This still life was painted in a very expressive manner. Against a bright background of scarlet, yellow, and green, there is a vase with a bouquet of flowers that stands on a table covered with an indigo tablecloth. The vase is the color of pomegranates, and the bouquet features white and purple flowers. This still life was painted by Kira Konstantinovna Alekseyeva.

Kira Alekseyeva was the daughter of the famous actor and director Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski. She was born in the village of Lyubimovka on July 21, 1891. She studied at the Rzhevskaya Women’s Gymnasium in Moscow and later at the philosophical department of the Higher Women’s Courses founded by Vladimir Guerrier. Her husband, the famous Soviet artist Robert Falk, recalled that she had a beautiful mezzo-soprano singing voice and a “wild talent” for painting. After graduating from the courses, it took her some time to choose her future career. Eventually, Kira Alekseyeva decided to pursue fine art. She took lessons at the private school of Konstantin Yuon and later studied at the workshop of Ilya Mashkov. After the Russian Revolution of 1917, she continued studying painting in the class of Pyotr Konchalovsky at Vkhutemas (Higher Art and Technical Studios).

In the fall of 1937, Kira Alekseyeva worked at Stanislavski’s Opera and Drama Studio. In 1938, she enrolled in the studio’s direction and teaching department. After graduating in February 1941, she stayed at the studio as a teacher of dramatic reading and verbal action.

After her father’s death, Kira Alekseyeva worked on establishing a memorial museum in his name and contributed to organizing his archive. In 1948, she became the director of the Stanislavski House Museum. She was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow. Her husband Robert Falk was a Soviet painter known for blending Russian Art Nouveau and avant-garde in his work.

It is fascinating to look at this still life closely. With each glance at the painting, new details are revealed. Gradually, one starts to notice other elements besides the vase, such as a curtain made from very dense and heavy fabric, a slightly open window, and a riot of colors of nature outside.