Monument to Turgenev

In St. Petersburg, the second monument in Russia to Turgenev I.S. - the great Russian writer, author of "Fathers and Children", "Noble Nest", "The Eve", "Notes of Hunters", "Mum".

In the work of Ivan Sergeyevich, one cannot find enthusiastic odes to St. Petersburg streets, canals or white nights over the Neva, but the writer’s life path is still firmly connected with St. Petersburg. His works were staged in the Alexandria Theatre, there were magazines with which he collaborated, and at the Demidovskaya Hotel he met the love of his life - Polina Viardot. Not far from this place, on Manezh Square, it was decided to install a monument to the writer.

On November 2, 1999, a future monument was laid. The open competition for the project of the monument was won by sculptors Jan Neumann, Valentin Sveshnikov and architect Gennady Chelbogashev. For almost a year and a half, they worked on sketches. When creating Turgenev’s face, the writer’s death mask was used, stored in the Literary Museum of the Pushkin House.

On August 14, 2001, in the presence of the Governor of St. Petersburg, a monument to Ivan Turgenev was opened.

The writer was depicted sitting on a bench. With one hand he rests on a cane, the other on his knee. Thus, the authors of the monument, as it were, emphasized the tragic duality of the writer - before us a great classic and an eternal wanderer. The artists managed to show the full power of Turgenev’s talent.

The height of the sculpture is 3.15 m, the height of the pedestal is 1.44 m.