the 19th century. Its official name was the "Traveling Art Exhibition Association", referred to as the Traveling School. At the beginning of the organization's creation, 15 painters signed the association's charter, including Belov, Kramskoy, and Misoedov. Savrasov, Shishkin, Gay and others. In the half century from 1870 to 1923, the Touring School followed the aesthetic ideas of Belinsky, Chernyshevsky and others and held nearly 50 traveling exhibitions throughout Russia. The painters took a democratic stand and reflected people's lives, historical events and the beautiful nature of Russia. Repin, Surikov, Vasnetsov and Serov became the backbone of the Touring School. The famous art critic Stasov (1824-1906) was a strong supporter of the Touring School. The wealthy entrepreneur and art collector Tretyakov (1832-1898) was determined to lay the foundation for a progressive national art gallery almost from the beginning of the activities of the Touring School. In 1892, he donated his entire art collection to his hometown of Moscow. Today, the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow was established based on his donation. Kramskoy (1837-1887) was the organizer and ideological leader of the Touring School. While still studying at the St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts, he became a central figure among the passionate followers of democracy and national art. His early work "Christ in the Wilderness" (1872) expresses the Enlightenment ideas of the Itinerant School. Slightly different from the mainstream of itinerant painting, Kramskoi did not directly depict the phenomenon of social poverty, but instead focused on portraying the psychological world of contemporary people. In his opinion, art should reflect ideas, so many of his paintings were inspired by literary works. His representative works include "Moonlight Night" (1880), "Unknown Girl" (1883), "Grief" (1884), etc.

The genre paintings of the Itinerant School: While accepting the revealing tradition of past painters, the Itinerant School deepened and broadened the theme. They shifted from expressing social conflicts between individual oppressors and oppressed individuals to expressing conflicts between entire classes. For example, Misoedov's "Lunch at the Zemstvost" (1872), Savitsky's " "Building the Railway" (1874), Makovsky's "The Bank Collapse" (1881), etc. The most important painter among them is Yaroshenko (1840-1898). Although his famous work "The Stoker" (1878) is a portrait work, it attracts people to explore the thoughts and feelings of the depicted person, thereby arousing resistance to new forms of capitalist exploitation.

Historical genre paintings of the Tourist Painting School: The reforms carried out by the Tourist Painting School in historical themes are of great significance to the development of national art. The creations of Guy (1831-1894) became the foundation of the school's historical themes. His painting "Peter the Great Interrogating Prince Alexei" (1871) was the first time in Russian historical paintings to combine two societies. A masterpiece showing the conflict between forces. In the 1870s, Vasnetsov (1848-1926) appeared in the historical painting world. His "Three Warriors" (1898) showed the legendary warriors from the distant past in the image of contemporary people, and it is a universal masterpiece.

The landscape genre paintings of the Tourist School: In the development of landscape themes, the Tourist School also made outstanding contributions. "The Rooks Are Coming" (1871) by Savrasov (1830-1897), "Rye" (1878) and "Morning in the Pines" (1889) by Shishkin (1832-1898), Ba Works such as "Moscow Courtyard" (1878) by Lianov (1844-1927), "Ukrainian Night" (1876) and "Birch Forest" (1879) by Kuinzhi (184-1910) are exploring the national landscape. He has made extremely significant achievements in the creation of paintings.

Although Vereshchagin (1842-1904), who mainly focused on military themes, was not a member of the Tourist Painting School, he was influenced by the creative ideas of the Tourist Painting School. His series of paintings, Turkestan, revealed the threats posed by war, for which his work was criticized by the Tsar.

The artistic activities of Repin (1844-1930) are the highest achievement of the realist art of the traveling painting school.

Repin was good at various painting genres, but he always insisted on creating monumental paintings based on the role of the people. This quality of his was reflected in his initial creation "Trackers on the Volga" (1870- 1873). In addition, Repin also had in-depth exploration of historical themes, including his "Princess Sophia" (1879), "The Killing of Ivan the Terrible's Son" (885) and "Letter from the Zaporozhians to the Turkish Sultan" (878-1891) ) all clearly highlight the character of historical figures. Repin painted many portraits, totaling 350 of them, such as "Portrait of the Priest" (1877), "Cowardly Peasant" (1877), "Portrait of Kramskoy" (1882), "Portrait of Sta." "Portrait of Sov" (1883), etc., are all portraits of figures in the democratic upsurge of Russian culture, science, and art in the second half of the 19th century. In addition, Repin's important creations also include a series of political genre paintings represented by "Unexpected Arrival" (1884). In 1900, Repin moved to the Penard Villa in Kugala, Finland, 45 kilometers away from Petersburg, and died here in 1930. In memory of this outstanding painter, the former Soviet Union named the Academy of Fine Arts in Leningrad after him.

Surikov (1848-1916) is another Russian national painting giant alongside Repin. He embodies the highest principles of the itinerant painting school in the creation of historical paintings. His historical paintings "The Morning Before the Guards' Execution" (1881), "The Noblewoman Morozova" (1881-1887), "Menshikov in the Village of Beryuzov" (188) and other works profoundly reveal The complex contradictions in major historical events.

Sculpture in the second half of the 19th century: Antokolsky (1843-1902) was a talented sculptor with a realist tendency in the second half of the 19th century. His "Ivan the Terrible" (1871) was his graduation work from the Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts. In this work, he explored the historical authenticity and the inner social psychology of Ivan the Terrible - all of which were rare in academic sculpture. Public opinion at the time considered it a masterpiece of national art.