Pay-Khoy is an old, heavily eroded mountain range in the center of the Yugorsky Peninsula, separating the Barents Sea and the Kara Sea. It is formed by rocky ridges and hills, stretching from the northern part of the Polar Urals for 200 kilometers. The range is characterized by a subarctic climate, with winters lasting up to 230 days and temperatures falling to as low as –40°C. In summer, the temperature variation can reach 25°C.

Sergey Astashev is a contemporary artist of the Komi Republic. He is a painter, draftsman, and graphic designer. His early works are imbued with symbols and allegories. Astashev is a portraitist. In each portrait, he strives to use unique techniques and emphasize the individuality of each person and their fate.

Sergey Astashev became interested in the lyrical landscape in the late 1980s, after a geological expedition to Pay-Khoy. This painting resembles a lunar landscape: there is almost no vegetation, while the surface is covered in stones and bizarre rock formations. The lines and colors form their own rhythmic combination. Depicting a tundra landscape, Sergey Astashev used such colors as yellow-green and ocher and in some areas reduced the shades with white paint. The artist conveyed a sense of a timeless moment in the immense space of the Russian North.

Sergey Astashev recalled that during an expedition to Pay-Khoy he accidentally shot a duck that had laid four eggs in its nest. The artist took care of the ducklings, carrying one of them under his clothes, and keeping the others near the stove,