Akridina H. Monumental and decorative art of Odessa orthodox temples

The dissertation is the first complex study of the monumental and decorative art of Odessa orthodox temples. The research objective is an art history analysis of Odessa orthodox temples frescoes, mosaics and iconostasis. The relevance of the topic is conditioned by the active restoration of the parish life of the Ukrainian state independence period. The historiography, archival materials, historical sources have been collected and analyzed. It has been found out that Byzantinism and academism coexist in the Transfiguration cathedral upper and lower churches. The art history analysis of the Holy Dormition and Holy Trinity cathedrals revealed a combination of Eastern Christian and Western European arts, the dominance of academic depictive language and features of Art Nouveau. The art theme and style peculiarities of Odessa parish churches in a temporal context were investigated. It has been established that academicism and Art Nouveau are the stylistic basis of the late 19th century design of St. Demetrius of Rostov church and early 2000s monumental art of the Holy martyrs Adrian and Natalia church. The return to Byzantinism in the modern murals of the Our Lady of Kazan, Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene, prince Alexander Nevsky temples has been identified. The four Odessa monasteries monumental and decorative art has been studied. It has been established that the expansion of the prayer space due to the placement of mosaic sacred images in the monastic churches exteriors is the Holy Dormition monastery monumental design singularity. The spread of the theme of meeting of believers by saints is observed. It has been proven that St. Elijah and St. Panteleimon friaries are symbolic portals on the way to the Holy Mountain. The architectural and artistic basis of the Holy Panteleimon monastery is the image of the ascent of the Holy Mount Athos. Odessa friaries are characterized by the presence of the Theotokos image in the iconography of Holy Mountain Abbess. In the Holy Archangel-Mikhailovsky convent the purposeful development and preservation of the canonical Byzantine art pictorial foundations is observed. The Christian concept of collegiality is expressed in the murals. Іn a consequence of the research two leading stylistic trends in orthodox churches art have been revealed: academicism and Byzantinism. It is generalized that Odessa's church art has absorbed the heritage of centuries-old artistic culture. Key words: monumental and decorative art, orthodox temples, cathedrals, monasteries, Odessa, mural painting, icon painting, mosaic, iconostasis, iconography, Byzantinism, academism.