Autumn. In the foreground, leaning down almost the entire height of the sketch are two massive trunks. Yellow, green and red leaves are everywhere, and the light sky is barely visible. The earth is still warm: heated by the summer sun, it has not yet cooled down. The autumn landscape is imbued with tenderness, subtlety and wisdom. It contains both joy and sadness, romantic pensiveness and despondency. This sketch depicts a quiet, cozy corner of the park at Anton Chekhov’s estate in Melikhovo.

The painting was created by Anton Pavlovich’s sister, Maria Chekhova. In the family Maria was known as Masheta and Ma-Pa, she was the only girl of the six children, three years younger than Anton. Maria Pavlovna was deeply interested in painting, she studied at the Stroganov Art School and at the private studio of Alexandra Khotyntseva, who knew the Chekhovs so well that she published a series of cartoons called “Chekhiada”. Maria was also trained by the artists Valentin Serov and Konstantin Korovin, who were friends of her elder brother, the painter Nikolay Chekhov; and Isaac Levitan was in love with her.

Maria Chekhova reminisced,

In Melikhovo, Maria Pavlovna ran the farm on the estate, helped her brother to treat peasants and build schools. When the Melikhovo school was built, Maria Pavlovna became its trustee. Painting had always been a source of inspiration for Maria Chekhova, and she enjoyed it very much.

Maria was often visited by her friends — women artists. Family friends willingly sat for her portraits. Anton Pavlovich was always keenly interested in his sister’s hobby and supported it. Numerous sketches by Maria Chekhova depicted parts of the Melikhovo house of the Chekhov era which helped to recreate it years later.