Last rays of the sun. 1899 Isaac Ilyich Levitan (1860-1900)

Description of Isaac Levitan’s painting The Last Rays of the Sun

Levitan was a romantic, a singer of nature, its charm, its purity, its naturalness. He is known to many for his landscapes, beautiful, reminding us that the world around us is not reduced to a simple "home-work," but accommodates beauty created not by human hands, but by something higher. Forests, fields, countryside landscapes - all this finds a new life under his brush, reveals itself differently than when looking at it an ordinary person.

"The last rays of the sun" is one of these paintings. At first glance it seems garish, a little dark, even oppressive. But it is worth looking closely - and it becomes clear that this is a very bright picture. Here is the village - the sunset, small bent houses, a low fence, a dirty unpaved road. In the fall, it must be covered with mud, it is covered with deep puddles, and it becomes impossible to pass on it, but in the picture of summer, dry dust and the passing of the day heat.

The sunlight floods the uncomplicated landscape and fills it with not even meaning - beauty and liveliness. The sky is flooded with gold and gentle azure. The houses are painted orange and scarlet. But you can see that night is about to fall on the village. Here he is, in the shadows that cover much of the picture, in a sense of approaching darkness. Night will bring coolness, the windows in the houses will light up with warm yellow light. Dogs will be lazily barking, sleepy and a little dull.

The day, full of worries, will roll over the horizon with the sun. Levitan managed to perfectly convey the shaky state of twilight, a time when it is not clear whether it is still day or night. The expectation of night darkness is in the picture, but there is also the sun in it, not regretting the fact that it will have to go over the horizon.

After all, there will be a new day and a new morning, but for now with its last rays it caresses the quiet village, caresses and lulls it, persuading it to go to sleep without fear.