After leaving for Moscow in 1925, Alexander Mikhailovich Gerasimov often visited his native town of Kozlov (which was renamed Michurinsk in 1932). The artist stayed very attached to his homeland throughout for life. In his book of memoirs, Alexander Gerasimov wrote, “My love for painting was nourished by the fragrance of my native fields and steppes.”
The painting “Studio in Michurinsk” depicts the estate of the painter’s father Mikhail Safronovich Gerasimov with the studio, where over a hundred well-known works were created, located in the middle. Alexander Mikhailovich himself converted the barn into his studio: he installed a large window there, just like in his Moscow workshop. However, there was still little light, and it was cold, as the studio did not have any heating, but Gerasimov was quite content with the place where he could work during his stay in Michurinsk. The artist’s studio is part of the museum complex “Estate Museum of the People’s Artist of the USSR Alexander Mikhailovich Gerasimov”, which now houses a desktop, an easel brought from a Moscow studio, brushes and paints. The household items, that belonged to the family, and the preserved stone flooring, that was laid by Mikhail Gerasimov, enhance the special ambiance of this place.
The estate museum has retained the typical arrangement of an urban merchant’s estate of the late 19th century: a two-story brick house, built in 1886 by the artist’s father Mikhail Safronovich, outbuildings, and a veranda. This is the place where Alexander Gerasimov spent his childhood and youth and lived with his family after the revolution, from 1918 to 1925. Even after he left the town, the artist never lost contact with his homeland. He came there every year to visit his parents and sister and to spend some time painting. The last time Alexander Mikhailovich came to his parents’ house was in 1961.
The painting “Studio in Michurinsk”, created in 1936, is remarkable not only from an artistic point of view: it helped to restore the dilapidated studio during preparations for the opening of the estate museum. The winter landscape depicts a view of the estate: on the left is a barn, that has not survived to this day; in the center is an old wooden fence, revealing the studio surrounded by trees; on the right is a brick wall of the house. Alexander Gerasimov perfectly conveys the winter atmosphere: piles of loose snow, painted in impasto strokes, with transitions from crystal white to gray-blue, wooden sleds left by children, and snow-covered straw. The picture radiates the artist’s deep and affectionate feelings and gratitude toward his home and the years spent in Kozlov-Michurinsk.
The painting “Studio in Michurinsk” depicts the estate of the painter’s father Mikhail Safronovich Gerasimov with the studio, where over a hundred well-known works were created, located in the middle. Alexander Mikhailovich himself converted the barn into his studio: he installed a large window there, just like in his Moscow workshop. However, there was still little light, and it was cold, as the studio did not have any heating, but Gerasimov was quite content with the place where he could work during his stay in Michurinsk. The artist’s studio is part of the museum complex “Estate Museum of the People’s Artist of the USSR Alexander Mikhailovich Gerasimov”, which now houses a desktop, an easel brought from a Moscow studio, brushes and paints. The household items, that belonged to the family, and the preserved stone flooring, that was laid by Mikhail Gerasimov, enhance the special ambiance of this place.
The estate museum has retained the typical arrangement of an urban merchant’s estate of the late 19th century: a two-story brick house, built in 1886 by the artist’s father Mikhail Safronovich, outbuildings, and a veranda. This is the place where Alexander Gerasimov spent his childhood and youth and lived with his family after the revolution, from 1918 to 1925. Even after he left the town, the artist never lost contact with his homeland. He came there every year to visit his parents and sister and to spend some time painting. The last time Alexander Mikhailovich came to his parents’ house was in 1961.
The painting “Studio in Michurinsk”, created in 1936, is remarkable not only from an artistic point of view: it helped to restore the dilapidated studio during preparations for the opening of the estate museum. The winter landscape depicts a view of the estate: on the left is a barn, that has not survived to this day; in the center is an old wooden fence, revealing the studio surrounded by trees; on the right is a brick wall of the house. Alexander Gerasimov perfectly conveys the winter atmosphere: piles of loose snow, painted in impasto strokes, with transitions from crystal white to gray-blue, wooden sleds left by children, and snow-covered straw. The picture radiates the artist’s deep and affectionate feelings and gratitude toward his home and the years spent in Kozlov-Michurinsk.
