#43775 Boris Kustodiev (1878-1927)
Boris Kustodiev – #43775
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Painter: Boris Kustodiev
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The painting was painted in 1922. Kustodiev loved to depict provincial Russia in his paintings. He was especially attracted to those villages that were on the upper Volga. This is where the images of a merchant and bourgeois way of life, which became the themes of his works, were born. The original motif of the fair and Shrovetide constantly varied the artist. The effect was always the most variegated, colorful and necessarily major.
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Description of Boris Kustodiev’s painting The Merchant’s Wife and the Housekeeper
The painting was painted in 1922.
Kustodiev loved to depict provincial Russia in his paintings. He was especially attracted to those villages that were on the upper Volga. This is where the images of a merchant and bourgeois way of life, which became the themes of his works, were born. The original motif of the fair and Shrovetide constantly varied the artist. The effect was always the most variegated, colorful and necessarily major. This is a special affinity of the painter’s work with folk art.
Gradually, the beginning of ironically theatrical grows in the composition of paintings. Increasingly stronger becomes a sense of the idyll, irreality, filled with nostalgia and sadness.
We see a merchant’s wife and a house man standing in front of her. The furnace crucible is open. The fire at night creates a special impression. It makes a characteristic crackling sound and casts bizarre shadows. Such sounds can not only appease, unaccountable anxiety may arise. A rug lies in front of the open door of the stove. Such a situation is extremely dangerous, as sparks can accidentally fall on it.
Kustodiev’s Merchantess is absolutely defenseless. She sleeps in a completely open position. Her bed is a trunk with a blanket of down and featherbeds. The featherbeds are allegorically connected with the clouds of paradise. According to official religion, the housekeeper belongs specifically to the dark world. But in the past, it was considered a real master of the house, who protected it from all evil. The presence of a house ghost was considered the norm.
The housekeeper is depicted by darkness and glow. The lantern next to him shines backwards. The question arises, what did this character come for? Most likely, he foreshadows something bad. The glow of the fire blazing in the furnace is the real quintessence of anxiety, of danger on a global scale. The intensity of the color suggests its great power.
There is a special aggression and incredible pressure in the combination of shades. Red as a bright lightning penetrates the entire space. A small gust of wind is enough for the fire to spread throughout the room.
The painting evokes an ever-increasing sense of unease in the viewer.
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To the right of the bed, a substantial figure dominates the scene: an orangutan stands upright, its posture suggesting both curiosity and perhaps a degree of menace. Its dark fur contrasts sharply with the lighter tones of the woman and the surrounding environment. The animal’s gaze is directed towards the sleeping woman, creating a palpable tension within the frame.
The artist employed a loose, expressive brushstroke throughout, contributing to an atmosphere of intimacy and dreamlike quality. Colors are rich and saturated – deep reds and oranges from the firelight play against cooler blues and greens in the rug and the shadows on the walls. The perspective is slightly skewed, adding to the unsettling nature of the scene.
Subtexts within this painting revolve around themes of civilization versus instinct, domesticity versus the wild, and perhaps even voyeurism. The presence of the orangutan disrupts the expected tranquility of a bedroom setting, introducing an element of the primal into a space associated with rest and security. It could be interpreted as a symbolic representation of repressed desires or anxieties lurking beneath the surface of bourgeois life. The woman’s sleep renders her passive, making her susceptible to this intrusion from the outside world.
The floral pattern on the bed linens offers a counterpoint to the raw physicality of the orangutan; it represents refinement and beauty, but also fragility in the face of something untamed. Ultimately, the painting leaves the viewer with a sense of unease and ambiguity, prompting questions about the boundaries between human and animal nature, and the precariousness of societal order.