Andryusha (Andrey) is the eldest son of the Soviet artist Porfiry Nikitich Krylov. In the portrait, he is five years old — a cheerful and playful boy, looking as though he is about to jump down from the windowsill and burst out laughing. However, by this time, he has already experienced great grief — three years prior to the making of this portrait, he lost his mother.

Andrey Krylov visited the museum dedicated to his father more than once. One day when approaching this painting, he recalled a distant sunny summer’s day when his father was painting his portrait. The weather was wonderful and the boy got tired of sitting still, posing for his father. Little Andryusha was just waiting for his father to get completely immersed in his work so he could jump over the windowsill and escape into the garden. The cute sneaky grin on the boy’s face brings special charm to the portrait.

Andrey Krylov was born on October 22, 1929 in Moscow. His childhood was spent in a creative environment among his father’s friends, artists and writers who constantly gathered and worked in their house. This greatly impacted his choice of profession: after graduating from the Moscow Secondary Art School, Andrey Krylov entered the Moscow State Academy of Fine Arts named after Vasily Surikov. He, like his father, actively collaborated with the satirical magazine “Krokodil” (Crocodile). In 1952, he began as a cartoonist, and later became a member of the editorial board and chief artist.

In 1957, Andrey Krylov was admitted to the Moscow Union of Artists. He traveled extensively around the USSR, went abroad and taught painting in Germany for 12 years. He reflected his impressions of the trips in a series of paintings. Andrey Krylov represented the Soviet Union for 20 years in the international jury of the Cuban Biennale, received the title of Honored Artist of Russia, and was elected an honorary member of the Russian Academy of Arts. He participated in more than 80 exhibitions in Russia and abroad, his works can be found in museums and private collections in Russia, the USA, Germany, Denmark, Cuba and Bulgaria.

Porfiry Krylov — Andrey Krylov’s father and creator of the portrait “Andryusha” — was the People’s Artist of the USSR, academician, winner of five Stalin prizes and other state awards as well as a member of the creative collective of Soviet artists “Kukryniksy”.