Konstantin was born in Moscow to a merchant family officially registered as
peasants of Vladimir gubernia. His father, Aleksey Mikhailovich Korovin, earned a University degree and was more interested in arts and music than in the family business established by Konstantin's grandfather. Konstantin's older brother
Sergey Korovin was a notable realist painter. Konstantin's relative
Illarion Pryanishnikov was also a prominent painter of the time and a teacher at the
Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture.
In
1875 Konstantin entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpturing and Architecture, where he learned from
Vasily Perov and
Alexei Savrasov. His brother, Sergey was already a student of the School. During their scholar years Korovins became friends with their fellow students
Valentin Serov and
Isaac Levitan, Kontantin kept these friendship through the whole of his life.
In 1881-1882, Korovin spent a year at the
Imperial Academy of Arts in
Saint Petersburg, but returned disappointed to the Moscow School of painting, sculpturing and architecture. He studied at the school under the new teacher
Vasily Polenov until
1886.
In
1885, Korovin made traveled to
Paris and
Spain. Paris was a shock for me… Impressionists… in them I found everything for what I was scolded back at home, in Moscow, he later wrote.
Polenov introduced Korovin to
Savva Mamontov's Abramtsevo circle: Viktor Vasnetsov, Apollinary Vasnetsov, Ilya Repin, Mark Antokolsky and others. The Abramtsevo circle's love for stilized Russian themes is reflected in Korovin's picture
A Northern Idyll. In
1885 Korovin works for Mamontov's Opera house. He designed the stage decor for
Giuseppe Verdi's Aida,
Léo Delibes' Lakme and
Georges Bizet's Carmen.
In
1888, Korovin traveled with Mamontov to
Italy and Spain, where he produced painting
On the balcony, Spanish women Leonora and Ampara. Konstantin traveled within Russia,
Caucasus and
Central Asia, exhibited with
Peredvizhniki. He was painting in the
Impressionist and later in the
Art Nouveau style.
In the
1890s, Korovin became a member of the
Mir iskusstva art group.
Korovin's subsequent works was strongly influenced by his travel to the North. In
1888 he was captivated by the stern northern landscapes, as seen in
The Coast of Norway and The Northern Sea.
His second trip to the North, with
Valentin Serov in
1894, coincided with the construction of the Northern Railway. Korovin painted a large number of landscapes:
Norwegian Port,
Saint Trifon's Brook in Pechenega,
Hammerfest: Aurora Borealis,
The Coast at Murmansk and others. The paintings are built on a delicate web of shades of grey. The
etude style of these works was typical for the Korovin's art of the
1890s.
Using material from his northern trip, Korovin designed the Northern Railway pavilion at the
All Russia Exhibition of
1896 at
Nizhny Novgorod.
In
1900, Korovin designed the
Central Asia section of the
Russian Empire pavilion on the Paris
World Fair; and was awarded the
Legion of Honour by the French government.
In the beginning of the 20th century Korovin focused his attention on the theatre. He moved from Mamontov's opera to
Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg. Departing from the tradition of the stage decor, which only indicated the place of action, Korovin produced a
mood decor, which conveyed the general emotions of the performance. Korovin designed sets for
Constantin Stanislavski's dramatic productions, as well as Mariinsky's operas and ballets. He did the stage design for such Mariinsky's productions as
Faust (1899),
The Little Humpbacked Horse (1901) and
Sadko (1906) that became famous for their expressiveness.
In
1905, Korovin became an
Academician of Painting, and in 1909-1913 he was a professor at the
Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture.
One of the artist's favourite themes was
Paris. He painted
A Paris Cafe (1890s'),
Cafe de la Paix (1905'),
La Place de la Bastille (1906),
Paris at Night;
Le Boulevard Italien (1908'),
Night Carnival (1901),
Paris in the Evening (1907) and others.
During the
World War I Korovin worked as a
camouflage consultant at the headquarters of one of the Russian armies and was often seen at the front line. After the
October Revolution Korovin continued to work in the theatre, designing stage for
Richard Wagner's Die Walküre and
Siegfried as well as
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker (
1918-1920).
In
1923 Korovin moved to
Paris by the advice of the Commissar of Enlightenment,
Anatoliy Vasilievich Lunacharsky, to cure his heart condition and help Korovin's handicapped son. There was supposed to be a large exhibition of Korovin's works but the works were stolen and Korovin was left penniless. For years produced the numerous
Russian winters and
Paris boulevards just to make ends meet.
In the last years of his life he produced stage designs for many of the major theatres of
Europe, America, Asia and
Australia, the most famous of which is his scenery for a production by the
Turin Opera House of
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's The Golden Cockerel.
Korovin died in
Paris on
September 11, 1939.
Konstantin's son
Alexey Korovin (
1897-1950) was a notable Russian-
French painter. Because of an accident during his childhood he had both feet amputated. Alexey committed suicide in
1950.
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