Vasili Vasilievich Vereshchagin

Possibly, Sale: New York, American Art Galleries, American Art Association, Vassili Verestchagin Collection, November 18, 1891

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting is unlined and is quite noticeable dirty. A very slight thinness may have developed to the paint layer under the eves of the roofs of the building. If the picture were to be carefully cleaned, only a few dots of retouching would be required, and the difference will be very noticeable.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

In search of new impressions and sources of inspiration, Vereshchagin visited Moscow and the medieval Russian towns of Yaroslavl, Rostov, and Kostroma in early 1888. These and other travels prompted a series of works depicting the world of the Russian countryside. They include portraits of the Russian peasantry, landscapes made in various seasons and amid different lighting conditions, and images of Russian churches.

In the 1890s, Vereshchagin visited other important Old Russian towns, including Vologda and Solovki. While on a boat trip on the Severnaia Dvina river, he became interested in wooden Old Russian architecture, creating a series of studies depicting various examples of wooden churches in the Russian North. In a letter to V. N. Tretyakova dated February 29, 1896, he described his church studies as among his most successful works. The artist believed that Old Russian architecture could be an important source of inspiration for contemporary architects; in the October 1889 issue of the journal Russkaia starina (Russian Antiquity), he even called on contemporary architects to both study Old Russian architecture as well as use some of its elements in their work.