Henry Charles Brewer - The Cathedral of the Dormition, Moscow, a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.
In this work, the square is full of people arriving to attend a religious service. Visitors have come on foot or by horse and wagon. Some coachmen wait in the shadow of neighbouring buildings and others enjoy the sun, while their masters go inside. With the service about to begin, the crowd has gathered around the Cathedral’s entrance as the clergy enters. They are dressed in red robes and bear aloft a Khorúgus, a religious banner which depicts either an icon of Christ, an image of the Theotokos, or a Saint. The clergy and faithful are entering the cathedral through the south portal, which was the entrance used for royal processions. The portal is decorated with seventeenth-century frescoes.
Henry Charles Brewer (1866 - 1950) was the son of Henry William Brewer who was also an artist. He studied at Westminster School and lived in London where he painted many urban scenes. He exhibited at the Fine Art Society and the Royal Academy between 1899 and 1902. A member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours, he was elected to the Royal Institution of Great Britain in 1914.
[Watercolour on paper, 32 x 45 cm]