Mihailov

Family: — · Role: Russian artist and portrait-painter · First appears: PART FIVE · Chapter 9

Mihailov is a Russian artist and portrait-painter. In chapter 133, Vronsky, regarding himself as a Russian Mæcenas, supported him regardless of whether his picture was good or bad. Vronsky, Anna, and Golenishtchev visited his studio to ask permission to see his picture; they also considered asking him to paint Anna’s portrait, and Vronsky had seen his portrait of Madame Vassiltchikova.

In chapter 134, Mihailov reconciled with his wife, Sasha, and then transformed a sketch from a lifeless imagined thing into a living, unalterable figure. The next day, he showed Vronsky, Anna, and Golenishtchev his painting, “the exhortation to Pilate.” Golenishtchev’s praise moved him from depression to ecstasy, while Anna’s admiration for Christ’s expression pleased him. When Golenishtchev criticized his portrayal of Christ as man-god rather than God-man, Mihailov answered, “I cannot paint a Christ that is not in my heart,” and discussed the difficulty of preserving artistic unity in such a subject.

In chapter 136, Mihailov corrected the foreshortened leg in the painting. In chapter 137, he sold the picture to Vronsky and agreed to paint Anna’s portrait. He completed it after the sittings, leaving Anna and Vronsky with the finished portrait. At that point, Golenishtchev expressed the idea that Mihailov was jealous of Vronsky.