old gardener Vasily Ivanovich Surikov (1848-1916)
Vasily Ivanovich Surikov – old gardener
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Painter: Vasily Ivanovich Surikov
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The painting "Old Man the Gardener" is an excellent example of a rural portrait. Surikov preferred to paint paintings on historical subjects, but if the master dared to portray a simple rural man, he put his whole soul into the work. In front of us a peasant. His gray, curly beard and sun-burnt hair help us to understand that this man has lived quite a long time. It is immediately clear that Surikov with warmth and sympathy for the hard peasant work. The man is wearing dirty, old clothes.
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Description of Vasily Surikov’s painting "The Old Gardener".
The painting "Old Man the Gardener" is an excellent example of a rural portrait. Surikov preferred to paint paintings on historical subjects, but if the master dared to portray a simple rural man, he put his whole soul into the work. In front of us a peasant. His gray, curly beard and sun-burnt hair help us to understand that this man has lived quite a long time. It is immediately clear that Surikov with warmth and sympathy for the hard peasant work.
The man is wearing dirty, old clothes. A white shirt, belted with a dark rope, and dark wide pants. No shoes, apparently too much of a luxury for a poor peasant. His feet are rough, dirty, but steady on the ground.
The man stands up against the sun and tries to shield his eyes from the bright, scorching light with his hand. His skin has completely darkened from his constant exposure to the sun’s rays. At the sight of this peasant, the only question arises: where is he looking? Surikov does not give us the answer to this troubling question. The man’s gaze is directed forward, but we don’t know what’s there. Perhaps he is looking over his vegetable garden and sadly thinking about how much work he still has to do.
To the right of the human figure are plants. These are probably the young shoots of root crops that have been diligently planted in the beds. Very soon you will have to go to work again to harvest the crops. Behind the man is a small haystack, cleverly covered with sacking. In the distance go immense fields and a small island of trees, which protects the harvest from the winds.
Surikov abandoned the unreality of color solutions. All colors are very natural, natural. Careful drawing of drapery fabric gives the picture additional relief.
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Behind him, leaning against what appears to be a rustic shelter made of wood and covered with burlap or animal hide, is a large bundle of materials, possibly hay or straw, tipped with a bare branch. To the right, a few leafy plants, perhaps cabbage, sprout from a mound of soil. The landscape stretches out behind him, depicting a rural vista under a vast, pale sky with hints of trees and distant structures.
The subtexts of this painting seem to evoke themes of resilience, labor, and a deep connection to the land. The mans weathered face, the rough texture of his clothing, and his barefoot state suggest a life of hard work and simplicity. His gesture of shielding his eyes implies a gaze directed towards the horizon, perhaps searching, anticipating, or simply enduring the elements. He appears as a figure rooted in his environment, embodying the spirit of an old gardener who has dedicated a lifetime to tending the earth. The overall impression is one of quiet strength and dignity in the face of a demanding existence.