Autumn. 1871 Alexey Kondratievich Savrasov (1830-1897)

Description of Alexei Savrasov’s Autumn

Oil Landscape "Autumn" is a painting by Alexei Savrasov of the genre of realism, completed in 1871.

It is a classic autumn motif: trees with yellowing and falling leaves, birds flying away to warmer lands, a low clear sky and cloudy, dim tones. But you can feel the spiritual breakdown in the picture, not just because of the fall, but because of some circumstances that influenced the life and mood of the artist.

The foreground of the painting is one or more conjoined trees, standing gloomily on a small hill. Nearby you can see a puddle, the result of the autumn rains, in which the gray sky is reflected, and everything around is covered with darkened grass.

A little farther away the picture becomes more lively: the yellow colors become brighter, there is a small house with smoke coming out of its chimney; a mill and a river. And on the other bank of the river even the trees look livelier, brighter. One can understand such a composition as a visualization of life’s hardships, which seem so big and terrible when close by, but just move on, and they will pass. Perhaps there was another message in this, or perhaps there wasn’t one at all.

The lonely cottage standing next to the mill also brings up sad associations and a somber autumn mood.

The golden forest in the distance gradually becomes a dark, impenetrable grove, stretching to the no less dark horizon. Towards it reaches the last flock of birds, flying in a wedge.

In his painting Savrasov conveyed the very atmosphere of autumn, about which many people talk and think with obvious dissatisfaction. But even in the dreary landscapes one can see the author’s love for everything around: those trees which have lost their colors, the lonely house, the sad colors... The painting shows melancholy, but does not convey it to the viewer, making him understand that all this also has its own beauty, which makes you admire the artist’s skill