Mordvinovskie oaks 1891 84h111 Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin (1832-1898)

Description of Ivan Shishkin’s painting "Mordvinov Oaks".

Ivan Shishkin’s surprisingly poetic painting, Mordvinov Oaks, was created near St. Petersburg. The artist’s summer sunny days were fully occupied. Like a worker at a loom, he would come to these oaks and painstakingly paint almost every leaf.

Such detail was not typical of artists of his period, but Ivan Shishkin already had his own style and, of course, their own preferences. Most of all, judging by the paintings, the artist loved oaks and pines. Both trees are powerful in their own way. Oak represents remarkable strength, and pine - unprecedented stature.

The two huge oaks, spreading their branches wide, are illuminated by the generous summer sun, judging by the yellowing tones, it’s after noon, but it’s still a long way from sunset. And what is surprising, this warmth is felt almost physically from just looking at the picture. The impression is that a gentle breeze will blow and the leaves on the giant trees will rustle.

According to his contemporaries, Shishkin used to come to paint these oaks at exactly the same hour so that the light fell on them equally, and at other times of the day he painted several other works in parallel. In the mornings - a field, in the evenings - a pond. That was the secret of the artist’s fertility. He himself believed that inspiration will certainly come during the work, it is only necessary to get out on nature. And in the vicinities of Peterhof nature gives a rich ground for the painter. The main thing is to choose a point and feel the composition.

In this picture behind the oaks you can see a yellow house with green shutters and a canopy over the entrance. The windows are open, the heat is on the street. Behind the house, the crowns are yellowed, probably from the heat. Only two mighty oaks are still standing, their leaves still green. Only bare branches shine through here and there.

In the shade of such a tree you can take shelter from the scorching rays of the sun. But how do you know whether the painter was working in the sun or hiding under a similar oak tree? The shadows at the very bottom of the painting suggest the latter.