In 1960–1970-s, Korjun Kazanchan painted Stavropol and its peasants. Wheat fields stretching beyond the horizon, steppes, and trembling steppe air — a typical landscape of the region. Among Kazanchan’s paintings, the one that stands out is the Golden Summer monumental painting, which is housed in Stavropol Krai Museum of Fine Arts.
The painting shows young women walking down the prickly stover of a harvested field towards the viewer. They walk freely, upright, they are wearing light-coloured dresses, skirts, with shawls on their heads. Each of the heroines was painted by Kazanchan several times: sketches of individual figures, sketches of faces, and painting studies, which have also found their place in the museum collection. Female characters are true-to-life and monumental, they are inextricably linked with the landscape.
There is a choral element in the painting, which is characteristic of the Russian paintings in the 19th century, it adds scale and majesty to the canvas. The author paints freely, in broad strokes, Kazanchan keeps the colours fresh and bright. The painting is full of joy, simplicity and life energy of the women. The Golden Summer is full of optimism and romance of social realism, which was characteristic of the illustrative art of the Soviet period.
Kazanchan worked in the traditions of the Russian realism and the plein air art, in his works, he tried to render the tones and colour renditions as close to the natural, sun-lit colours as possible.
Kazanchan’s creative diapason covered all painting forms and genres — from a small study to a monumental panoramic canvas. The artist created a large portrait gallery: he painted quick portrait studies, deep psychological, intimate lyrical, bright ceremonial works. There are many landscapes in his body of work, however, Kazanchan’s major, as he believed, was a theme-based painting. The artist was very diligent, he would go to the place to collect the natural materials, would make a lot of drafts, sketches, and studies, would look for different compositions. His finished works have outstanding liveliness and freshness of the first impression. Kazanchan loved large, formatted paintings.
The Golden Summer is not only an important stage in the artist’s career but also a signature painting of the Stavropol region.
The painting shows young women walking down the prickly stover of a harvested field towards the viewer. They walk freely, upright, they are wearing light-coloured dresses, skirts, with shawls on their heads. Each of the heroines was painted by Kazanchan several times: sketches of individual figures, sketches of faces, and painting studies, which have also found their place in the museum collection. Female characters are true-to-life and monumental, they are inextricably linked with the landscape.
There is a choral element in the painting, which is characteristic of the Russian paintings in the 19th century, it adds scale and majesty to the canvas. The author paints freely, in broad strokes, Kazanchan keeps the colours fresh and bright. The painting is full of joy, simplicity and life energy of the women. The Golden Summer is full of optimism and romance of social realism, which was characteristic of the illustrative art of the Soviet period.
Kazanchan worked in the traditions of the Russian realism and the plein air art, in his works, he tried to render the tones and colour renditions as close to the natural, sun-lit colours as possible.
Kazanchan’s creative diapason covered all painting forms and genres — from a small study to a monumental panoramic canvas. The artist created a large portrait gallery: he painted quick portrait studies, deep psychological, intimate lyrical, bright ceremonial works. There are many landscapes in his body of work, however, Kazanchan’s major, as he believed, was a theme-based painting. The artist was very diligent, he would go to the place to collect the natural materials, would make a lot of drafts, sketches, and studies, would look for different compositions. His finished works have outstanding liveliness and freshness of the first impression. Kazanchan loved large, formatted paintings.
The Golden Summer is not only an important stage in the artist’s career but also a signature painting of the Stavropol region.
