Art Lover’s Guide to St Petersburg

A visit to St Petersburg feels like a cultural pilgrimage into a world of endless art.

Whilst the vast collection of art in St Petersburg will steal your attention, it’s not the only show stopper. You can look forward to the city’s incredibly ornate architecture too. Everywhere you look, from any direction, no detail has been spared in the name of beauty.

Unlike its Nordic neighbours, who subscribe to the less is more school of design, St Petersburg has clearly adopted the more is more approach. While my personal taste sways toward the Nordic philosophy of keeping things simple, it’s difficult not to impressed by the fairytale architecture that’s on show all around St Petersburg.

For those who want to experience the diversity of St Petersburg’s art scene, I’ve put together this list of places you should visit.

Hermitage Museum

One of the largest and oldest museums in the world. The only place I’ve visited that can rival here is the Lourve in Paris. Put aside a full day to see what’s on offer, including the world’s largest collection of paintings. You will discover who’s who of Russian art, and find entire rooms dedicate to the big names of Western European art.

The collection they have of Picasso’s work is truly mesmerising, including a lovely display of his ceramics.

Address: Palace Square, 2, St Petersburg
Website: www.hermitagemuseum.org
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday) 10.30 – 18.30, opened late nights on Wednesday and Friday 10.30 – 21.00

Faberge Museum

© Faberge Museum

In the world of jewellery there are few people more famous that Peter Carlos Fabergé. If you haven’t heard of him, I’m sure you’ve heard of Fabergé. While you’d need a very pretty penny to acquire work by Faberge, you have a chance to see his masterpieces at the Fabergé Museum in St Petersburg, including the imperial Faberge eggs, his most well-known creations.

The museum itself isn’t too shabby either. The silk-lined walls and decorative ceiling are the vision of Viktor Vekselberg. After realising that so much of Russia’s most important and influential pieces of art and jewellery had been exported out of the country, he wanted to rebalance the scales so to speak. The Russian billionaire has sought to repatriating thousands of Russian decorative and fine art that was sold by the Soviet government in the 1920s and 1930s so it can be displayed in museums… and I’m sure his personal collection!

Address: 21, Fontanka River Embankment, St. Petersburg
Website: www.fabergemuseum.ru
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday (closed Friday) 10.00 – 21.00

Church of the Savior on Spilt Blood

There’s nothing austere about this church, from the whimsical exterior reminiscent of ice-cream swirls, to the blinding gold interior that make you want to reach for your sunglasses.

Whatever your feelings are toward being ambushed by so much gold, the craftsmanship gone into creating the floor to ceiling mosaics is truly impressive.

The work was carried out by some of the most prominent Russian artists of the time, including Viktor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov, and Andrei Ryabushkin.

The mosaics depict biblical scenes, religious figures, and intricate patterns, all in vivid, jewel-like colors. The design of the church, which echoes traditional Russian medieval architecture, was overseen by architect Alfred Parland in collaboration with these artists.

For a bit more context, the church was built as a memorial to Tsar Alexander II, who was assassinated on this site in 1881 by the People’s Will who opposed the autocratic rule of the Tsarist government. (Ironically, his assassination led to a clampdown on reform and strengthened the repressive measures under his successor, Alexander III).

Address: Griboyedov Canal Embankment, 2Б, St Petersburg
Opening hours: Thursday to Tuesday (closed Wednesday) 10.30 – 18.00

Catherine Palace and Pushkin Park

Also know as the Summer Palace, this was perhaps the most beautiful area I visited in St Petersburg. Historically fascinating as well because Catherine Palace was also home to the infamous Amber Room, reportedly looted by the Nazis and never found again. However, now contains a very ornate replica. Be sure to explore the grounds, the surrounding scenery is breathtaking!

Address: Sadovaya St, 7 | Ekaterininskiy Park, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Opening hours: Varies throughout the year. See their website for up-to-date information

The Peterhof Palace

Often referred to as the ‘Russian Versailles’ and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Peterhof Palace refers to not just one but a series of palaces located in Petergof, not too far away from the city. Accompanying the palace are stunning gardens filled with perfectly-pruned topiary, sculptures and fanciful fountains.

Address: Razvodnaya ulitsa, 2, St Petersburg
Opening hours: Tuesday – Sunday (closed Monday) 09.00 – 19.00, late night opening Saturday 09.00 – 22.00

State Russian Museum

Welcome to the home of St Petersburg’s largest collection of Russian art, from 11^th century icons right through to modern age. Here you’ll also find wonderful examples of Russian folk art, a style that is often eclipsed in favour of more opulent aesthetics. And finally, no museum of Russian art would be complete without its most celebrated export: Wassily Kandinsky.

Address: Inzhenernaya St, 4, St Petersburg
Opening hours: Wednesday to Monday (closed Tuesday) 10.00am – 18.00, late night Thursday 13.00 – 21.00

Russian Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography

Easily the most modest museum on the list, it’s a little tatty around the edges but nonetheless one of the most interesting museums in the city. Contains many examples of Russian dress wear through the eras, as well as the very striking and rather creepy KunstKamera room (a museum within a museum).

Address: Inzhenernaya St, 4/1, St Petersburg
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday) 10.00 – 18.00, late night Tuesday 10.00 – 21.00

Mariinsky or Mikhailovsky

Finally, what’s a trip to St Petersburg without seeing Swan Lake at the city’s premier theatres? The dancing alone is enough reason to buy tickets, but the stage design and beautiful costumes do not falter either.

Top theatres include Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky, though if you can’t afford tickets to see Swan Lake in either of these venues, do what I did and attend a lesser-known production. The swans might just have one or two missing feathers… No, I’m kidding. Honestly, even a less well-known production in Russia would be considered world-class almost anywhere in the world. The standard is just so high!

You might also like: 10 Best Things to Do in St Petersburg

And where should you stay in St Petersburg?

In keeping with the theme of your trip, you couldn’t possibly stay anywhere else other than Demetra Art Hotel, right? Though if money is not object, walking into the Belmond Grand Hotel is like walking into the most opulent museum that you could only expect to find in Russia.

Do you want to explore the art in St Petersburg?