Art in “Harry Potter”: 7 real paintings on the walls of Hogwarts that you definitely didn’t notice

Last year, we told you about nine paintings from cult movies and TV series. Many of these artworks have played an important and even key role. For example, in The Mister Crown Affair, the protagonist is inspired by an image from René Magritte’s The Son of Man and borrows his costume for himself and his twins to go to the museum. And in The Da Vinci Code, the whole plot is tied to the hidden messages the artist leaves to his masterpieces of painting.

But there are other times when the canvases simply remain in the background, completing the visual aesthetic of the film. While making the previous material, we were inspired by the magical world of Harry Potter and the atmosphere of Hogwarts, where all the walls are decorated with “live” paintings. Not only do they talk and keep thousands of student secrets, they also serve as guardians of living rooms. And yet, surprisingly, many of them have very real prototypes. The creators of the film series were based on the works of famous artists and remade them magically, adding wands and magic hats.

Therefore, today we show you seven images that you definitely did not notice while watching the Harry Potter saga.

“Portrait of Ivan the Terrible” by Viktor Vasnetsov

We begin our material with the most unexpected find. If you watch the movie carefully, you will notice that there is a portrait of Tsar Ivan the Terrible in Dumbledore’s office. He just has a red hat instead of a fur hat. But this is not the most interesting! Anyone who has read the books will know that portraits of former directors hang in Dumbledore’s office. It seems that our Ivan Vasilievich was once the head of Hogwarts.

“Portrait of the Puppeteer Nestor Vasilyevich” by Karl Bryullov

Above the portrait of Ivan the Terrible hangs the work of another Russian painter, Karl Bryullov. The portrait of the prose writer and playwright Nestor Vasilyevich Kukolnik was created in 1836 and is now in the Tretyakov Gallery. Therefore, if you still have not received a letter from Hogwarts, you can safely go to the Museum of Painting.

“Relaxation. Portrait of VA Repina, wife of the artist Ilya Repin

Our compatriots’ work at Hogwarts does not end there. In one of the corridors of the school of magic there is a painting of the sleeping wizard, very similar to the portrait of Ilya Repin’s wife, painted by the painter in 1882.

Archdeacon, Ilya Repin

Next to the portrait of Repin’s wife is another painting of the artist (implying the love of Potter’s creators for Russian art). To the right of the sleeping wizard hangs a portrait of the protodeacon, created in 1877.

“Portrait of Lady Elizabeth Pope” by Robert Peake

We discussed the works of local painters, now we turn to foreign painters. Here, for example, at the entrance to the living room of the Hufflepuff faculty is a painting by the British royal painter Robert Peake. The portrait was made on the occasion of the wedding of Lady Elizabeth Pope at the beginning of the 17th century. In the original, the girl is wearing a turban, but in the Harry Potter universe she appears before the audience with a pointed hat.

“Portrait of Anne Boleyn” by unknown artist of the 16th century.

In the second part of the epic, King of England VIII. You can see a portrait of Henry’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. By the way, unlike previous heroes, his image was not supplemented with magical elements.

“Bess of Hardwick”, unknown artist

In front of you is a portrait of Elizabeth Burke, former headmistress of Hogwarts, which was first hung on the main staircase and then carried downstairs where it became a secret passage to the dungeon. Burke’s image was inscribed from Elizabeth Hardwick, a maid of honor and tailor, who lived in the early 17th century.