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Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky (30 August 1863 – 27 September 1944) was a notable Russian chemist and photographer, renowned for his groundbreaking work in color photography and his significant contribution to documenting early 20th-century Russia.
Life and Career
Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky was born in Funikova Gora, an ancestral estate located in the Pokrovsky Uyezd of the Vladimir Governorate. His family hailed from the Russian nobility, with a storied history in the military. Eventually, the family moved to Saint Petersburg, where Prokudin-Gorsky pursued higher education. He enrolled at the Saint Petersburg State Institute of Technology to study chemistry under the renowned Dmitri Mendeleev. Alongside his scientific pursuits, he also cultivated interests in music and painting, studying at the Imperial Academy of Arts.
In 1920, Prokudin-Gorsky entered into a second marriage and welcomed a daughter with his assistant Maria Fedorovna (née Schedrina). In 1922, the family settled in Paris, reuniting with Prokudin-Gorsky’s first wife and their children. There, he established a photo studio, partnering with his three grown children. The studio bore the name of his youngest child, Elka. Throughout the 1930s, even in his old age, Prokudin-Gorsky continued to deliver lectures showcasing his photographs of Russia to young Russian expatriates in France. However, he ceased commercial photography work and bequeathed the studio to his children, who named it Gorsky Frères.
Tragically, Prokudin-Gorsky’s life came to an end in Paris on September 27, 1944, just a month after the Liberation of Paris. He is interred at the Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery. Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky’s pioneering efforts in color photography have left an enduring legacy, capturing a vivid snapshot of early 20th-century Russia that continues to captivate and enlighten viewers around the world.
On 30 August 2018, a Google Doodle was created to celebrate Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky’s 155th Birthday.
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