The collection of the Boris Kustodiev House Museum includes a Gold Medal certificate awarded to the artist at the Eighth International Art Exhibition in Munich, Germany. Boris Kustodiev received his first international medal for his “Portrait of Ivan Bilibin” in 1901.

Boris Kustodiev met Ivan Bilibin when the latter started attending Ilya Repin’s studio at the Academy of Arts as a non-matriculated student in the fall of 1900. Over the years, they became very close, brought together by having similar personalities, working together in the artistic community, and sharing a love of everything Russian. In the portrait, the handsome black-haired Bilibin wears a dazzling white shirt with a high stand-up collar and a jet-black tuxedo with a turn-down collar and big buttons. There is a scarlet flower in the buttonhole. He relaxes on a chair, sitting with one leg over the other. The background is generalized, with a studio painted using broad brush strokes. The face is painted in a very skilled manner which is amazing for such a young artist. Bilibin is depicted with a big forehead, clear skin, attentive eyes, and a fashionable sharp beard. The artists’ whole life is ahead of them. Both would become not just popular, but widely recognized, both would live a beautiful and eventful life. The portrait of Bilibin was noticed at an academic exhibition and sent to Munich where it was recognized with the Small Gold Medal.