The crowded hall of the club was anxiously waiting for Gorky’s appearance. And then he came in: tall, with a southern tan, dressed in a light summer coat. Loud ovations rolled around the hall… We could see Alexey Maksimovich from the side, and so we began drawing him. After all, we saw our beloved writer for the first time, and he was very close, so very close.

The writer took his time looking at the satirical drawings of our ‘Old Moscow’ exhibition. Laughing dully into his mustache, he pointed to individual details in the drawings. He became interested in the dolls of our puppet theater. Then all of a sudden, a photographer rushed out of nowhere with a huge camera. He set up the chairs and sat us down with Gorky. The shutter of the camera clicked away as the photographer kept incessantly repeating: ‘This happens once in a lifetime.’

When it comes to caricatures, I don’t know if there was — and I don’t think that there was — such a ‘consubstantial and indivisible trinity’ as our Kukryniksy. Their talent is universally recognized; in the six years of their witty, fun work, they have perfectly proven the continuity of their growth and the value of their art… They are very talented, they do the right thing and can do it much better. I hope the three of them grow even closer as friends and become even more united in their work.