Alexander Denisov-Uralsky depicted a wide water surface and flat shores covered with green trees. To the right, in the foreground, a rocky cliff is visible.
Birch forest is reflected in the calm waters of the Chusovaya River. Far away, on the horizon, the green-covered hills begin. The sky is covered with clouds, but rays of the sun are barely visible through them. In the lower left corner of the picture, the artist left his autograph:“The Chusovaya from the author — Denisov, 1895 to Dm. Nar. Mamin-Sib.”
Alexander Denisov was born in 1864 in the family of a miner. From his childhood he helped his father in his work: together they made mineralogical collections and decorated paintings of Ural semi-precious stones. The family business was successful: Denisovs’ products participated in the Vienna World Exhibition in 1873.
When his parents noticed their son’s interest in painting, he was apprenticed to a local artist. Over time, Alexander Denisov received the title of master. After his father died, he took over the family business.
Denisov was a successful stonecutter: he participated in art and world exhibitions in Copenhagen, Paris, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Yekaterinburg. In parallel, the master was fond of painting, traveled to the Urals and painted landscapes.
He was connected with Dmitry Mamin-Sibiryak by a strong friendship of many years. They were both members of the Ural Society of Natural Science Lovers (USNSL), and it is likely that they met at one of their meetings in 1883. The artist and the writer had common interests: painting, the Ural stones and the history of the region.
