Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Tempera, gouache on cardboard. 1930s.
Signature: A. Jegorov

Andrei Jegorov (1878-1954), one of the most famous masters of realistic landscape painting, especially loved to paint winter views of Estonia, which, however, “are far from being limited to the fixation of the external manifestations of the season but also convey a wide range of feelings. We perceive joy but perhaps also a premonition of something bright, observing the bright glow of snowdrifts. Jegorov’s canvases have a sensitive and soulful color scheme, there is not a single accidental or superfluous brushstroke, everything is deeply and subtly felt here, testifying to mastery and a highly sensitive creative temperament.” (from “Andrei Jegorov”, 1987, p. 31).

This view of a path through a dense forest stands out among his landscape views for two reasons. Firstly, the artist devotes a large part of the composition to majestic trees that resemble a backdrop (usually wide open fields). Second, Jegorov steps out of his comfort zone and presents the viewer with the elements that have made him famous, but in a new color scheme, denser and deeper.

The brushwork is also much freer and more impressionistic than we are used to seeing. Of course, one cannot fail to mention the admirable skill of painting snow in such a way that we feel the chills when looking at it! But this is precisely how the emotional impact of art reaches the viewer most directly.

Text: Katre Palm, Harry Liivrand