Group 301-401V: "The Art of Russia"

On Wednesday, September 4, we began watching this documentary from the BBC, and answering the questions below. We finished today (Wednesday 11th).

1. What can the story of Russian art help explain, according to Andrew Graham-Dixon?
2. Which galleries at the State Historical museum are rarely visited?
3. How old is «this wonderful boat»?
4. Why was turning «all of this into one nation» so challenging?
5. If Moscow is the «heart of Russia», what are St Petersburg and Kiev?
6. Christ Pantokrator's «entourage» consists of whom or what?
7. In designing Kiev's first cathedral, what effect were the architects and designers trying to achieve?
8. Why is Mary carrying a handkerchief?
9. What is the «Christian mystery» expressed in the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir?
10. What did the developers of the Cyrillic script add to the Greek alphabet?
11. Why did the Mongols seek to isolate Russia?
12. What was Graham-Dixon's first impression inside Malye Kareli's church?
13. What feature reminds him of a hearth?
14. How do the colors of the St Sergius icons compare with Byzantine icons?
15. What transforms the art during the mass?
16. What is remarkable about Victor Bondarenko?
17. How did the Communists show their respect for the power of the icon?
18. What did Graham-Dixon mean when he said that Ivan IV was «hardly a model Christian»?
19. What was Ivan IV's innovation in the «Church Militant» icon?
20. The artist depicting the Last Judgment in Ivan IV's chapel «really pulled out the stops.» What did Graham-Dixon mean?
21. What example of a lubok turning «the world upside-down» do we see?
22. Peter I «could hardly have chosen a less promising place» for his new capital. What is Graham-Dixon referring to?
23. What are some of the new influences that came to Russia with Peter's acquisition of Rembrandt's «Jonathan and David»?