The painting "Winter Evening" by Krymov: description, essay on the painting

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

How long have you looked at the painting? Precisely on a drawing made with a brush and paints? The painting “Winter Evening” by landscape painter Nikolai Petrovich Krymov is a seemingly simple thing with a simple plot. But she makes you think.

We are used to taking hundreds of photos with both professional equipment and cameras installed in our phones. We practically do not pay attention to whether the storyline is built, how the composition is composed and the objects are distributed, what the lighting is … Most often, we have no time to think about it. The main thing is to take a photo, share it on social networks with friends and get their response.

And how surprised and amazed at the smallest details of the paintings! How I want to look at them and try to understand the mood of the artist and his thoughts at the time of writing the canvas!

Nikolai Krymov

The artist Krymov may not be as popular as Vasnetsov or Malevich. But his contribution to art is difficult to overestimate. Born in the family of the artist P. A. Krymov in 1884, the boy received drawing skills already in childhood. Father withwith pleasure he showed his son the basic techniques of painting pictures and talked about composition, color and lighting. All this was reflected in the worldview of Nikolai and his life aspirations.

Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" is the clearest illustration of his ideas about the fine arts. Studying in the landscape workshop of A. M. Vasnetsov at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, the young artist tried himself in different directions: both as a designer, and as a graphic artist, and later as a set designer. But literally from the first strokes of the brush, he joined symbolism, believing that the picture should convey the mood with its color scheme.

A simple landscape

That's right - simply - wrote N. P. Krymov. The painting "Winter Evening" is a landscape of the village outskirts. Several buildings, a church dome and a pair of sleighs with firewood - that's almost the whole picture. Of course, there are trees on it, and birds in the bushes, and people going about their business. But all this is not drawn in detail, not highlighted in bright color.

And at the same time, one glance is enough to understand - it is very cold outside. And it's already dusk. This is the time of day when the windows still let in the sun's rays. When you sit in the hut, it seems that it is not so cold outside. He is so warm and cozy, sunshine.

Russian winter

The picture "Winter Evening" is snow. Looking at her, one gets the feeling that it was important for the artist to show precisely the omnipresence of snow. After all, this is one of the main signs of the Russian winter. Snow lies everywhere:roofs of houses are powdered with it, the ground is densely covered, shrubs are hidden under it, which are depicted in the foreground.

It shimmers in the rays of the setting sun, and the shadows cast by the dumps of the paths accurately indicate the height of the snowdrifts. It immediately becomes clear that winter did not come yesterday, it has long come into its own.

And even the muted color does not interfere with the beauty of the snowy Russian winter. The sun, hiding behind the horizon, changed the bright daytime shine of the snow to a bluish glare. But even this shade conveys the fluffiness of the snow cover. And in those places where there are still sunlight, we see a transparent pink snowball that you want to pick up.

Return Home

What else did Krymov manage to convey to the viewer? The painting "Winter Evening", the description of which occupies us today, is not overloaded with objects. And yet in the center we see people returning. We do not know what drove them outside on a winter day, but the fact that they are moving towards warmth and home sets us up for cozy memories of winter evenings.

Looking closely at how a family with a child moves, we understand that the paths have been trodden for a long time. They are quite wide so that you can disperse with oncoming passers-by. This means that people are accustomed to such difficult conditions and have learned to resist them.

Also haystacks and horse-drawn sleighs are brought home. Pets appear before your eyes, which will be fed in a couple of minutes. From this uniform life somehow he himselfyou calm down and understand that no life's hardships (like this high snow) can change the inevitable course of things. The painting "Winter Evening" is quite suitable for meditation and relaxation. Soft tones and plenty of room for thought. It remains only to turn on the slow music.

Fuzzy images

Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" shows us and people undrawn. The description of warm clothes fully justifies this, because fur coats, felt boots, warm scarves and hats leave no room for sophistication and grace. Figures of people in general are more like specks of paint, but that's the artist's talent, so that like this, without details and clear brush strokes, to convey not only the intended image, but also its mood.

N. Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" glows with warmth and comfort. Looking at how the human figures are slightly tilted forward, you understand that people are rushing into the warmth of the hut. And looking at their heavy clothes, you just feel how difficult it is to walk in the snow. Let and along the beaten paths.

In the same way, indistinctly, the figurines of birds are indicated in the foreground. They did not hide under the roofs of houses, were not afraid of the cold, but sat down right on the snow. But they fluffed their feathers and ruffled - they save their strength, and from this they became more like lumps of something alive than fluttering light birds.

Village

Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" (its description is our task today) shows a village. One gets the impression that this is just a small cluster of several houses. Not even the outskirtsvillages because massive trees rise behind the houses.

Of course, the artist is well versed in proportions, he has a developed sense of proportion. But take a closer look at how he arranged the objects in the picture: even in the background, the houses are many times superior to people, as if denoting their solidity and significance. And at the same time, we understand how small they really are. It is enough to compare trees and huts.

You involuntarily wonder what the picture "Winter Evening" symbolizes. Krymov, after all, it was symbolism that he professed in his work. And now, looking at the cluster of huts located in the middle of the snowy expanses, you understand that only proximity to each other will make us warmer and kinder, and our world more comfortable. After all, even in proverbs we meet indications of this: in crowding, but not offended, for example.

And the fact that everyone - both people and sleighs with hay - is heading towards the houses, is also of great importance. Only in our own home will we receive the desired warmth and peace. And the bell tower, located in the distance, is a symbol of hope for good and a bright future.

Forest

A forest is depicted in the background of the canvas. Now it is completely unclear what kind of trees grow in this area - oaks, poplars, lindens … Only one thing is clear: such a landscape is typical for central Russia. Indeed, such tall trees do not grow in the north, and in the tundra or taiga there is no such amount of empty space.

And again you involuntarily think about what Krymov is telling us. The painting "Winter Evening", the description of which reveals the meaning of eachsymbol, conveys the security of a person. Endless snowy expanses turn into warm and solid (albeit not rich) houses. And the huts from winds and blizzards protect centuries-old trees.

Looking closer, we will see the desire for life conveyed by the artist. Moss and small bushes in the foreground perfectly symbolize this. They make their way even through so much snow to reach the winter sun.

Sunset

N. Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" is a completely accurate rendering of color nuances. Take a look at the sky. You can immediately see that it is low, heavy in winter, but clean and transparent from frost.

The greenish color of the sunset sky is somewhat unusual for our eyes. But this is a very accurately noticed feature of the evening pores. By several iridescences of pink in the snow and in the sky, as well as by the reflection of sunlight in the window of the hut, it becomes clear that the sunset will be pink and calm.

And a clear cloudless sky does not portend any trouble or surprise. Again, one look at the picture becomes calm and understanding comes: everything goes on as usual.

Colours

Krymov's painting "Winter Evening" is another confirmation of the skill and professionalism of the artist. He masterfully uses a palette of colors to convey all the shades of trees, sky, snow…

After all, what do we usually see when we go outside in winter? Black silhouettes of trees and white snow. But it's not like that! The shadows from the people are dark blue, the roofs of the houses are covered with the purest white snow,and the transitions of blue and pink tones in the foreground of the picture accurately convey the illumination and the pre-sunset time.

And here's what is surprising: it would seem that the painting "Winter Evening" should convey cold and dusk. But in fact, when you look at it, it becomes warm and cozy. This effect is also created by the color scheme. Black trees are actually dark brown. Warm pink highlights run across the cold snow. The dome of the bell tower almost glitters with yellow light.

And a few more words about the author

Sometimes, looking at such landscapes, you involuntarily think: why is such a simple picture as "Winter Evening" (its description may consist of only a few phrases) makes you stop and literally freeze in front of it? And it's not about appeasement, not about the winter look familiar to every person.

Most likely, we need to say that the artist added notes of life to the landscape: walking people, sleighs pulled by horses. This gives the picture dynamics, it becomes an illustration for any poem that glorifies the Russian winter.

Many believe that Krymov is lucky: a rare artist has the honor of being represented in the Tretyakov Gallery during his lifetime. But it is also a huge work on oneself, the development of talent and the desire to show the world the simple and majestic beauty of the nature around us.

Composition based on a painting

The presented description will help you get acquainted with the wonderful work of Russian painting, as well as write an essay on the picture. Schoolchildren get acquainted with Krymov's "Winter Evening" insixth grade. In their work, the children need to describe the picture and the feelings that it evoked in them.