Nikolay Vasilyevich Ilyin, a well-known Soviet graphic artist, illustrator, and graphic designer, depicted an oval framing two black silhouette images in the illustration on display. These are profile half-length images with clear outlines. The characters look at each other, their faces close.

On the right is Mikhail Lermontov. The poet is wearing an officer’s cap, a frock coat with epaulets and an upturned collar with a buttonhole seen on its edge. The left arm is lowered. To the left of the poet is a lady wearing a hat with a high crown and a veil. Strands of her hair descend from under the hat to the back of the head, and her neck and sloping shoulders also have clear outlines.

Both figures are framed by thin branches with leaves bending down. The lyrical landscape is perfect for the romantic and intimate nature of the plot. The whole drawing is fit inside a horizontal oval shape, which the artist enhanced with a thin line, making the drawing look like a cameo.

The drawing is intended as a headpiece for Mikhail Lermontov’s poem “There are speeches, their meaning…” written in 1839. It also illustrates the poem and conveys the feelings and emotions contained within it.

The work was included in the album of Mariya Barteneva. There is a poem written by Lermontov in 1831 that is called “To Barteneva”. It was created for a New Year’s ball and dedicated to Praskovya, a famous singer and Mariya’s sister.

The main idea of the poem is that the words of a loved one, uttered in difficult times, can be of truly great support.

Mikhail Lermontov noted that in everyday life important words may not be heard among all its hustle and bustle and will not possess that innermost meaning that comes to the surface in times of loneliness and longing:

The engraving was reproduced in the book “Mikhail Lermontov. Poetry” published in 1958. The work was acquired by the museum from the artist’s son in 1978.